Storage folders on windows live mail disappearing after update

Here we go again Firedog

We have Windows 10 Home, Version 1803, installed 16/05/2018  on this computer.

When I say "retrieved, recovered and restored" I mean pretty much the same for each of these words as I thought they were interchangeable.

What I'm talking about here is any folder that we have managed to retrieve from any source and put back under the heading Storage Folders in the side pane of our windows mailbox.

As I have mentioned earlier my son has been able to retrieve these previously with the information attached. I have asked him to put down here what he has done in the past to get these files/folders back:

Previously they have been restored by using compact view to bring them back. This time I got the empty folders back by using the 'import emails' in the file tab. I then selected the windows live mail folder in appdata/local/microsoft, though this restored the folders it did not restore the emails.

As for moving the information we managed to retrieve, I created a folder on our desktop and just dragged the emails that we wanted to keep out of the storage folders and dropped them into the folder on the desktop. I guess based on the information you have given me lately this is probably not going to circumvent the problem of losing the emails in future?

A lot of the empty files under the Storage folders right now though were restored automatically by windows with no input from me. Go figure?

Once again thanks for persevering as I know this is not your problem

Steve

I think it's a bit harsh to say "unmotivated deletion of folders because they seem to be empty" when they actually are empty. 

Sorry, that was thoughtless of me. I was just so frustrated in my efforts to help you that I failed to sit on my tongue.

The folders you see in Windows Live Mail are virtual folders, which will only bear a superficial resemblance to the ones that are actually present in the store folder.  This is why they can appear in certain circumstances to be empty when in fact they aren't. The program is displaying to you the folders it knows of, but if its index is incomplete, it may not be able to populate the virtual folders with the messages that should be inside them. Again, I'll suggest that the messages you're looking for aren't being displayed because their file path is too long.

… something that the microsoft mail program did that caused these files to be lost/corrupted not me.

Again, I'll say until I'm proved wrong that these files were neither lost (i.e. deleted) nor corrupted.

I will get rid of them.

The more folders you 'get rid of', the slimmer your chances of ever seeing the messages that should be in them. Please don't do anything else to jeopardize the outcome of this exercise.

Let's have a look at the messages that may be left in the file system. To be able to guide you properly, I need to know which version of Windows you're using. We'll be using Windows Search and Explorer, and both of these have changed a lot with the different versions of Windows.

When you reply, I'd be very interested to hear your responses to the questions I posed in one of my recent replies to you: what do you mean by retrieved, recovered and restored  when talking about messages you've found buried under Storage folders? And while you're at it, you wrote *I moved the information in the folders that we were able to retrieve into a folder on my desktop.*How did you go about this?

Hi again Firedog

I have given it a break, left it to it's own devices, followed your advice and re-launched it..... all to no avail as I still have no emails or crap in the ones that are there.

I think it's a bit harsh to say "unmotivated deletion of folders because they seem to be empty" when they actually are empty. At the end of the day it was something that the microsoft mail program did that caused these files to be lost/corrupted not me. I don't believe I did anything other than open the emails to read them which I think is the idea behind the mail system? Correct me if I am wrong though.

Are you able to explain to me why it did corrupt/lose them and how I can prevent the housekeeping doing the same thing in the future bearing in mind that this is the 3rd time it has done this?

I have no intention of leaving these recovered folders sitting in my mailbox forever unless you can assure me that we can actually recover something meaningful to go into them I will get rid of them.

Look forward to any further advice you can pass along.

Regards

Steve

Do you think it is worth persevering?

Yes, I do. Windows Live Mail is not in the habit of losing messages, but it may lose track of them for various reasons. Unless you consciously deleted these old messages, I think they're still there somewhere. Unmotivated deletion of folders because they seem to be empty is not likely to help!

… every email within the folder may contain the same information and that information is totally unrelated to the heading.

This simply indicates that the index is incomplete. You have noticed that the program is trying to recover from a fairly serious database index corruption, and you'd be well advised to allow it to get on with the job rather than interfering by trying to view messages that haven't yet been indexed following the recovery operation.

A few words of explanation: the entries you see in the message list are taken from the database index, which records each message on arrival with its principal headers (Date, Subject, From, To) and a lot of other information about it, including which folder it resides in. When you select a message in the message list to view its contents, the program tries to retrieve the underlying file from the location recorded in the index. If it doesn't find it there, it's unpredictable what will be displayed. It might be the contents of a different file altogether, or in some cases nothing at all. This doesn't mean that the message is missing; just that it's not where the database index thinks it is.

Just leave the program alone for a few hours - e.g. overnight - and it will do its best to get everything properly indexed again. This is more likely to succeed if you disconnect from the Internet meanwhile to avoid interference from routine polls for new messages. In the morning, close down the program and wait ten minutes or so before re-launching it, then have a look to see what's there in Storage folders. Then we'll have a go at remedying your over-long file paths.

Hi again Firedog

I have had a look at some of the retrieved e-mails but they are not quite right when I open them they have the headings, as you would expect, but every email within the folder may contain the same information and that information is totally unrelated to the heading.

Do you think it is worth persevering?

Steve