TB 2.0.0.23 upgrade cleared all my emails out

I think this is an issue where the built in updater treats the update as an update of a standard installation of TB - not TBP so this messes things up for it.
You will notice that TBP has not been updated to this version.

Please correct me if I'm wrong

-Scott-

This is very annoying #@%$&^^!!!! I have just been reading some posts from 2008 https://portableapps.com/node/8696 which talk about profile changes where the old emails are not lost but cannot be found once you create a new profile (such as when the setup wizard forces you to create/re-enter your account details). Anyway the previous forums talk about new 'prefs.js' files being created and the need to overwrite prefs.js with your old prefs-2.js and so on. However, when I searched for prefs and pref-2 I found I have three prefs.js files (yes I have re-created three times over the last year or so) Each file has a different created date and file size so I am obviously looking in the right place but this is where I get stuck and would apprieciate any help. I notice that there is another file named 'prefcalls.js' so i am assuming that this file calls my latest prefs.js file. Is there a JS person out there who can give me some idea on how to retrieve my previous emails?

When you get a new prefs.js created, it's because the old one is corrupted. This can happen on the local version of Thunderbird, too, but is more common on the portable version for a couple reasons. It's usually due to either: (1) unsafe removal of the drive aka pulling it out without using Windows' safe eject, (2) a failing drive or a drive in the early stages of failure or (3) using on a computer with a slightly flaky USB port.

In this instance, your mail is not affected, but your settings are lost. The easiest thing to do is to go to a recent backup, even a few weeks or months old, and get a copy of prefs.js from it. The PortableApps.com Platform's built in Backup utility will back this file up as part of a full drive backup or an application data backup.

If you don't have a recent backup, you'll need to recreate your accounts and settings within Thunderbird. I recommend making a backup copy of your current ThunderbirdPortable\Data folder before beginning. Once you've recreated your accounts, you may be able to access your mail again directly.

If not, you'll need to move mail folders around. Thunderbird mail folders are pretty straight forward. They're stored within ThunderbirdPortable\Data\profile\mail. Within there you'll see a folder for each account (unless you have universal inbox mode enabled) as well as a Local Folders folder. Each Thunderbird mail folder is a file with the same name as the folder it was in Thunderbird with no extension. The .msf files are used for Thunderbird indexes and may need to be deleted as part of this process (note that this may cause some deleted messages to re-appear if you haven't compacted your folders in a while). You can move the folders around as you need, deleting the appropriate msf files as you go.

I've often found that creating a new profile from scratch and then moving your mail from the old backed up profile to the new one is the easiest way to go.

In the future, always be sure to backup your data on your drive.