diff --git a/mail/inc/class.mail_compose.inc.php b/mail/inc/class.mail_compose.inc.php
index 2d785711f6..1d2aefcda0 100644
--- a/mail/inc/class.mail_compose.inc.php
+++ b/mail/inc/class.mail_compose.inc.php
@@ -604,6 +604,10 @@ class mail_compose
 		unset($_content['mail_plaintext']);
 		$_currentMode = $_content['mimeType'];
 
+		// we have to keep comments to be able to changing signatures
+		// signature is wraped in "<!-- HTMLSIGBEGIN -->$signature<!-- HTMLSIGEND -->"
+		Mail::$htmLawed_config['comment'] = 2;
+
 		// form was submitted either by clicking a button or by changing one of the triggering selectboxes
 		// identity and signatureid; this might trigger that the signature in mail body may have to be altered
 		if ( !empty($content['body']) &&
@@ -672,7 +676,6 @@ class mail_compose
 				//$sigText = Mail::merge($sigText,array($GLOBALS['egw']->accounts->id2name($GLOBALS['egw_info']['user']['account_id'],'person_id')));
 				//error_log(__METHOD__.'new+:'.$sigText.'#');
 				$_htmlConfig = Mail::$htmLawed_config;
-				Mail::$htmLawed_config['comment'] = 2;
 				Mail::$htmLawed_config['transform_anchor'] = false;
 				$oldSigTextCleaned = str_replace(array("\r", "\t", "<br />\n", ": "), array("", "", "<br />", ":"),
 					$_currentMode == 'html' ? Api\Html::purify($oldSigText, null, array(), true) : $oldSigText);
@@ -2252,7 +2255,6 @@ class mail_compose
 		//error_log(__METHOD__."(, formDate[filemode]=$_formData[filemode], _autosaving=".array2string($_autosaving).') '.function_backtrace());
 		$mail_bo	= $this->mail_bo;
 		$activeMailProfile = Mail\Account::read($this->mail_bo->profileID);
-		$identity = $_identity['ident_email'] ? $_identity['ident_email'] : $activeMailProfile['ident_email'];
 
 		// you need to set the sender, if you work with different identities, since most smtp servers, dont allow
 		// sending in the name of someone else