MyPhoneExplorer and Thunderbird under Linux

[T0mmy]

This guide will tell you how to install MyPhoneExplorer on Ubuntu and how to sync your phone with Thunderbird and Lightning.

sputnick has written a script that installs MyPhoneExplorer, and it also sets up a Bluetooth-connection: http://www.fjsoft.at/forum/viewtopic.php?p=28979#28979
(Later versions of the script can be found later in that thread)
If you use this script, scroll down to "Sync MyPhoneExplorer with Thunderbird and Lightning".



Install MyPhoneExplorer and connect with a USB-cable

1. Install latest version of wine from getdeb (current version is 1.1.4)
   • If the .wine configuration-folder doesn't exist in your home-folder:
     • Open: Applications -> Wine -> Configure Wine
     • When the configuration-window appears, click OK
2. Replace and register oleaut32.dll
   • Navigate to the system32-folder in .wine
   • Replace the file oleaut32.dll with the original one from Windows:
     • Instead of overwriting the file, rename the wine-version to oleaut32.dll.bak to keep a copy of it
     • The original file can be found in your Windows installation, or you can download it from the internet (See http://www.fjsoft.at/forum/viewtopic.php?p=19318#19318)
     • Use lowercase letters in the filename
   • Register oleaut32.dll
     • In terminal: navigate to the system32-folder in .wine, and type "wine regsvr32 oleaut32.dll"
     • Open: Applications -> Wine -> Configure Wine
     • Under the Libraries-tab, add oleaut32.dll, click Edit, and choose "Native (Windows)"
     • Click OK twice
3. Install MSXML3 and VB6 using winetricks
   • Right-click on link: http://www.kegel.com/wine/winetricks, and "Save Link As..."
   • In terminal: navigate to the folder where you saved winetricks, and type "sh winetricks"
   • Mark "vb6run" (MyPhoneExplorer won't start without it) and "msxml3" (Google- and Thunderbird-sync won't work without it), and click OK
   • Follow the instructions, none of them should be any problem
4. Install MyPhoneExplorer from http://www.fjsoft.at/en/downloads.php (current version: 1.7)
   • Double-click the exe-file after download, and install the program
   • Register files in MyPhoneExplorer's DLL folder
     • In terminal: navigate into the DLL-folder
     • Register the following files: ccrpDtp6.ocx ccrpUCW6.dll ShellMgr.dll SSubTmr6.dll vbalExpBar6.ocx vbalIml6.ocx vbalSGrid6.ocx
     • Type: "wine regsvr32 filename"
5. Set up the USB-cable connection
   • Connect your phone with the USB-cable
   • Choose "Phone mode", NOT "Transfer mode" on your phone
   • Create a symbolic link to your phone, so that MyPhoneExplorer can identify it as COM1
     • In terminal: navigate to /home/your_username/.wine/dosdevices, and type "ln -is /dev/ttyACM0 com1" (other com-ports might work as well)
   • Open MyPhoneExplorer, and go to: File -> Options
   • Manually type in COM1 (or whatever number you used), and check "Stable connection" (Without stable connection, your phone cannot be identified)
   • Click OK, and connect your phone (File -> Connect, or press F1)

