Open Bug 77017 Opened 23 years ago Updated 2 years ago

Should be possible to import Outlook Express message rules (filters)

Categories

(MailNews Core :: Filters, enhancement, P5)

x86
Windows 98
enhancement

Tracking

(Not tracked)

Thunderbird 3.0rc1

People

(Reporter: karl, Unassigned)

References

(Blocks 1 open bug)

Details

(Keywords: helpwanted)

I have several hundreds message rules (e-mail filters) in Outlook Express. It
will take days to transfer them to Mozilla.

It should be possible to import e-mail filters from OE (and possibly other
e-mail programs).
Severity: minor → enhancement
QA Contact: esther → laurel
Summary: Should be possible to import OE's message rules (filters) → RFE: Should be possible to import OE's message rules (filters)
reassigning to naving
Assignee: gayatrib → naving
This bug is not targetted for any upcoming milestones. However, we would
appreciate any outside
contribution. 

*** Bug 97724 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
*** Bug 104023 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
*** Bug 155963 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***
It should be possible to import some message rules (filters) at all, at least
mozilla's own ones (e. g. from another PC or a backup); would like possible
import of netscape's neverthless.
I don't think you can do this until bug 59821 has at least been partially
implemented.  Outlook Express allows for more complex filtering than just A and
B and C and D type stuff (actually allows (A and B) or (C and D)).

At least, I don't think that you can do it successfully 100% all of the time :)
mass re-assign.
Assignee: naving → sspitzer
Do Outlook and Outlook Express really use the same format for message filters?
This bug is about OE, but the dupes all were about Outlook.

If they use the same format, bug 248525 would be another dupe.
Confirming this as an an important thing to consider when measuring effort of
mass migrations to M&N / TB.
Product: MailNews → Core
Had this issue migrating one company to Thunderbird last week. Any ETA?
Status: NEW → ASSIGNED
sorry for the spam.  making bugzilla reflect reality as I'm not working on these bugs.  filter on FOOBARCHEESE to remove these in bulk.
Assignee: sspitzer → nobody
Status: ASSIGNED → NEW
Blocks: 423488
Filter on "Nobody_NScomTLD_20080620"
QA Contact: laurel → filters
A quick search in different relevant resources indicates it's still not possible to export or import message rules / filters to/from Outlook.
Flags: wanted-thunderbird3?
Product: Core → MailNews Core
I think this would be good to have from the migration aspect - to make it easier to moving to TB.
Flags: wanted-thunderbird3? → wanted-thunderbird3+
Keywords: helpwanted
Priority: -- → P5
Target Milestone: --- → Thunderbird 3.0rc1
Summary: RFE: Should be possible to import OE's message rules (filters) → Should be possible to import OE's message rules (filters)
Summary: Should be possible to import OE's message rules (filters) → Should be possible to import Outlook Express message rules (filters)
If Tb really wants to attract serious OE users, this *must* be implemented.
Rules in OE are stored in Windows Registry, under the respective identity key, in a format that encodes the rule action in some dword value and with HEX encoding of the e-mail addresses involved in each rule.

Although official documentation is hard to get, or even unobtainable, it is worth a task to trasform OE rules to msgFilterRules.dat format.
That description sounds more like a call for an extension...
I see latest MSDN has more rule implementation documented so may be easier.  At least the values are now obtainable without trial and error research.
Phil in comment #19
> I see latest MSDN has more rule implementation documented so may be easier.  At
> least the values are now obtainable without trial and error research.

as in http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/microsoft.office.interop.outlook.rule.aspx ?
Still interested with my hundreds of filters (some obsolete but...)
Severity: normal → S3
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