topic Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected. in Discussions

Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

MWD — Thu, 19 Oct 2023 19:23:12 GMT

Hi. I'm using the new Thunderbird 115.3.3 (64 bit). I want my email messages to be marked as "Read" immediately when I select (single click) the email massage from the list of email messages. I have already selected this option from the "Options" menu, but still some emails will not mark as "read" unless I actually double click and open the email. I have found this to be the case on a lot of "retailer" emails. Some will eventually mark as read after 10 seconds or so if I do not click on anything else. Some will never show as "read" unless I actually open the email.

The older versions of Thunderbird did not behave in this manner; they would mark the email as read immediately after a single click, without actually opening the email.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

NancyEddy — Mon, 06 Nov 2023 21:22:20 GMT

I'm having the same problem, and it started when the program updated. Very annoying.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

ButchD — Sat, 11 Nov 2023 11:27:34 GMT

I have been having this same issue for almost a year now butch am running 115.4.2 now and it still happens at times.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

w3eve — Sun, 12 Nov 2023 02:18:20 GMT

I almost want to go back because of this. There does not seem a reason but the clearing of the read flag is one of the reasons I use Thunderbird. It is not clear to me why it does not get clear when I go to it. I THINK THIS IS A BUG.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

Nikasha — Sun, 12 Nov 2023 19:43:12 GMT

In Thunderbird 115.3.3, you're experiencing email messages not being marked as "Read" immediately when you single-click them in the list of email messages. This behavior can be influenced by certain factors, including the email message's format and your account settings. You've already tried changing settings, but here are some steps you can take to address this issue:

Check Account Settings:
- Go to "Tools" > "Account Settings."
- Select the email account in question.
- In the "Server Settings" section, check the "Message Reader" options. Make sure that "Automatically mark messages as read" is selected.
Email Format:
- Some emails may be in HTML format, which can trigger this behavior.
Add-ons and Extensions:
- Certain add-ons or extensions may interfere with Thunderbird's default behavior. Try disabling them to see if they are causing the issue.
Safe Mode:
- Start Thunderbird in Safe Mode by holding down the "Shift" key when launching the application. Safe Mode disables add-ons and extensions. If the problem is resolved in Safe Mode, it's likely an add-on or extension causing the issue.
Update Thunderbird:
- Ensure that you are using the latest version of Thunderbird. Updates can sometimes resolve bugs and improve compatibility.
Email Server Settings:
- If you're using an IMAP email account, the server settings can influence message read status. Check your email server settings to ensure they are correctly configured.
Email Filtering Rules:
- Check if you have any filtering rules or add-ons that might be affecting how messages are marked as read.
Message Pane Settings:
- In the message pane, there are settings that control how messages are marked as read. Go to "View" > "Layout" and ensure "Mark messages as read" is set according to your preference.
Compacting Folders:
- Occasionally, compacting folders can help with updating read status. Right-click on the folder and select "Compact."

If you've tried all these steps and the issue persists, consider reporting the problem to Thunderbird's support or community forums, as it might be a specific bug in this version of the software. They can provide further assistance and may release updates to address the issue in future versions.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

ButchD — Tue, 14 Nov 2023 13:22:48 GMT

I am just not seeing this setting:

Check Account Settings:
- Go to "Tools" > "Account Settings."
- Select the email account in question.
- In the "Server Settings" section, check the "Message Reader" options. Make sure that "Automatically mark messages as read" is selected.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

gary1 — Sat, 25 Nov 2023 14:55:12 GMT

I really liked the previous versions of Thunderbird where the email was marked as read as soon as you clicked on it. It makes it a lot easier to check new messages when a lot of them come in each day. PLEASE MOZILLA, PUT THE CODE BACK IN THAT CLEARS THE NEW MESSAGE BOLD INDICATOR AS SOON AS IT IS CLICKED ON. That feature is really missed.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

LinuxLogicGamer — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 00:24:12 GMT

Hey Friends, solution !

mailnews.mark_message_read.auto = true
mailnews.mark_message_read.delay = true
mailnews.mark_message_read.delay.interval = -1

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

gary1 — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 00:39:18 GMT

I like the idea, but can you explain how to get to the place where I can type this in, or set them to the correct values. I just need the location where I make the changes.

Thanks.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

LinuxLogicGamer — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 01:00:33 GMT

Setting > Config Editor
https://youtu.be/Attsvesr8VA

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

NancyEddy — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 01:39:42 GMT

Thank you. Going to try this.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

ButchD — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 15:06:14 GMT

It did not work. Had an HTML email from Samsung, had to sit on it for 7 secondrs to show as read. Thank though!

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

LinuxLogicGamer — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 22:44:26 GMT

I forgot, at the end Thunderbird must be closed and reopened, or the change will not take effect

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

ButchD — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 22:46:52 GMT

I am pretty sure I restarted TB after making the change but did so again now and will monitor. Thx!

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

gary1 — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 23:06:07 GMT

I have 3 computers running windows 10 and this has apparently fixed the delay problem. Thanks.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

MWD — Tue, 28 Nov 2023 00:23:56 GMT

It did not work for me either. I had an email from LLBean that took 10 seconds to clear. WTF Thunderbird?????

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

ButchD — Tue, 28 Nov 2023 11:17:06 GMT

I confirmed this morning, it is still happening. Between this, and TB constantly REsetting itself back to using Threads, I am quite baffled.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

ButchD — Fri, 01 Dec 2023 14:47:25 GMT

More info: I had a HTML email from Redbox today that would not trip read in the preview pane. But as soon as I clicked on it to open the email in it's own window (that's how I like it!) it tripped as read.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

ButchD — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 13:33:22 GMT

I have seen this suggestion here before, but when I look I do not find anything on Message Reader in the server settings. For a POP3 or an IMAP account.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

JohnGreenberg — Tue, 18 Jun 2024 12:56:55 GMT

It's Tools )) Settings, not Account Settings.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

Andrew_Linux — Sat, 29 Jun 2024 16:29:21 GMT

Tried this, but it didn't work for me on Thunderbird 115.12.0 on Ubuntu Linux because Thunderbird kept setting -1 back to 5. What did work was simply setting

mailnews.mark_message_read.auto = true

and leaving

mailnews.mark_message_read.delay = false

which I think is the default.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

cnielsen4211 — Fri, 02 Aug 2024 01:01:45 GMT

The "Message Reader " option does not exist on my Thunderbird

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

wsmwk — Fri, 10 Jan 2025 13:58:33 GMT

@ButchD, you wrote "I am just not seeing this setting".

Please go to Settings > General > Reading & Display.

Please post a screen shot of what you see there.

Re: Thunderbird: Emails are not immediately marked as read when selected.

Zedd — Sun, 30 Nov 2025 09:16:05 GMT

To set Thunderbird to mark a message as read after a single click, you need to ensure the Message Pane is enabled and configure the Reading & Display settings.

Enable the Message Pane

The message pane (preview pane) must be enabled for a single click to trigger the "read" status change.

Go to the Menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the top-right corner.
Select View > Layout.
Ensure that Message Pane is checked.
- Note: When the Message Pane is disabled, a single click only selects the message, while a double-click is required to open it in a new tab and mark it as read.

Configure Reading & Display Settings

Once the Message Pane is enabled, adjust how quickly the message is marked as read.

Go to the Menu icon and select Settings.
In the Settings tab, select General on the left.
Scroll down to the Reading & Display section.
Check the box next to "Automatically mark messages as read".
Select the option "Immediately upon display" to mark the email as read as soon as you single-click it in the list.