Unable to open Mail.  Home directory is full.

Suddenly I can no longer open my Mail program. The error message I am confronted with is:
"Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full.
You must free up space in your home folder before using Mail. Delete unneded documents or move documents to another volume."
I have gone in to my home folder and deleted a ton of stuff. But I am still unable to open my Mail application.
Any assistance would be much appreciated.

What is your hard drive capacity and available free space after deleting a ton of stuff?
Try the following.
With the Mail.app quit and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index.
Move the Envelope Index file to the Desktop.
When re-launching Mail, you will be prompted to import all mailboxes located within the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail. Select OK and allow the import process to complete.
After confirming all mailboxes were successfully imported, you can delete the old Envelope Index file from the Desktop and this should resolve the problem.

Similar Messages

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    I dont know what happend but i restarted my powerbook today and when i got back to the desktop and tried launching mail it gives me the following message.
    MAIL CANNOT UPDATE YOUR MAILBOXES BECAUSE YOUR HOME DIRECTORY IS FULL.
    You must free up space in your home folder before using mail. Delete unneeded documents or move documents to another volume.
    what happend to cause this and what can i do to fix it.
    Thanks

    If your hard drive has at least 5GB of free space available, quit Mail first and using the Finder go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index. Move the Envelope Index file to the Desktop.
    Afterwards, copy the Mail folder and place the copy on the Desktop for backup purposes.
    Launch Mail and you will be prompted to import all mailboxes available in the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail.
    Select OK and allow the import process to complete and a new Envelope Index file will be created automatically by Mail within the Mail folder.
    After confirming all mailboxes were successfully imported and are available, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder and the old Envelope Index file from the Desktop.
    This should resolve the problem.

  • Mail "Home Directory is Full" again

    Allan Sampson said on 6th July 2006 "With the Mail.app quit and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index. Move the Envelope Index file to the Desktop.
    After doing so, copy the Mail folder and place the copy on the Desktop for backup purposes.
    Launch Mail and you will be prompted to import all mailboxes available within the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail.
    Select OK and allow the process to complete. This isn't really importing anything but replacing the Envelope Index file and re-indexing all mailboxes.
    This should resolve the problem
    After confirming all mailboxes and messages are available, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder and the old Envelope Index file from the Desktop."
    I have done all that Alan has outlined but all I get now in the beachball rotating for at least 20 minutes. If I go to the desktop I cannot access mail and if I force close Mail it comes up with the same "Home directory is full". In case I got it wrong first time, I've now repeated it three times with the same result the spinning beach ball which never stops. Help!
    Mac mni   Mac OS X (10.4.7)   I have five macs and two PCs

    Verify/repair your disk first (not just permissions), as described here:
    The Repair functions of Disk Utility: what's it all about?
    After having fixed all filesystem issues, if any, try the following variation of the procedure to re-create the index (it could be that you didn't also get rid of Envelope Index-journal, for example):
    1. Quit Mail if it's running.
    2. In the Finder, go to ~/Library/Mail/. Make a backup copy of this folder, just in case something goes wrong -- e.g. by dragging it to the Desktop while holding the Option (Alt) key down.
    3. Locate Envelope Index and move it to the Trash. If you see an Envelope Index-journal file there, delete it as well.
    4. Move any "IMAP-", "Mac-", or "Exchange-" account folders to the Trash. Note that you can do this with IMAP-type accounts because they store mail on the server and Mail can easily re-create them. DON'T trash any "POP-" account folders, as that would cause all mail stored there to be lost.
    5. Open Mail. It will tell you that your mail needs to be "imported". Click Continue and Mail will proceed to re-create Envelope Index -- Mail says it's "importing", but it just re-creates the index if the mailboxes are already in Mail 2.x format.
    Note: For those not familiarized with the ~/ notation, it refers to the user's home folder, i.e. ~/Library is the Library folder within the user's home folder.

  • Cannot open mail "home folder is full" after importing mail folder from time machine

    hello, sorry for my poor english.
    after an erase and reboot of my harddisk with new os yosemite installed, i've copied the mail folder from the time machine backup. but when i tried to open mail app it start to "import the mail box" and then stops saying that the home folder ins full, but it isn't, i've over 300gb free

    What is your hard drive capacity and available free space after deleting a ton of stuff?
    Try the following.
    With the Mail.app quit and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index.
    Move the Envelope Index file to the Desktop.
    When re-launching Mail, you will be prompted to import all mailboxes located within the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail. Select OK and allow the import process to complete.
    After confirming all mailboxes were successfully imported, you can delete the old Envelope Index file from the Desktop and this should resolve the problem.

  • Mail home directory is full

    I'm getting this error in Mail:
    Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directroy is full.
    You must free up space in your home folder before using Mail. Delete uneeded documents or move documents to another volumne.
    Any suggestions on how or where I should do this?

    Quit Mail first and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail. Copy the Mail folder and place the copy on the Desktop for backup purposes.
    Using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index.
    Move the Envelope Index file to the Desktop.
    When re-launching Mail, you will be prompted to import all mailboxes located within the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail.
    Select OK and allow the import process to complete.
    This should resolve the problem.
    If so and after confirming all mailboxes were successfully imported and are available, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder and the old Envelope Index file from the Desktop.

