Under Tools/Account Settings, Synchronization & Storage for the Shaw account, Disk Space, do you have any settings that delete messages after a certain time? If not, do you have a security program scanning email that might have quarantined the Inbox? If you right-click the Shaw Inbox in the folder pane, Properties, what is the Status on the Quota tab? These settings apply to an IMAP account; POP settings may be different.

These options aren't available on the new version. The Shaw rep checked everything on the account and could find no obvious cause in Settings; nothing has been changed by me. I also can't check Thunderbird for this type of Setting. Is there such a capability built in to the program?

In the TB main window, there is a Tools selection on the Menu Bar. Press Alt if the Menu Bar is hidden. The settings I refer to are for the Shaw account you have set up in TB, not the Shaw webmail page.

That helps. The instructions (checked box) are to NOT delete any messages. I now recall having made that spec, just forgot how to get there :) The Shaw rep thought another possibility was someone guessed my password and did a delete for me. I changed my password since.

In case the messages are permanently lost, any idea how I can feasibly send the old messages from the Thunderbird account to the original Shaw system; i.e., restock the archives?

Regards

Dave

Is the account set up in TB as POP or IMAP? Look at Server Settings in Tools/Account Settings. When you view the account by webmail, is the Inbox empty? It appears to me you have some messages in the TB Inbox because it's a POP setup, and the default for POP is to delete from the server after downloading to TB - which would make them disappear from the webmail Inbox.

If that's the case, you really should set up the account as IMAP in TB, to have the mail synchronized no matter how you view it, in TB, by webmail, another computer or a phone.

Going to that Server section, there is an option box for leaving messages in server for (a) 14 days max (adjustable) or (b) until I delete them. BOTH were checked (must have been a default). I've changed it, of course. Wish I'd been alerted to that page. Here I've been blaming Shaw. Thanks so much for your help.

Takes me back to the question about restocking my Shaw server...am I going to have to go to Shaw about that, or is it possible directly with Thunderbird?

Your account appears to be POP, so the simple way would be to forward the messages to yourself. That might work for a small number of messages, but the smart way would be to add the account as IMAP, then move the already-downloaded mail to the IMAP Inbox in TB by drag and drop. Copy your existing POP account mail to Local Folders before doing this.

IMAP settings are: incoming server imap.shaw.ca on port 993, SSL/TLS security, authentication = normal password, User name = part of email address before the @; outgoing server mail.shaw.ca on port 587, STARTTLS security, authentication = normal password, User name = part of email address before the @.

https://community.shaw.ca/docs/DOC-1056#imapwith