Configuring Thunderbird for IMAP

Configuring Thunderbird for IMAP

These notes assume that you have downloaded and installed Thunderbird.  When you first run Thunderbird you have to configure your email account. 

When you first start up Thunderbird after installing it, if Eudora is installed on the PC you will be asked if you want to import messages, settings and addresses from Eudora.  Do not import anything at this stage.  Wait until you have done the basic configuration of Thunderbird as shown in the following pages.

Most of the configuration options you need to set are in the Account Settings.  You can create one or more accounts.  There is also a special account called Local Folder.  The picture in section 1 below shows the Account Settings window with one account (called "MMM45") plus the Local Folders account.

Start up Thunderbird and choose Account Settings from the Tools menu.

Click Add Account and complete the account settings as described in the following sections.  You can create more than one account, for example if you use a non-personal (functional) email account as well as your own personal email.

1. Add your account(s)

 

Account name: Identify clearly each of the accounts you create 

Give your name and email address as you want them to appear in your messages. With "Reply-to" address you can control what address your correspondents use when replying to your message.

If you use a signature you should have created a text file before you started Thunderbird. Now click Choose and locate your signature file. Alternatively, you can add your signature inthis window.

Create multiple identities if you want to use different templates, signature, email address, Bcc, "Sent" folder etc. See Section 12 below.

2. Locate your Local Folders

It is a good idea to locate your Local Folders in an easily accessible place on your PC. 

Click on Local Folders in the Account Settings window and then click Browse. 

Browse to find your My Documents folder or your Data drive (E:).  If you created a folder at the start of the process, locate it, highlight it and click OK.

If you didn't create the folder at the outset, you can do it now by clicking the Make New Folder button.

3. Specify server settings for your account(s)

Note the local directory for this account, where local copies of IMAP folders and your preferences are stored.  This is different from the location you chose for the Local Folders account. 

Specify the Server Settings for your account(s).

• Enter your Server Name: as imap.st-andrews.ac.uk 
• Under Security Settings choose SSL (do NOT place a tick in the the Use secure authentication check box)

Click the Advanced button

4. Connect to your IMAP account

Now that you have created the IMAP account you should connect to it.  This can be done by RIGHT-clicking on the account name in the left-hand pane of the Thunderbird window, and choosing Get mail for account from the pop-up menu.

If you have used Webmail or any other IMAP email client you would expect to see the mail folders listed on the left-hand side.  If you don't it means you need to subscribe to the folders.

5. Subscribe to folders

Point at the account name in the left hand side of the window (under where it says "Folders") and choose Subscribe  from the pop-up menu. 

In the "Subscribe" dialog-box put a tick in the boxes beside the folders you want to subscribe to (perhaps all of them, perhaps just the most recent and active folders).  Make sure you subscribe to the sent-mail folder if there is one.  Click OK.

6. Choose where to store messages

For your "Sent" folder, choose the same folder as you use with Webmail, which is probably "sent-mail".  

If the folder doesn't already exist you have to create it before you can choose it. See below (section 16) for instructions for creating a folder.

Store skeleton messages in the Templates folder; to use a template, open the templates folder and complete the message. When you send the message the template remains unchanged.

Drafts are messages that you have saved but not sent.  Resume composition of a draft by opening the Drafts folder and double-clicking the draft message. When sent, the draft is removed from the folder.

7. Define how you compose and address messages

Turn off the compose in HTML format. You can over-ride this setting for individual messages.

Once you have set up an LDAP addressbook, you can select it from the list under Use a different LDAP server. (See section 10 below for instructions on setting up an LDAP Addressbook.)

"LDAP" refers to the database that we use for (amongst other things) the directory service.

8. Make your messages available offline

You might want to make your messages available offline if you are going to be away from your network connection - for example if you want to work on your email while travelling. They will not be deleted from the server.

If you leave the Offline options unchecked, only the headers of your messages are downloaded to your local machine.

Keep the "Don't delete any messages" option turned ON unless you are sure you know what you are doing.  Automatic deletion can surprise you.

9. Define your outgoing (SMTP) mail server

Even if you have multiple accounts and multiple identities, Thunderbird recommends using the same sending mail server.  Usemailhost.st-andrews.ac.uk

Click Edit then add details as follows:

Settings

• Description - you can leave this blank (or enter MAILHOST)
• Server Name - mailhost.st-andrews.ac.uk
• Port - set to 587 

Security and Authentication

• Use name and password - place a tick the check box
• Use secure connection - select STARTTLS (do NOT place a tick in the the Use secure authentication check box).

10. Set up directory services (LDAP addressbook)

• Open the Tools menu and select Options
• Select Composition 
• On the Addressing tab place a tick in the Dierectory Server: check box
• Click the Edit Directories... button

• A new window will open. Click the Add button

 

• A new window will open. Select the General tab then enter the server details as shown below

• Do NOT place a tick in the Use secure connection (SSL) check box
• Next, click the Advanced tab.

 

• In the Search filter: box enter the details as shown:

(objectclass=StAndExtendedPerson)

This search filter will allow you to search LDAP for St Andrews users

• Click OK

 

• Go to the Addressing section and click the arrow on the right of the drop-down list

• Select University Directory from the list

• Click OK to complete the setup

11. Manage identities

In addition to having more than one account, you can also configure different identities for one particular account. This lets you present yourself in a different way - for example you can give your job-title rather than your name.  This is the way to set up more than one signature for an account.

In the main Account settings window (see section 1 above) click "Manage Identities". Then click "Add" and you will get the "Identity Settings" window as shown here.

The "Copies & Folders" and "Composition & Addressing" tabs correspond to the Settings windows shown in sections 6 and 7 above.

12. Modify general settings

The settings described so far can be set differently for different accounts, for example for your own personal account and for a shared departmental account.  There are other settings which define the way the program as a whole behaves, for all the accounts that you use.

To modify these global settings, choose Options from the Tools menu.  There are several categories of option, listed across the top of the Options window.

In the General  category you can say whether you want Thunderbird to be your default application for Mail.

13. Modify display settings

Under Display you can specify the formatting of messages and choose the fonts. Note that these are the formats and fonts used to display messages in your Thunderbird, and do not prescribe the fonts that are used when sending messages.

14. Modify email forwarding settings

Under Composition click on General. In the drop-down list labelled Forward messages choose Inline (otherwise messages will be forwarded as attachments, which most people find confusing).

If you have chosen not to compose in HTML (recommended) you don't need to configure the Send options. 

15. Modify how long messages stay marked as new

Click Advanced and then the General tab.

If you don't want messages in your Inbox to be marked as Read too quickly you should tick the Wait box and enter a number of seconds, say 10.

When you have finished setting the options, click OK

16. Create new mail folders

Creating folders for an account:  in the left-hand panel of the Thunderbird window RIGHT-click on the account name (for example, here, RIGHT-click on mmm45 @st-andrews.ac.uk)

and choose New folder from the pop-up menu.

In the dialog-box type a name for the folder and choose

Folders Only if your folder is to have sub-folders Messages Only if your folder is not to contain sub-folders. 

Click OK

17. Enable spell-checking

Spell-checking: to enable or disable spell-checking choose Options from the Tools menu, then click on Composition and then the Spelling tab.

You can check spelling as you type or only check before sending (in which case the spell-check starts when you click the Send button to send your message).

You can download additional dictionaries by clicking the Download More Dictionaries link. 

18. Download and install dictionaries

You will be taken to the Mozilla web-site and shown a list of languages. RIGHT click on the language you want and choose "Save link as..." from the pop-up menu.  Save the dictionary on your Desktop.

Back in Thunderbird, choose Extensions from the Tools menu. This will display the extensions window. Drag the dictionary from your desktop into the Extensions window.  You may receive a warning about installing software. Click Install.  You should receive a message saying the dictionary has been installed, but it will not be listed in the Extensions window. 

Now go back and choose Options from the Tools menu and then Composition and Spelling as above. You can now choose the language you want from the drop-down list.