  • Mail not opening, "Home directory is full" ???

    I am unable to open my mail application. I'm getting the following error message:
    "Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full.
    You must free up space in your home folder before using Mail. Delete unneeded documents or move documents to another volume."
    I don't understand. When I check my home folder there is plenty of space.
    Any help is greatly appreciated!
    Thank you
    Aaron Yassin

    Hello Aaron.
    With the Mail.app quit and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index.
    Delete the Envelope Index file and empty the Trash.
    Using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail. Copy the Mail folder and place the copy on your Desktop for backup purposes.
    Launch Mail and you will be prompted to import all mailboxes available within the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail.
    Select OK and allow the import process to complete. It really isn't importing anything but replacing the deleted Envelope Index file and re-indexing (so to speak) all messages.
    When completed and after confirming all mailboxes and messages are available, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder from the Desktop.

  • On 10.4.11 Mac Mail I get this: Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full. You must free up space in your home folder before using Mail. Delete unnedded documents or move documents to another volume. I can't open mail.

    On 10.4.11 iMac Mac Mail I get this message: "Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full. You must free up space in your home folder before using Mail. Delete unneeded documents or move documents to another volume." I can't open mail to do this. I have reinstalled software but no effect. How do I get into Mail to delete?

    Found this on the "more like this" Worked like a charm!
    With the Mail.app quit and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail. Copy the Mail folder and place the copy on the Desktop for backup purposes.
    Go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index. Move the Envelope Index file to the Desktop.
    Launch Mail and you will be prompted to import mailboxes. Select OK and allow the import process to complete.
    After confirming all mailboxes were successfully imported and available, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder and old Envelope Index file from the Desktop and this should resolve the problem.

  • Mac Newbie - Problem opening Mail, says home directory is full

    I am new to Mac so forgive my ingnorance. I have been using Mail with no problems but just now (and each successive time despite restarts), when I open Mail a box pops up that says
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    I appreciate any help.
    G-Mc

    Try the following.
    Quit the Mail.app first and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index. Delete the Envelope Index file and empty the Trash.
    Copy the Mail folder and place the copy on the Desktop for backup purposes.
    Launch Mail and you will be prompted to import all mailboxes located in the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail.
    Select OK and allow the import process to complete. This process isn't really importing anything but replacing the deleted Envelope Index file and re-indexing all mailboxes.
    If this resolves the problem and after confirming all mailboxes and messages are available, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder placed on the Desktop.

  • Mail will not open - error message says home directory is full

    I am running 10.4.3 on a dual 800 PowerPC G4 with 1.5 GB SDRAM.
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    I run several hundred email messages per day.
    Three days ago when I attempted to open Mail, I rec'd error message "Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full. You must free up space in your home folder before using Mail. Delete unneeded documents or move documents to another volume."
    I have deleted many files from the home folder and moved others. I still get the same error message.
    I have experienced no problems with accessing my mail using my PowerBook G4 with similar config and OS.
    johncleek
    Power Mac G4   Mac OS X (10.4.3)  

    Try this:
    Try the following:
    With Mail quit and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail.
    Move the Mail folder to the Desktop.
    Launch Mail and a new Mail folder (and account named folders within) will be created automatically.
    All new mailboxes will be empty but if this allows the Mail.app to function properly, you can use the Import Mailboxes feature to import selected mailboxes or manually replace mailboxes from the old Mail folder one at a time to determine which mailbox was causing the problem

  • Mail Prog will not open ...says home directory is full

    mail program wont open , says mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full.. Ive 87 gig of space , Ive cleaned a heap off and ran disc utility repair permissions , retsrated , but it just dont wanna open.. does anybody have any clues here please ..many thanks Snog O

    Hi Snog,
    "Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full' alert"...
    http://support.apple.com/kb/TA24486

  • Mail says my home directory is full

    I've been having some major system problems of late.
    Following the successful restoration of my laptop's hard drive today I launched Mail. It was very sluggish & came up with the error message:
    "Mail cannot update your mailboxes
    because your home directory is full.
    You must free up space in your home folder before
    using Mail. Delete unneeded documents or move
    documents to another volume."
    My hard drive has 23 GB of free space.
    My home folder is 47 GB in size.
    Can someone please explain what's going on here? Mail won't launch until I sort this issue.

    Yay! It seems to have solved the problem with my e-mail. Thanks very much.
    Now, I'll mention this here, as I know you'll be checking back, but I'll also start a fresh thread in the proper place about another irritating system problem I'm having.
    When I try to copy from my home directory to an external hard drive, (about 600mb of data in this instance), it starts to copy in the normal way, saying about a minute remaining) then suddenly stops...
    ... and waits, while "time remaining" increases.
    A short while ago it got as far as saying 40 minutes!! For 600mb!!
    I tried to launch my browser while this was happening & it was having none of it.
    I tried to launch the "force quit applications" window. Again nothing.
    Then I stopped it copying & the other things opened.
    It's as if "copying" suddenly asks for more power than the computer can supply & everything else takes a back seat. The copying begins, but at an absolute snail's pace.
    If I left if for 40 minutes it would probably copy successfully, but why so slow? I have about 30GB of data I need to remove from my hard drive before I can do a clean install, but at this speed I don't think I'm going to live long enough!

