Solved: Upgrade to T'bird 60.2.1 zaps Lightning Calender add-on

[boblynn]

Install that file via synaptic again !!! Just click or right click on it, then select re-install ...
As long as that add-on is visible in Thunderbird, it's not going to work ...

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Thank you for your prompt reply.

I have 're-installed' the file via Synaptic several times.
It shows it has been installed via synaptic package manager but never shows as an add on in TBird so I can not 'delete the add-on' as you suggest.

[ctfolmar]

I tried several things before installing with Synaptic Package Manager. I uninstalled with SPM before I re-installed. Now the calendar is back and synced with my Google Calendar. Thanks again for the help.

[boblynn]

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You can try this link for help maybe.
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/ca ... hunderbird

Look at this section
When I use my user profile from a previous Thunderbird version with a newer version of Thunderbird, Lightning is not updated

Thank you for your suggestion but I tried that before seeking help on the forum.

That tag [extensions.installedDistroAddon.] does not show up in the config editor.

[HaveaMint]

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Maybe rename your .thunderbird to .thunderbirdold to save all you important stuff and restart tb letting it create a new folder then get it setup like you want and slowly copy files into the new from the old verifing that all is working

[HaveaMint]

For sure keep your old folder for a few days or more to make sure all is OK.

[boblynn]

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Maybe rename your .thunderbird to .thunderbirdold to save all you important stuff and restart tb letting it create a new folder then get it setup like you want and slowly copy files into the new from the old verifing that all is working

Ok, I will try that.

I had to set up the account all over again and I now have (a blank) account with a (blank) calendar and task tab. Now I will try transferring the files from the old folder. I was trying to avoid starting from scratch but thank you for your suggestion.

UPDATE: Copied over "Calendar-data folder and mail folder. When I opened TBird the mail and calendar data did not appear.
UPDATE: Calendar data in a format I am unable to read [local.sqlite]. - Sorry but this is not a viable solution.

[LinWinux]

Install that file via synaptic again !!! Just click or right click on it, then select re-install ...
As long as that add-on is visible in Thunderbird, it's not going to work ...

.

Thank you for your prompt reply.

I have 're-installed' the file via Synaptic several times.
It shows it has been installed via synaptic package manager but never shows as an add on in TBird so I can not 'delete the add-on' as you suggest.

If you had lightning working before, like last month for example, then it could only work as an add-on. Until the recent upgrade to Thunderbird by Mozilla, there was no other way !!!!! You had to install lightning as an add-on and because of this, lightning has to appear in the add-ons section. At this point, I'm not even sure that I understand what you're talking about anymore. For years, lightning has always been an add-on which had to be "added" to Thunderbird separately. There was no other way to have the calendar & tasks function working.
Once an add-on has been installed, it shows up under the section for add-ons ...
Look at your file menu. Find the part that says add-ons and click on it.

(You realize of course that add-ons can't be seen just by opening Thunderbird. You have to actually find the add-ons section in the file menu and then click on it in order to be able to see all of your installed add-ons)

If you look at the add-ons and you don't see lightning there as a ... DISABLED ... add-on due to incompatibility ...
Then you never had lightning installed in the first place.
Installed add-ons, working or not, appear in the add-ons section.
Been that way for as long as I've been using Thunderbird ... 11 years now.

If you never had the add-on installed, and if you have the correct file installed via synaptic, then close your thunderbird, followed by rebooting your machine, and checking to see if the lightning calendar shows up now. If it doesn't show up, then you've done something to your system aside from merely reading these posts and merely following the instructions. Something must have broken somewhere and things generally don't just break by themselves to where they can't be fixed anymore.

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[sgtor]

As Linux users we're very used to making changes and not needing to reboot.
I had to reboot before the solution worked so for anyone who hasn't rebooted try that.

[boblynn]

Install that file via synaptic again !!! Just click or right click on it, then select re-install ...
As long as that add-on is visible in Thunderbird, it's not going to work ...

.

