Importing a tree of mbox files from kmail(1)

[pwabrahams]

My migration from kmail to kmail2 has been a disaster, and as a result of a bad move I made in trying to make things better, I made things worse, and all my previous mail vanished.

But all was not lost; the old kmail files are still completely intact. I discovered that they were in mbox form and that I could recover them by importing them. However, they are embedded in a large tree of folders, so importing them one by one would be a long and painful procedure. Is there a way to import the entire tree in a single operation? (If you understand the previous kmail folder structure, you know just what it is that I'm trying to import.)

[skotadopsyxos]

Re: Importing a tree of mbox files from kmail(1)

if you have backed-up the previous kmail folder you could just retry migrating...
if not..
go to kmail>>configure kmail>>accounts>>add maildir and point to the folder you want...
that should work but not really guaranteed...
if it doesn't I would try importing them on an old kmail and trying migrate from that and redo the configuration explained above...

[pwabrahams]

Empty folder

I've carefully removed the files from my previous migration attempts and migrated again. I get all the correct folders within Local Folders -- but they are all empty! Any idea why, or what to do about it?

I tried to load an older version of kmail, but no go! Synaptic says there are no earlier versions than Oneiric available.

[claydoh]

Re: Importing a tree of mbox files from kmail(1)

have you tried to reload Local Folders? Right-click on the folder and select "Update folders and subfolders" This has worked for me, I believe the folders are refreshed after a time, but I am not sure.

Not something you would expect to have to do, I wonder if it is just that the mails are there, but akonadi hasn't read or loaded them

[pwabrahams]

Reloading the local files

Reloading the local files seems to have done the trick, causing the empty folders to be filled. I still have to pick up the pieces from my unsuccessful attempts to solve this problem, since the incoming messages from the last few days are now scattered in several different places and current incoming messages aren't being picked up. But I probably can deal with those issues on my own (keeping my fingers crossed). The worst seems to be over.

I wonder, though, why Local Folders shows up as an account. I just don't see the logic behind that, since unlike the actual Internet ISP accounts, it has neither sending nor receiving protocols. Thinking it was there in error was the cause of many of my problems.

Thanks so much, claydoh. May the Internet Gods smile upon thee!