Migrating from Thunderbird to Evolution E-mail

Step 1: Initial program configuration

1. Run the "Software Manager" application in your Linux distribution to access the "application store". Do a search for "evolution"...several different packages should appear.

2. Install the following packages:

evolution
evolution-ews
evolution-plugins

3. Run Evolution...an initial welcome window should appear. Click "Next".

4. Click "Next" to skip past the "Restore from Backup" window.

5. In the "Identity" window enter all relevant personal information. Uncheck the box to have the program query the server based on the entered information. Click "Next" when done.

6. In the "Receiving Email" window enter the following information:

Server Type: Exchange Web Services

Username: <your e-mail address>@ur.rochester.edu

Host URL: {{https://outlook.office365.com/EWS/Exchange.asmx}}

(Leave all other fields/options alone)

Click the "Fetch URL" button so Evolution can query the mail service. You should be asked for your e-mail password...please enter it. Once that finishes, the "OAB URL" field should autofill. If it does, click "Next".

7. In the "Receiving Options" window, set the "Check for new messages" option to 2 minutes, then click "Next".

8. In the "Account Summary" window, set the name of your account to something useful, then click "Next". Then click "Apply" at the final window.

9. The main Evolution mail window should now appear, along with a password prompt for your account. Once you've entered your password your mail folders should appear in the column on the left.

Step 2: Importing address book(s)

We can migrate your address book(s) from Thunderbird to Evolution (which utilizes the "Contacts" function in the program for this).

1. Within Thunderbird, at the top click on "Window -> Address book".

2. In the resulting window you'll see a few address books listed in the column on the left. Highlight the "All Address Books" header, then at the top click on "Tools -> Export". An Export window for each address book should now appear. Select where the file should be saved (your Desktop is fine), set the format to "vCard", then click the "Save" button to save the file. Do this for each address book.

3. Within Evolution, click on the "Contacts" button in the bottom left corner of the main window.

4. Within the Contacts section at the top click on "File -> Import". This will open the "Evolution Import Assistant". Click "Next" to get started.

5. In the "Importer Type" window, select "Import a single file" and click "Next".

6. In the "Select a File" window, click on the "Filename" field to open a file selector. Select one of your exported address books. The window should automatically identify the file as being a vCard file. Click "Next".

7. In the "Import Location" window select the "Personal" field under the "On This Computer" header, then click "Next". Click "Apply" in the final window to import the address book.

8. Repeat steps 1-7 for any other address books you wish to import.

Step 3: Importing your local mailboxes

First step is to install an add-on in Thunderbird called ImportExportTools. We will use it to export your mail folders from Thunderbird in a format Apple Mail can easily import. Please note: this process can only export Thunderbird mail folders residing at the "main" folder level. If you have nested mail folders (ie: mail folders within other mail folders), this process will NOT import those nested folders. You'll need to move all of these nested folder to the "main" folder level by dragging them to the "Local Folders" header.

1. Go to this website to download the ImportExportTools add-on for Thunderbird: https://addons.thunderbird.net/en-US/thunderbird/addon/importexporttools/ This add-on should download to your "Downloads" folder.

2. Open Thunderbird, then at the top click on "Tools -> Add-ons". In the resulting window click on "Extensions" in the column on the left. In the area to the right, click on the gear icon and select "Install Add-on From File". When the file selector appears, select your "Downloads" folder select the file "importexporttools-3.3.0-sm+tb.xpi", then click the "Open" button. A dialog box should appear asking you to verify you want to install the add-on. Do so. You'll then need to restart Thunderbird for the change to take place.

3. On your desktop, create a folder called "Exported Mailboxes".

4. When Thunderbird restarts you'll now be in a position to export your mail from Thunderbird. Within Thunderbird, right-click the "Local Folders" header in the column on the left, then from the resulting menu "ImportExportTools -> Export All The Folders". A file selector will open...navigate to your desktop, then select the "Exported Mailboxes" folder you created in the last step and click on the "Open" button. The add-on will now proceed to export all of your local mail folders.

5. Now we need to import your mailboxes into Evolution. Within the program, click on the "Mail" button in the bottom left corner of the main window.

6. Within the Mail section at the top click on "File -> Import". This will open the "Evolution Import Assistant". Click "Next" to get started.

7. In the "Importer Type" window, select "Import a single file" and click "Next".

8. In the "Select a File" window, click on the "Filename" field to open a file selector. Go to your "Exported Mailboxes" folder on your desktop and select a mailbox file. The window should automatically identify the file as being a Berkeley Mailbox (mbox) file. Click "Next".

9. In the "Import Location" window click on the "Destination folder" field, then select the "On This Computer" header. Click the "+" button in the bottom left corner...this will bring up the "Create Folder" window. The "On This Computer" header should be highlighted. Type in the name of the mailbox you want to import in the "Folder name" field at the top, then click the "Create" button. Back in the "Select folder" window, select the mailbox you just created and click "OK". The "Import Location" window should now specify the name of the mailbox you're trying to import. Click "Next", then "Apply" in the final window to import the mail for this mailbox.

10. Tediously repeat this process for every mailbox you wish to import.

Step 4: Importing your calendar/tasks from Lightning

We can migrate your calendar entries/tasks from Thunderbird's Lightning calendar to Evolution (which utilizes the "Calendar" function in the program for this).

1. Within Thunderbird, open up the calendar. Under "Events and Tasks" at the top of the window, select Export. A file selector will appear...save the file to your Desktop folder and select "iCalendar (.ics)" format.

2. Within Evolution, click on the "Calendar" button in the bottom left corner of the main window.

3. Within the Calendar section at the top click on "File -> Import". This will open the "Evolution Import Assistant". Click "Next" to get started.

4. In the "Importer Type" window, select "Import a single file" and click "Next".

5. In the "Select a File" window, click on the "Filename" field to open a file selector. Select your exported calendar file. The window should automatically identify the file as being an iCalendar ICS file. Click "Next".

6. In the "Import Location" window select the "Appointments and Meetings" button, then select the "Personal" field under the "On This Computer" header, then click "Next". Click "Apply" in the final window to import your calendar entries.

7. Repeat this process a second time, except in Step 7 select the "Tasks" option instead of "Appointments and Meetings". This will import your task entries.

EvolutionMailMigration (last edited 2019-03-13 15:53:39 by WikiAdministrator)

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