Thunderbird stealing web browser preference. [Linux.]

[LIMPET235]

OK, I thought this was just a bug in Cinnamon desktop, but now I've seen it with Mate as well.

I am finding that on occasion Thunderbird is getting set as the "default" application for web browsing. Normally I would be using Firefox-ESR as my preferred browser, but then I'll find I can't open links, and that will be because Thunderbird will inexplicably be set as my web browser (Preferred Applications setting in both Cinnamon and Mate desktops, LinuxMint 18.2). I'll set it back, and it actually stays correct for a day or two (maybe more if I put my system to sleep rather than shut down and restart). As I said, I thought it might have been something in Cinnamon (quirk happens on two separate machines), but now I saw it on another machine running Mate desktop (the only common factor would be both are derivatives of Gnome some years back).

[LIMPET235]

Moving to Thunderbird Support...

[tanstaafl]

Are you using a Mozilla build or a third party build provided by your Linux distro? If the latter, it might be a bug in the third party build. Ubuntu's Thunderbird build has a history of adding patches that Mozilla didn't consider ready yet for production use, and making minor changes to where stuff is stored. Perhaps LinuxMint is doing the same thing (or inherited it from Ubuntu).

[jelabarre59]

This is with the standard Thunderbird included with LinuxMint/Ubuntu. It did it again today in fact. Seems if Firefox is running, Thunderbird will steal the setting

[tanstaafl]

I don't know whats causing it, especially since its not repeatable upon demand. See if setting the browser used by Thunderbird per http://kb.mozillazine.org/Changing_the_ ... hunderbird and then setting the system default browser per http://kb.mozillazine.org/Default_browser helps.

[jelabarre59]

I've swithed my default browser to Waterfox, and encountered the same issue today. Still haven't nailed down the exact sequence to make it switch.