Thank you: FJ, NP, weinbi, s0l1dsnak3123, allotment, Winer, sputnick



Sync MyPhoneExplorer with Thunderbird and Lightning

1. Install Thunderbird in Ubuntu (from now on: TB) (current version: 2.0.0.17)
2. Install Thunderbird in Wine, using the Windows-version (from now on: TBWine) (current version: 2.0.0.17)
   • Open and close the address book (creates a file for later use)
3. Install add-ons
   • Install the Linux-version of Lightning in TB (current version: 0.9)
   • Install the Windows-version of Lightning in TBWine (current version: 0.9)
   • Install MoreFunctionsForAddressBook if you want to sync contacts' birthdays (install in both TB and TBWine)
   • Install ThunderBirthDay if you want (install in both TB and TBWine)
4. Set up TB
   • I assume this is OK
5. Set up TBWine
   • You don't have to follow these steps, but it will save you a lot of time and frustration later
     • Open TBWine for the first time, and the "Create new account"-wizard will show up
     • Create a bogus account
     • Go to: Edit -> Account Settings
     • Make sure that TBWine never checks for new mails on the new account
     • From now on TBWine will never bother you with the wizard again
6. Make the connection between TB and TBWine
   • Close TB and TBWine, if open
   • Go to your TBWine profile-folder: home/user/.wine/drive_c/windows/profiles/user/Application Data/Thunderbird/Profiles/xxxxxxxx.default
   • Rename abook.mab and storage.sdb to abook.mab.bak and storage.sdb.bak
   • Create new symbolic links with the original names (abook.mab and storage.sdb), that points to the files (abook.mab and storage.sdb of course!) in your TB profile-folder (home/user/mozilla-thunderbid/xxxxxxxx.default)
   • When using TB3 you have to create another symbolic link which points to the file local.sqlite which is located in the folder calendar-data. <Edit by Weinbi, thanks to cyrold for the hint>
   • The reason why I don't link the whole profile-folder, is because of the extension-subfolder. Lightning is different for Windows and Linux, and will therefore cause problems
7. Sync Thunderbird with MyPhoneExplorer
   • Open MyPhoneExplorer, and go to File -> Options -> Sync
   • Choose which address books to sync
   • Choose which calendars to sync (See "Known issues")
   • Install the mpe-addin (Add-on for TBWine), when asked to
   • Sync

Known issues

• IMPORTANT!: Because Thunderbird locks files when it's open, you can't have both TB and TBWine open at the same time without risking data-loss
• When editing which calendars to sync, MyPhoneExplorer doesn't always remember which ones you choose. This is a known bug in the Wine Environment. I have not found any other settings that MyPhoneExplorer "forgets", and I don't know why it's like that. (Solution: Type in the calendars manually, see guide below)
• All add-ons related to address book or calendars, must be installed in both TB and TBWine to prevent data loss (exception: mpe-addin, which should only be installed in TBWine)
• If you have several address books, these have to be manually added in TBWine. See guide below

Manually typing in which calendars to sync

• Open MyPhoneExplorer's profile-folder
• Navigate into the folder that contains you phone-name
• Edit settings.dat
  • Near the bottom, you will find "[ThunderbirdFolders]"
  • Below it you will see strings like "moz-profile-calendar://" or "moz-profile-calendar://?id=x"
  • These are the names of the calendars selected to be synced. You can find the names by right-xxx the calendars in TB, and choose "Properties" (see "Location")
  • Type in the calendars you want to sync (one on each line)
  • The string for the ThunderBirthDay-calendar will probably not work (never tried it though)
• Save the file
• MyPhoneExplorer will now remember these settings until the next time you try to edit these settings through MyPhoneExplorer (so don't do it). As mentioned earlier, other settings are saved correctly every time
• MyPhoneExplorer-sync might work with Google-calendars as well, but I don't know what the Google-calendar-string looks like, since I don't use it. If you try, remember to install the Google-provider-addon both in TB and TBWine.

Manually adding address books to TBWine

• Open prefs.js in your TB profile-folder
• Copy the lines that starts with "user_pref("ldap_2.servers.ADDRESS_BOOK_NAME" (five lines for each address book) (ignore the address book named "default", we've already set up this one)
• Paste the lines into the prefs.js file in your TBWine profile-folder, and save the file
• Remember the filename on the line "user_pref("ldap_2.servers.ADDRESS_BOOK_NAME.filename"
• Create a symbolic link with this name in your TBWine profile-folder, pointing to this file in your TB profile-folder

Last edits:
- Made the "Install MyPhoneExplorer"-guide shorter
- Added the "Sync with Thunderbird"-guide
- Added a comment for using Thunderbird 3

[falstaff]

Hello,

Thanks a lot for this guide! I know MyPhoneExplorer from Windows, and i missed it on linux! But no I have it, again Can you tell me how I can Lightning synchronisation to work?

Thanks
bye
falstaff

[T0mmy]

Moved the guide to my first post...

[SW]

Hello,
did anyone manage to sync a w960i/P1i with MPE/Wine? Dont have Linux but I´d like to, if this works...
Thanks

[FJ]

Symbian with Wine/Linux is currently impossible
Maybe with other apps which were build for Linux

[T0mmy]

I can't confirm that it works, since I don't have such phone, but you could try opensync/multisync. I don't think it will sync with Thunderbird though, only Evolution. Maybe you can test it using a live distribution? At least remember to backup your phone's content before trying.

