For Thunderbird users, there will be a thunderbird.tmp sub-folder in Downloads in Ubuntu 24.04. Here are the workarounds to get rid of it!
As you may know, the Thunderbird package in Ubuntu 24.04 is a Snap package that runs in sandbox! Due to this switch, the “thunderbird.tmp” sub-folder will be created on every launch (even after you deleted it) of the email client, in user’s Downloads folder.
“This is a tmp dir to store files you choose to open directly from Thunderbird. The snap can’t use the usual (insecure) /tmp location so had to choose something widely available so other apps can open the files if chosen.“
For Thunderbird users who don’t like Snap package, here’s step by step guide shows how to replace the pre-installed snap version of the mail client with classic Deb package in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS.
Like Firefox, the Thunderbird Email Client in Ubuntu 24.04 has been replaced as Snap package that runs in sandbox! If you don’t like the change, then here are 2 other choices:
Can’t wait to try out the new Thunderbird 128 ESR, but hate Snap and Flatpak packages? Here’s how to install it from Ubuntu PPA!
Thunderbird 128 is a new esr release series with refined look and feel. It now uses GNOME CSD style header bar instead of the old title-bar. Which has a more compact header bar, that looks better in Ubuntu, Fedora, and other Linux with GNOME.
As well, it provides menu options to change the header-bar height to meet your need.
Besides the headerbar, menu, tool-bar, etc, are also redesigned to look better in today’s Linux desktop. As well, it takes use the new logo announced few months ago. See more about Thunderbird 128.
How to Install Thunderbird 128 via PPA
Ubuntu is most likely to build the new Thunderbird 115 package into system repository! Check this page for Ubuntu’s official package status.
Before that, user can easily search for and install Thunderbird Snap package from Ubuntu Software. Or, install the Flatpak package in Flathub repository. However, both are running in sandbox and support 64-bit X86 CPU architecture type only.
If you hate sandboxed applications, and/or running Ubuntu on ARM devices (e.g., Apple M1/M2, Raspberry Pi) or IBM POWER platform, then, there are Ubuntu PPAs for choice.
1. Add Ubuntu PPA
The Mozilla Team PPA has already built the packages for Ubuntu 20.04, Ubuntu 22.04, Ubuntu 24.04, and Ubuntu 24.10
First, press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. When it opens, run command to add the PPA:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mozillateam/ppa
Type user password (no asterisk feedback) when it asks and hit Enter to continue
2. Install/Update Thunderbird
NOTE: Ubuntu 24.04 and higher now default to Thunderbird Snap package that runs in sandbox. See this tutorial for how to get rid of it and switch to Deb version.
After adding the PPA, simply launch “Software Updater” and wait for checking for updates. Until done, install the updates to install Thunderbird 128.
Or, just run command in terminal to install/update the package:
sudo apt install thunderbird
Linux Mint user need to run sudo apt update first to refresh package cache.
After installation, search for and launch the email client from ‘Activities’ overview or start menu depends on your desktop environment.
Uninstall Thunderbird.
If you have problem with the new release package, or Ubuntu updated the package in its official repository, then you can purge the Ubuntu PPA to switch back the stock version of Thunderbird package.
To do so, just open terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T) and run command:
Mozilla Thunderbird email client released new major 91.0 version with many new features and improvements.
Thunderbird 91.0 now runs in multi-process (e10s) mode by default, which offers many advantages in responsiveness, stability, performance, and security.
For macOS users, the release adds native support for computers with Apple silicon CPUs. There are also Latvian language support, new user interface for adding attachments, etc.
The ‘Account Setup’ has a new look and finally move to new tab instead of a floating dialog. It also adds ability to detect and set up CalDAV calendars and address book during setup.
The new version also brings improvements to Calendar, such as remote calendar auto-detection, ‘Edit’ option in event context menu, double-click to open .ics files, and import filter and sort items.
And a warning popup will appear when either trying to spend a reply to a likely non-existant email address such as “noreply@example.com”, or public recipients of a message exceeds threshold.
Then paste following lines into the file. Replace “/PATH/TO/thunderbird“ with the executable file path, and finally save it.
