Roundcube Themes Gone?
I noticed that I cannot change the theme (To Larry) in roundcube, I am on build 120.0.1
Was this feature removed or deeply hidden, as its not under the settings icon anymore.
Thanks
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I don't have any public case numbers I can provide - at this point I'm just tracking the feedback internally.
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Hello,
We have also had multiple complaints about the current Roundcube theme.We would like there to be a theme that allows users to have the e-mails above the preview.
We would also like to have the sender in bold and the subject in standard font like most other e-mail clients have it.
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Richard Hordern - thanks for the details!
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@cPRex Adding my 2 cents to this thread. Our hosting provider just updated the cPanel version which also updated the RoundCube version. I would also like to add that the new user interface in RoundCube is absolutely terrible.
I'm not advocating for the return of the an old theme but rather have "settings" to remove the large preview pane and offer the screen wide list of emails with individual columns. I am an older user but NOT afraid of change. I have dedicated a lifelong career is cutting edge tech in engineering and systems architecture. No disrespect, however I feel like the designer(s) of the new UI were looking to solve a very narrow view of tasks without taking into account the big picture or all user experiences. They solved a problem that really didn't exist. Some key problems in the new UX are:
- Need a way to remove the preview pane. Displaying unwanted emails such as spam and message receipt popups as users work through and delete daily emails is cumbersome.
- Provide a "list" view of emails with individual columns. This allows easy sorting of individual columns such as size to make it easy to identify emails with large attachments. Currently having to mouse over to see email size is not a good process.
- The new email list with mixed font sizes and boldness is not ideal for visual representation. As users and eyes get older, this type of clutter is very intrusive to proper visual intake. Younger eyes may not have issues, but older eyes naturally degrade and have trouble visually taking this in.
- The new UX makes it nearly impossible to visually determine what emails are new verses read. The ever so slight font boldness is very difficult to pick up.
- The "Send" button in th lower left corner...really? Not sure who thought this was a wise idea but a big no no in the world of work flows.
Again, I'm not trying to come off as a complainer and do like progress. However, progress needs to be an actual step forward for the big picture and not a narrow visioned perceived problem.
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Thanks for all those details!
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Adding my two cents :
we updated a couple weeks ago, and there are lots of complaints from users. no problem with a change in interface graphics every once in a while... but it has to be legible!
two major problems :
BRING BACK COLUMNS: as stated by Clay above, it is preferable to have columns -- dates, sender, and subject (at least... perhaps size too) in three separate columns, left to right. currently the sender type font is way too close to the subject type fonts, and because the lines between emails are so light-colored, it's very difficult to pick out quickly the subject lines, and it's even more difficult to know if the sender corresponds to the subject line above or below.
POSSIBILITY TO HIDE PREVIEW PANE : also, before we could read much more of the subject line, because there was no email preview to the right. this preview takes up quite a lot of screen space, reducing the amount of subject line text we can see ... it's become obligatory to click on each email to see what it's about (because not all of the subject is visible) and there are way less lines of emails possible on the screen because of putting the sender in the same column as the subject. so, to summarize, you cant just glance at the screen and see the emails and judge the pertinent ones to open. you're forced to open each one... a huge time waste
but are there...
QUICK FIXES ? : if it's not possible to do a complete overhaul soon (ie putting back the columns), at least could you put up quickly a version that :
- makes the lines between each email darker
- distinguishes much more between the fonts of subject and sender (size and color (subject in blue?) would be ideal)
- makes the preview pane optional
when can we expect an update? this interface is really not working. it should be a priority.
thanks for your support,
andrew
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andrew - the team is considering several options right now, from additional Roundcube customizations to entirely new webmail products. I can't say for sure when an official decision will be made but there will be some changes to webmail in the future!
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great thank you
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Sure thing!
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It's incredibly disappointing to see Oakley Capital mismanaging cPanel after its acquisition. The removal of the "Larry" interface skin from Webmail is a baffling decision. Larry was the beauty and wonder of cPanel's Webmail, and taking it away has stripped users of a feature they loved and relied on.
Since Oakley's purchase of cPanel, many hosting companies have dropped cPanel entirely, citing incompetence and constant price hikes. Instead, they’ve developed their own hosting panels, further evidence of how poorly cPanel has been handled under your ownership.
cPanel is dying a slow and unnecessary death, and it’s shameful to watch such a giant in the hosting industry fade because of mismanagement. Decisions like removing Larry only accelerate this decline.
Bring back the Larry interface skin and listen to your users. Stop killing cPanel for no reason. It’s time to take responsibility and revive what was once an industry leader.
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Bring back the Larry Interface! The removal of such a key feature is unacceptable. Stop killing the cPanel experience we all love. This decision is driving users away. Listen to your customers and restore the features that made cPanel great!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!2 -
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!
Bring back the Larry Interface!1 -
So yeah... I'm on the LTS build and was hit with this change out of the blue today.
I'm getting real sick of cPanel doing an interface rug pull, this is specifically why i'm on the LTS build. Price hikes, constant upselling in the UI I've been dealing with, but flashbanging me with a webmail interface I've specifically chosen to avoid is one really good way to get me to look for an alternative to cPanel
You say you can't understand why someone would "risk downtime" to move away from something they don't like as an end user? Well this might just be the push I need to move away from cPanel in it's entirety.
You took away Squirrel, Horde, and now the Larry theme from Roundcube, so effectively you have no webmail solution that now satisfies me... and looking at the time on this thread you've had over a year to make changes to the "new" theme, and besides some very specific cpanel "integration" (the link back to webmail setting) I don't see *anything* you've contributed to the theme, other than saying "accept it".