  • Mail message telling me 'home directory is full'????

    Hello There, I have been happily using mail (with a gmail email account) for about a week now, but today I received a message and when I went to reply I get a message "Mail cannot update your mailboxes because you home directory is full" It then tells me to free up space in my home folder before using Mail. Delete unneeded documents or move to another volume. - I don't understand what it wants me to do or why!! I have 30 Gbs of free space on my hard drive so what's it's problem?? Any solutions?? Thanks in advance

    Hello zeetog.
    Corruption of ~/Library/Mail/Envelope Index (which in turn might be caused by some filesystem corruption) is known to cause this bogus error message in Mail, even when there is enough space available on disk — but you must make sure first that there is actually enough space available (a few GB) and that the error message is indeed bogus.
    Verify/repair the startup disk (not just permissions), as described here:
    The Repair functions of Disk Utility: what's it all about?
    After having fixed all the filesystem issues, if any, and ensuring that there’s enough space available on the startup disk (a few GB, plus the space needed to make a backup copy of the Mail folder), try this:
    1. Quit Mail if it’s running.
    2. In the Finder, go to ~/Library/Mail/. Make a backup copy of this folder, just in case something goes wrong, e.g. by dragging it to the Desktop while holding the Option (Alt) key down. This is where all your mail is locally stored.
    3. Locate Envelope Index and move it to the Trash. If you see any other “Envelope Index”-named file there, delete it as well.
    4. Open Mail. It will tell you that your mail needs to be “imported”. Click Continue and Mail will proceed to re-create Envelope Index — Mail says it’s “importing”, but it just re-creates the index if the mailboxes are already in Mail 2.x format.
    Note: For those not familiarized with the ~/ notation, it refers to the user’s home folder. That is, ~/Library is the Library folder within the user’s home folder, i.e. /Users/username/Library.

  • Mail won't open -- says home dir is full, but 7GB is free!

    I'm getting an error message when I try to open Mail.app. It says "Mail cannot update your mailbox becuase your home directory is full" And proceeds to quit.
    I have over 7GB free on my startup drive. Why does mail think my HD is full?

    Go to Home/Library/Mail and move that folder to your Desktop. Then start Mail and a new mail folder with the accounts that already exist will be created. The new mailboxes will be empty unless there's mail you haven't retrieved still on the server.
    If mail functions correctly, you can then use the Import Mailboxes feature to import selected mailboxes or manually replace mailboxes from the old Mail folder one at a time to find which mailbox was causing the problem.
    Mulder

  • Help  -  "mail home directory full?

    hi,
    I have been using my Mail account for ages. This morning I openned mail but a message popped up saying "MAIL CANNOT UPDATE YOUR MAILBOXES BECAUSE YOUR HOME DIRECTORY IS FULL. You must free up space in your home folder before using Mail. Selete unneeded documnet or move documents to another volume. (Blue Quit Button).
    We I searched the usual and went to Users/me/library/mail. I openned that and went to my POP account, openned up the mail boxes for inbox etc. I copied the .emlx messages into a folder and put them on the desktop, thinking that would free up some space. It didn't. I did a restart ... same message happens.... The mail bar opens but everything is grey, the message above pops up and I have no choice but to quit.
    I can't access any of my mail. When I try to open one of the .emlx files on the desktop, the same message above opens. I am at a loss!
    Could someone please help. I can't even get the About Mail to open so that I can tell you what I version I have, but I do update everything.
    thanks

    With the Mail.app quit and using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail.
    Copy the Mail folder and place the copy on the Desktop for backup purposes.
    Using the Finder, go to Home > Library > Mail > Envelope Index.
    Delete the Envelope Index file and empty the Trash.
    Launch Mail and you will be prompted to import all mailboxes available in the Mail folder at Home > Library > Mail. Select OK and allow the import process to complete.
    This isn't really importing anything but replacing the deleted Envelope Index file and re-indexing all mailboxes and should resolve the problem.
    After confirming all mailboxes and messages are available, you can delete the copy of the Mail folder placed on the Desktop.

  • "Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full"

    I have a 250 GB hard disk, 4.34 GB of which is in my "Home" folder. (Total HD usage is about 27 GB.) This happened suddenly after Mail had been working fine for eons. I deleted a bunch of files (107 MB) in a "Drafts" folder (none show up in the Mail app's "Drafts" icon), but it made no difference. I re-installed the Mac OS X 10.4.11 combo update... no difference. Mail version is 2.1.3.
    Any help here? I cannot use Mail at all.
    Message was edited by: Bill Strohm

    Hey there,
    Have you had a chance to look at this Apple support document relating directly to this issue. Hope it helps.
    [Mac OS X 10.4: "Mail cannot update your mailboxes because your home directory is full" alert|http://support.apple.com/kb/TA24486?viewlocale=en_US]
    B-rock

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