Thank you for your prompt reply.

I have 're-installed' the file via Synaptic several times.
It shows it has been installed via synaptic package manager but never shows as an add on in TBird so I can not 'delete the add-on' as you suggest.

If you had lightning working before, like last month for example, then it could only work as an add-on. Until the recent upgrade to Thunderbird by Mozilla, there was no other way !!!!! You had to install lightning as an add-on and because of this, lightning has to appear in the add-ons section. At this point, I'm not even sure that I understand what you're talking about anymore. For years, lightning has always been an add-on which had to be "added" to Thunderbird separately. There was no other way to have the calendar & tasks function working.
Once an add-on has been installed, it shows up under the section for add-ons ...
Look at your file menu. Find the part that says add-ons and click on it.

(You realize of course that add-ons can't be seen just by opening Thunderbird. You have to actually find the add-ons section in the file menu and then click on it in order to be able to see all of your installed add-ons)

If you look at the add-ons and you don't see lightning there as a ... DISABLED ... add-on due to incompatibility ...
Then you never had lightning installed in the first place.
Installed add-ons, working or not, appear in the add-ons section.
Been that way for as long as I've been using Thunderbird ... 11 years now.

If you never had the add-on installed, and if you have the correct file installed via synaptic, then close your thunderbird, followed by rebooting your machine, and checking to see if the lightning calendar shows up now. If it doesn't show up, then you've done something to your system aside from merely reading these posts and merely following the instructions. Something must have broken somewhere and things generally don't just break by themselves to where they can't be fixed anymore.

.

Thank you LinWinux for your detailed reply.

I have been using TBird with Lightning for several years (since LM8) up until the recent TBird update which (as the post states) "Upgrade to T'bird 60.2.1 zaps Lightning Calender add-on".

Lightning is the ONLY add-on I use so going thru the file menus took me to the Add-ons page where the most recent version (on the page) was 54 and reports :This add-on is not compatible with your version of Thunderbird".

A google search turned up the support page with the config editor suggestion which didn't work.

That lead me to seek help on the forum where I found this "Solved" thread and started trying the suggestions.

This thread shows I am not the only one whos TBird update "zaps Lightning..." So here I am.

At this point I see only two options:
1. Rename my old TBird folder to [.thunderbirdold] and let TBird create a new one. (Which works and restores Lightning albeit empty of any calendar/Tasks data as well as email history and current in box.

2. Revert to the previous version of TBird (v52?) and hopefully recover all data up until the update.

So option 2 seems the only viable solution unless you have any other suggestions?

Thank you for all your help.

[boblynn]

As Linux users we're very used to making changes and not needing to reboot.
I had to reboot before the solution worked so for anyone who hasn't rebooted try that.

Than you for your suggestion but I tried the reboot also with out any luck.

[LinWinux]

I have been using TBird with Lightning for several years (since LM8) up until the recent TBird update which (as the post states) "Upgrade to T'bird 60.2.1 zaps Lightning Calender add-on".

Lightning is the ONLY add-on I use so going thru the file menus took me to the Add-ons page where the most recent version (on the page) was 54 and reports :This add-on is not compatible with your version of Thunderbird".

This thread shows I am not the only one whos TBird update "zaps Lightning..." So here I am.

.

This is exactly what I'm talking about ... basically your own words ... displays the add-on as not compatible.

In other words, the add-on is actually there, but it has been disabled because it is not compatible with the new Thunderbird.

If you can tell that much, then you should also be able to remove / delete the disabled add-on.
It obviously couldn't be disabled if it didn't exist, right?
Once it's been removed, close and restart Thunderbird.
Removing the disabled add-on is the scary part ... but it works just fine.

.

[ctfolmar]

Using Synaptic Package Manager, I first uninstalled everything Lightning related. Then I reinstalled Lightning with SPM. It finally worked after that.

[boblynn]

I have been using TBird with Lightning for several years (since LM8) up until the recent TBird update which (as the post states) "Upgrade to T'bird 60.2.1 zaps Lightning Calender add-on".