If you don’t plan to move the source folder to another place for long time using, the file path should be: /home/USER_NAME/Downloads/thunderbird-91.0/thunderbird/thunderbird
[Desktop Entry]
Encoding=UTF-8
Name=Thunderbird 91.0
Comment=Send and receive mail with Thunderbird
Keywords=Email;E-mail;Newsgroup;Feed;RSS
Exec=/PATH/TO/thunderbird %u
Terminal=false
X-MultipleArgs=false
Type=Application
Icon=thunderbird
Categories=Application;Network;Email;
MimeType=x-scheme-handler/mailto;application/x-xpinstall;
StartupNotify=true
Actions=Compose;Contacts
[Desktop Action Compose]
Name=Compose New Message
Exec=/PATH/TO/thunderbird/thunderbird -compose
OnlyShowIn=Messaging Menu;Unity;
[Desktop Action Contacts]
Name=Contacts
Exec=/PATH/TO/thunderbird -addressbook
OnlyShowIn=Messaging Menu;Unity;
The Geary email client 40.0 was released a few days ago with UI enhancements.
Like Gnome core apps, Geary has the similar version system. After v3.38, Geary 40 was released days ago with adaptive user interface that supports for half-screen, portrait and small displays. So it finally has a Linux phone friendly UI.
Visual changes also include updated icons and improved performance for displaying large conversations.
Other changes in the release include:
Upgraded full-text search engine
Improved search for languages such as Thai and Chinese
Improved keyboard shortcuts
Improved server compatibility
Numerous user interface translation updates
Numerous bug fixes and user interface improvements
How to Install Geary 40 in Ubuntu:
The new release package so far is only available to install via flatpak package.
1.) Open terminal either from system application menu or by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard. When it opens, run command to install the flatpak daemon if you don’t have it:
sudo apt install flatpak
2.) Add the flathub repository which hosts the flatpak package:
Thunderbird email client 60 stable is finally available via Mozilla Team Stable PPA for Ubuntu 18.04, Ubuntu 16.04, Ubuntu 14.04, Ubuntu 18.10, and their derivatives.
Thunderbird 60 was released one month and a half ago with following exciting new features:
New application logo
New “Photon” UI with rectangular tabs
Optional ‘light’ and ‘dark’ themes
Supports WebExtensions
New “Add-on Options” in Tools menu
Calendar events now display location
Native notifications on Linux
Improved email attachment UX
Compose window has button to delete email recipient(s)
Set the update interval for individual RSS feeds
OAuth2 authentication for Yahoo and AOL
FIDO U2F support
How to Install Thunderbird 60 in Ubuntu via PPA:
Open terminal either via Ctrl+Alt+T keyboard shortcut or by searching for ‘terminal’ from software launcher. When it opens, do following steps to add the Mozilla Team PPA and install Thunderbird 60.
1. Paste the command in terminal and hit run to add the PPA:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:mozillateam/ppa
Type your password (no asterisks feedback) when it prompts and hit Enter.
2. Then launch Software Updater and you’ll see the software updates after checking for update.
Or run following command one by one to refresh repository cache and install software updates:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get dist-upgrade
Uninstall:
To downgrade Thunderbird to the stock version in Ubuntu universe repository, run command to purge the PPA:
Geary is a free and open-source email client formerly developed by Yorba. Now, it’s a community maintained app for GNOME Desktop.
The source code of the email client is available in this Gitlab page. And, features include:
Quick email account setup
Shows related messages together in conversations
Fast, full text and keyword search
Full-featured HTML and plain text message composer
Desktop notification of new mail
Compatible with GMail, Yahoo! Mail, Outlook.com and other IMAP servers
The graphical interface of this app is a little bit lag behind, since GNOME is porting to GTK4 plus Libadwaita, though it’s still working good. And, users can install it in all current Ubuntu releases, through either Deb package or Flatpak package.
How to Install Geary in Ubuntu:
Option 1: Deb package
For those who prefer the native .deb package format, Geary is available in system repository, though it’s a bit old.
To install it, simply press Ctrl+Alt+T on keyboard to open terminal. Then run commands below one by one:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install geary
Option 2: Flatpak package
If you want the most recent version, then it’s available to install as Flatpak package which runs in sandbox environment, and can be installed in most Linux.
Linux Mint 21+ and Fedora 38/39+ can directly search for and install the package from either Software Manager or GNOME Software.
While Ubuntu users can install the Flatpak by running 2 commands below one by one in terminal (Ctrl+ALt+T):
First, enable Flatpak support:
sudo apt install flatpak
Then, run command to install the email client as Flatpak package:
NOTE: If you’re first time installing an app as Flatpak package, then you may need to log out and back in for the app icon visible in start menu or Gnome ‘Show Apps’ screen.
Uninstall Geary:
To remove Geary email client, simply run command in terminal:
sudo apt-get remove --autoremove geary
For the Flatpak package, use this command instead to uninstall:
