Member Avatar for jholm

I have been using Thunderbird for some time now. I downloaded the newest version yesterday, and I can not get it to start. I have downloaded and reloaded it a number of times and get the same result. It won't run. Any ideas. I did reload my OS X 10.5.8 system, but archived everything in the process. It was after that that Thunderbird wouldn't work. So downloaded the newer version.

Thanks, jholm

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Dani AI

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Brief, practical checklist to isolate why Thunderbird 3.1.2 refuses to launch (builds on 's note about an archived OS install and 's Snow Leopard environment; correctly suggested Safe Mode).

Start by isolating the profile (most common cause)

  • Back up the profile folder before touching anything: open Finder, press Command+Shift+G and go to ~/Library/Thunderbird/Profiles/. Copy that Profiles folder to an external drive.
  • Rename the Profiles folder to something like Profiles-disabled (so Thunderbird must create a fresh profile on next launch). If Thunderbird starts, the original profile is corrupted and can be inspected/restored bit‑by‑bit.

Safe Mode and a clean profile without extensions

  • Launching Thunderbird with the safe-mode flag disables add-ons and helps confirm whether an extension causes the hang. From Terminal the macOS-friendly way to pass the flag is:
    open -a "Thunderbird" --args -safe-mode
  • If safe mode starts OK, use the Add-ons manager to permanently disable or remove extensions, then restart normally. Alternatively create a new profile (Profile Manager) and import only essential files.

Look for system clues and permission problems

  • Use Console.app (Applications > Utilities > Console) and search for “Thunderbird” or the timestamp of the failed launch to find a crash report or exception. Those lines usually point to the failing library or resource.
  • Check ownership/permissions on the profile and the app. A safe repair command for the profile (after a backup) is:
    sudo chown -R $(whoami) ~/Library/Thunderbird

Other useful checks

  • Search the disk for any relocated profile (an OS archive can change locations); Spotlight search for “Thunderbird” or “Profiles” if the folder disappeared.
  • Try launching from a fresh macOS user account to see if it’s a per-user issue.
  • Before deleting anything, keep copies of Mail, ImapMail, and Local Folders from the profile so local POP mail isn’t lost.

These steps resolve the majority of “won’t start” cases without reinstalling mail data.

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Member Avatar for phiryan

Thunderbird has crashed. Cannot open so reinstalled and still cannot open. Any suggestions? Have a MacBook Pro - snow leopard op system.

Member Avatar for Member #814414

Could it be any add-ons or extensions causing the problem (don't use Thunderbird myself, so I don't know for sure)?

Try running it in Safe Mode (from the Thunderbird website) by typing this in Terminal. cd /Applications/Thunderbird.app/Contents/MacOS/./thunderbird-bin -safe-mode

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