I upgraded to WinXP and my Outlook Express Inbox items disappeared ... are they lost?

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was the Microsoft Outlook closed when you tried to copy files to local hard disk under C:/OE ?

Hi Leo,
like most people here I upgraded from 'me' to 'xp' and lost my inbox, sent items etc. I have made a search of my pc for .dbx files but cannot find any.
Is there any way of restoring my lost emails?
Thanks,
Andy.

Make sure that when you search, you include searching for "hidden" files. That's an advanced option in the search for files dialog, if that's what you're using.

Hi Leo,

Did the search as described by got no hits using "*.dbx". I have lots in my inbox. How can this be?

My problem has been files in my "Inbox" and "Deleted Items" folders keep disappearing yet my options look okay.

On this machine we are sharing three identities on the Microsoft Outlook 6 using Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2.

I have recently just upgraded from win 98 to XP Pro. I am having trouble finding the files.

I have tried all the steps above and searched in hidden folders and files, but all that comes up are the current .dbx files. I need a solution urgently, as alot of important information is in the old outlook express. please email swiftynz@gmail.com

Swifty

I upgraded a friends computer from 98 to XP (without backing up his email files first) and the dbx and wab files are not there. Did a search for hidden files with no luck though the old folders are there, the folders are empty. The upgrade was with XP Pro Corp with SP2. There is a knowledge base article http://support.microsoft.com/kb/313055 but it appears the upgrade deleted the files.

This is a variant question on this topic:
Why would Outlook Express 6 take 3 times as long to start after upgrading from Win98 to XP Pro?
Also, the options 'General' tab is missing the option to turn on MSN messenger or Windows messenger at startup. It used to be there when Win98 was the OS.. What the hell?
Thanks for any hints or brow beatings..
Shobuz

is there a limit of stored messages in outlook express, i have a 4GB of stored messages is it ok.

I've not heard of one, but 4 gigabytes scares me. I most certainly wouldn't put that much in a single folder, and I'd also recommend backing up often.

OE won't switch identities

There's now a fix available. An Overview of the Cumulative Update for Outlook Express 6.0 SP-1.
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q331923
I'm keeping the workarounds (below) published for those of you that do not care to download the fix.

I think you'll find that the problem was caused by installing SP1. The workaround is to uncheck the "use this identity as default" box under "Manage Identities", and get prompted for which identity to use every time you start.
Another workaround is to hit the F1 key before switching identities. This will bring up the Outlook Express' "Help" window. With this window minimized, you can switch identities to your hearts content.

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