I managed to sync my SE W610i with Evolution, using the old version of multisync, but it had problems with some characters like æ,ø,å.

FJ: Doesn't the new 1.7.0 version of MPE sync with such phones on windows? Do you know why it doesn't work on Linux?

[FJ]

please read the last sentence of the first post here. I try to help, but please understand that it has for me a low priority if or how MyPhoneExplorer works on Linux.

Symbians from SE are supported in Windows, but its impossible for Linux cause MPE uses for this a middleware called mRouter.

[Asparagus]

Hi,

I tried to install MyPhoneExplorer 1.7.0 under Debian SID and wine 1.0. Also I was following the instructions in this thread.

MyPhoneExplorer is starting but there is no com port? If I enter the port "com1" manually nothing happens.

Could anyone help me, please?

thx, Guido

[weinbi]

You can find information about that in the HowTo: you have to link into .wine/dosdevices/com1.

But there is also a installer: http://www.sputnick-area.net/ftp/myphon ... er3.4.bash

[T0mmy]

Check your dosdevices-folder, like weinbi says.
If com1 is listed there, try to enter "COM1" with uppercase letters in MPE.
If com1 isn't listed, re-do step 5 in the first guide.

[Asparagus]

Thx for your hint: the bash-script was very helpful and now I'm able to connect and configure my K600i via bluetooth.

But now after restart of MyPhoneExplorer I get an error (message box) during connection to phone:

"Fehler: Telefon konnte nicht identifiziert werden."

thx for further advice and regards, Guido

[T0mmy]

Do you get a working cable-connection?
If you can connect with a cable but not bluetooth, I have no idea what's wrong. You could perhaps try this thread: http://www.fjsoft.at/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2838

If the cable-connection doesn't work either, make sure that "stable connection" is checked in File -> Options -> Connection

[Asparagus]

Sorry, I don't have an USB cable. Settings are on "stable connection", I tried it before.

The problem is that connection tries to work, there is a status bar in the first message window, it workst to the half, then the error message occures.

BTW: my bluetooth connection works very well, if I connect vie kmobiletools or Gammu the connection is beautiful.

[strangemovement]

I have been able to successfully install MyPhoneExplorer as detailed in the first post, but I have not as yet installed Thunderbird (et al) under Wine. My PC is running Ubuntu 8.04 with Wine 1.1.8. I was able to initially launch MyPhoneExplorer and set COM1 and Stable Connection, but when I was asked to enter my phone name I did so and an initial sync operation automatically started which suddenly stopped at some point (I didn't quite notice when) and then MyPhoneExplorer closed. Now if I try to launch MyPhoneExplorer, it starts by displaying the splash screen and then the main window but then closes before I am able to access anything. Anyone have any ideas what I should do to get it to at least stay open so I can have a look at the settings ?

[weinbi]

Which MPE-Version do you use?
Did you try the installer?

[eesh]

Great work on the guide!!!

I must add that I can also get MPE to connect to my G900 over Bluetooth by changing the port to /dev/rfcomm0 (On Ubuntu 7.04).

I just wish it wouldn't ask for mRouter to sync the phonebook... Is there any way around that?

[FJ]

G900=Symbian -> this will not work with MyPhoneExplorer in Wine cause MPE connects to mRouter when you want to sync Symbians

[straehl]

Hey T0mmy!

Thanks a lot for your HowTo. I spent some time today trying to get a working synchronization between thunderbird's and MPE's calendar. Didn't succeed: MPE always messed up the storage.sdb which resulted in having three identical calendars in thunderbird, but none of them containing all my events.

But I found some other solution that seems to works so far:
- create a new calendar in thunderbird (the real one, no wine version needed here ).
- choose "on the network" , format "iCalendar" and add a a local path like "file:///home/myuser/calendar.ics".

This file is now used to store the calendar and MPE can synchronize with this file. Use the Reload-Button of thunderbird to update the calendar after synchronization.

Well, I hope, this will be of help for anyone out there...
Cheers

[Guest]

Hey,
I used to work qith MPE under ubuntu 8.10 under wine and recently upgraded to ubuntu 9.10, which resulted in messing with MPE, which now crashes at start.

didi anybody succeed in running MPE under ubuntu 9.10?

Cheers

[sonbob115]

This is an interesting discussion. thank you for sharing

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