Lightning is the ONLY add-on I use so going thru the file menus took me to the Add-ons page where the most recent version (on the page) was 54 and reports :This add-on is not compatible with your version of Thunderbird".

This thread shows I am not the only one whos TBird update "zaps Lightning..." So here I am.

.

This is exactly what I'm talking about ... basically your own words ... displays the add-on as not compatible.

In other words, the add-on is actually there, but it has been disabled because it is not compatible with the new Thunderbird.

If you can tell that much, then you should also be able to remove / delete the disabled add-on.
It obviously couldn't be disabled if it didn't exist, right?
Once it's been removed, close and restart Thunderbird.
Removing the disabled add-on is the scary part ... but it works just fine.

.

Thank you for your patience LinWinux

I found the problem!

The menu item Tools/Add-ons page took me directly to the "Get Add-ons" web page where only a list of add-ons available AND noted that Lightning v54 was Not compatible with my version of TBird as I indicated. However, a further google search turned up a suggestion which referenced the "Extension" tab. This is where I found the 'Disabled add-on 54". I was then able to remove/delete the disabled add-on, as you suggested, and upon restarting TBird, Lightning was restored with all my data! (I was focused on "Add-ons" and Not Extensions so it never occurred to me to look on that tab.)

Thank you for your help. I really appreciate your patience.

[smifrt]

when I ran "apt hold Thunderbird" I had time to search for solutions to the "lightning calendar" situation, I now have more information and I need to reverse this script, how do I do this?

[LinWinux]

Um, ah, what are you talking about?
What is "apt hold" ... I never heard of that before.
Do you have a post or a link as a reference to "apt hold" ... since I couldn't find it with google either?

.

[smifrt]

Sorry, did not give reasons. In this search for adding lightning to updated TB a post advised rolling back to a situation where TB was running with lightning and to stop TB updating and losing lightning, hold TB at the last release, therefore "apt hold Thunderbird". This was suggested as a stop gap until people found the way to add the latest TB version and have lightning as well. I have not been able to find the relevant post, however TB will not update to latest version on my machine and I wish to release this hold instruction now I know the situation with latest update to TB.

[smifrt]

Found the post where "apt hold thunderbird:- AZgl1500 » Tue Oct 16, 2018 5:54 am

[LinWinux]

Alright, I'm going to assume that somewhere on your computer or on a stick or external hard disk, you have a backup of your home location and Thunderbird with your old, working copy of lightning? If so, then the following is your solution ...

Make sure that Thunderbird is closed.
Go to your current home/user folder and then delete the two .mozilla and .thunderbird folders.
(alternatively just rename them by adding ORIG or OLD in front of the period)

Then ...

Go to wherever you have an older home/user/mozilla as well as home/user/thunderbird folder.
Copy those two folders to your current /home/user folder.
Open Thunderbird again. Now your previous version of Thunderbird should work without a problem.

Once you update that older version of Thunderbird to the newer 60.2 version ... simply follow the steps as outlined earlier.
(update ... restart thunderbird ... find lightning in add-ons/extensions ... delete disabled add-on ... restart thunderbird ... done!)

.

[smifrt]

Thank you for your offer to help, however I have the version of TB with an integrated lightning calendar at version 52.9.1. when I attempted the upgrade TB it stays at the same version and I believe that the hold command is stopping the upgrade. After I posted I tried "apt unhold thunderbird" and it returned "hold cancelled" so I believe that I have to upgrade TB and it should be O/K. Thank you for your efforts to help, much appreciated sorry that I have not been easy to deal with but I am new to Linux and it is not easy to just slip into ways of the terminal.
Frank

[Kotts]

As long as you remember to install Thunderbird AND Lightning (xul-ext-lightning) AND Provider (xul-ext-gdata-provider) AND Time Zone Data (xul-ext-calendar-timezones) it works great.

Just spent 30 minutes beating my head against the desk until I remembered that...