No I don't accept it. I think it's butt ugly, it's an accessibility nightmare and it's unfamiliar.
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RayJ - Thank you for your instructions. I can confirm they worked on 126.0.16 today.
Given cPanel has not really done anything to satisfy the other people that have brought complaints about this, re-enabling larry allows me to figure exactly where I want to go from here. Much appreciated. I know it'll probably get reverted in an auto-update, but at least it gets me back up and running today. Thank you <3
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Jessica Carter - You are most welcome.
I looked over the files again, and you can add a config file that cpanel should not mess with when it updates. Add this file:
/usr/local/cpanel/base/3rdparty/roundcube/config/inc.d/99-larry-theme.php
<?php
if(!in_array('larry', $config['skins_allowed']))
{
$config['skins_allowed'][]= 'larry';
}That file is loaded from the config.inc.php file. And it checks to see if "larry" is in the skins_allowed array, and if not, adds it.
Then, after an update to cpanel deletes the larry theme, you can just restore it an not have to edit the config.inc.php file.
Restore the larry theme files when cpanel updates
cd /usr/local/cpanel/base/3rdparty/roundcube/skins/
wget https://github.com/roundcube/larry/archive/refs/heads/master.zip
unzip master.zip
mv larry-master larry--RayJ
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PS: when I find a little extra time, I will create a BASH script and an CRON entry to automate all of this. So that it will check (every minute or hour) and if Larry goes missing, automatically restore it.
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RayJ Using your suggested cron methon will loose the current user setting about theme? User will have to set the Larry theme again after that?
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Nope. I actually tested that on one server. It had updated and the email logins were showing the default (and currently only) theme. I ran my script to test, went back to the email and Larry had returned. I assume that once the theme is set to Larry, of Larry disappears, it just revert to the default. But does not change the theme setting away from Larry.
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Great! Thank you RayJ
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To be sure, as of today May 30, 2025 and WHM and cPanel v126.0.18, there is literally no progress on improving or enhancing Elastic with the feedback given, nor any concrete updates from cPanel in doing so. Literally none.
Further, both Elastic and Larry are Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike and therefore:
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format for any purpose, even commercially.
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
- The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.
So, cPanel thus chooses to ignore their customers and feedback entirely in this matter. They could bring Larry up-to-date (which they claim it's not -- and to be sure was last released in 2023, rather than 2022, as claimed) if they wanted to, and they could bring Elastic up-to-snuff if they wanted to.
They just don't want to. Or care to.
And as their clients, we should take note.
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I completely agree. My impression of Cpanel is that they are only interested in increasing profits with ever-higher prices and completely ignore the feedback they receive.
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Larry? I'm here for the same reason as every one else. Bring back Larry!
I no longer have a virtual server an I have a GoDaddy hosted plan after the last upgrade, Round cube has lost access to Larry.
This is the bad part of having a hosted server over a virtual I no longer have access to change and or update the e-mail side of the server aka CPanel/roundcube.
Besides my self I have several suers that have large screen monitors, The non Larry email reader put the email on the far right side of the desk and no longer in front of the user/client.
If people wanted Yahoo Mail they would be using Yahoo email.
I also find this as a major security concern. Larry did not open the emails. My clients could run down the list at the top of the page and hit [DELET] key and remove fishing, spam etc. with out ever opening the email. This new CPanel/roundcube opens the e-mails in the far right panel.
It is also missing the star function to mark an e-mail as un red to remind a person to come back at a later point to read it. Just clearing up spam has marked every email as if it has been opened and read, making it possible to miss emails.
I hope and this needs to be fixed. Larry was a perfect web e-mail client for every day use. This elastic thing is just garbage and not productive for a business or work environment.
I can look over to other people using the new e-amil and everyone is now shifted to the right of the desk looking at the right side of the monitor.
Please look into getting this fixed backdated etc. but locking people out and fully deleting the option with an automatic update is wrong and cruel.
No Warning, No Training for this new client, just delete Larry and say good luck.
Bellow is an AI corrected for grammar and spelling, I make mistakes :)
"Larry? I'm here for the same reason as everyone else—bring back Larry!I no longer have a virtual server; I now have a GoDaddy-hosted plan. After the last upgrade, Roundcube lost access to Larry.
This is the downside of having a hosted server instead of a virtual one—I no longer have access to change or update the email side of the server (CPanel/Roundcube).
Besides myself, I have several users with large-screen monitors. The non-Larry email reader places the email on the far right side of the desk instead of directly in front of the user/client.
If people wanted Yahoo Mail, they would be using Yahoo email.
I also see this as a major security concern. Larry did not automatically open emails. My clients could scroll through the list at the top of the page, hit the [DELETE] key, and remove phishing, spam, etc., without ever opening the email. This new CPanel/Roundcube setup opens emails in the far-right panel by default.
It is also missing the star function to mark an email as unread, allowing users to return to it later. Clearing out spam has marked every email as opened and read, increasing the risk of missing important messages.
This issue needs to be fixed. Larry was a perfect web email client for everyday use. This new elastic interface is garbage and not productive in a business or work environment.
Looking around, I see that everyone using the new email client is now shifting to the right of the desk, staring at the right side of the monitor.
Please consider restoring the previous version or allowing users to opt back in. Locking people out and fully deleting the option via an automatic update is wrong and unfair.
No warning. No training for this new client. Just deleting Larry and saying "Good luck.""
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The Larry theme is far more accessible to screen reader users, as in, buttons are actually labeled. Truthfully, it doesn't feel quite fair. WCAG 2.x standards are a well-known standard of accessibility & have been for a long time. It doesn't feel like to me that Webpros even looks at that aspect.
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