111019 - Can't import addresses/messages from MS Outlook because it's not default mail program

Status: NEW

(MailNews Core :: Import, defect)

Description

[Hakon]

I have an address book in MS Outlook.
However, I'm not using Outlook for mail services.
Thus, I can't import addressed from there. Mozilla says that I have to go to 
Outlook and make it my default mail program. It shouldn't have to be that way.

Comment 1

[Ninoschka Baca]

This is a known issue but I can't find the bug right now so marking this one as
New for now.

Comment 2

[John Marmion]

We have also experienced this problem in bug 83103. But it is important to note
that it is not Mozilla which pops up the Dialog Box to state ".. Please run
Microsoft Outlook and set it as the default mail client...". In order to access
Outlook Address Books you must use the MS MAPI interface. Attempts to start a
MAPI session call MAPIInitialize() which pops up this message. Thus the MAPI
interface will only return the contents of the Outlook Address Book only if
Outlook is defined as the default mail client.

See also bug 90206 .

The only way out of this would be to give the user the ability to run MS Outlook
as this point. But I don't believe this warrants it. I would mark this as not a
bug.

Comment 3

[Ninoschka Baca]

*** Bug 123084 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 4

[Cavin Song]

Ninoschka, can we mark this INVALID/WONTFIX since it's not really a mozilla bug? 
See comment #12 in bug 90206 for more info.

Comment 5

[Ninoschka Baca]

*** Bug 155620 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 6

[E Hays]

I got bitten by this bug. Rather than just not fixing it, would it be possible
to have Mozilla display wome useful help when it can't open Outlook mailbox or
address book -- something like "Mozilla can only import from Outlook if Outlook
has been set as the default mail program using [whatever is the easiest way to
change this setting in all versions of Windows]. "  That would have helped me --
I didn't even realize why Mozilla couldn't find the information to import.

Comment 7

[Alfonso Martinez]

*** Bug 163224 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 8

[Rafael Gattringer]

(Sorry for the duplicate reporting, I really tried to check the other bugs...)

I agree that it isn't a real bug, but the issue is in my opinion a very
important wish, since it should be as easy as possible to convert from any MS
mail programm to Mozilla Mail. It seems to me that it is only neccessary to
insert a file selecting dialog which makes it possible to select the *.wab file
manually. That's it. Similar to manually importing the mail files (*.dbx files)
of outlook express. The actual addressbook import-function has already been
successfully implemented. It's only the path to the file. Thanks!

The alternative (I had to take) isn't very cool:
install addressbook and outlook express, import the *.wab file to OE, import it
to Mozilla mail, uninstall outlook express and the address book, delete the
remaining files on the hdd, run the registry cleaner;

Comment 9

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

mass re-assign.

Comment 10

[Stef Pause]

Strongly second comment #6: a dialog would be very helpful.

Comment 11

[Markus Faßbender]

Isn't it possible to set Outlook as "Default-Mail-Programm" automatic only for
the import and after that set the original programm back as default ?

Comment 12

[R.K.Aa.]

*** Bug 249974 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 13

[OstGote!]

see bug 124486 too

Comment 14

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

*** Bug 289201 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 15

[Wayne Mery (:wsmwk)]

*** Bug 189574 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 16

[rod Richmond]

(In reply to comment #15)
> *** Bug 189574 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
I find it frustrating that whilst import mail and adresses is advertised.
Thunderbird does not say you can not use this as the first mail client on a
machine and then import any number of address books and mail files loaded on to
the PC over a network or USB drive.

The 'addresses sucessfully imported from outlook
No address books were found to import' is contradictory and valueless. Why not
say where you looked or no mail client found.

Comment 17

[Jeff Beckley]

(In reply to comment #0)
> I have an address book in MS Outlook.
> However, I'm not using Outlook for mail services.
> Thus, I can't import addressed from there. Mozilla says that I have to go to 
> Outlook and make it my default mail program. It shouldn't have to be that way.

An email client doesn't have to be set up as the default mail client in order to get at its MAPI interface.  The location of each registered mail client's MAPI DLL is stored in the registry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\Mail.  It's fairly easy to understand by just looking at the entries, but some documentation can be found here: <http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/workshop/browser/configuration/clientreg/clientregistrylayout.asp>.  Look under the heading "Adding an Email Client Application".

Comment 18

[David :Bienvenu]

We're just doing a LoadLibary of Mapi32.dll - it sounds like we should be looking up the location of Outlook's MAPI32.dll in the registry and trying to load that first.

Comment 19

[David :Bienvenu]

Here's where we do the loadLibrary http://lxr.mozilla.org/mozilla/source/mailnews/import/outlook/src/MapiApi.cpp#150

Comment 20

[Jeff Beckley]

(In reply to comment #18)
> We're just doing a LoadLibary of Mapi32.dll - it sounds like we should be
> looking up the location of Outlook's MAPI32.dll in the registry and trying to
> load that first.

Turns out this truly is an issue with Outlook's MAPI DLL.  Even if you find the right MAPI DLL for Outlook using the registry, it still pops up with the same error.  For some reason, Outlook insists that it be the default mail client when using its MAPI DLL.

Seems like the only way around this is like others have suggested:
1) Temporarily make Outlook the default mail client
2) Perform the import
3) Set the old default mail client back

Comment 24

[chrizilla]

adding "messages" to bug title because some dupes pertain to email import rather than address book import