old emails before 2002

Question

can't find old in or out box emails before 2002.

the account was never not active.

Answer 1

Hi ayo 94,

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A forum. 

If this is an Outlook.com/Hotmail account and the account truly was never inactive, then the inactivity policy may not be the reason. Microsoft says an Outlook.com mailbox can be closed if it is not signed in to at least once in a 1-year period, and the Microsoft account itself must stay active by signing in at least once every 2 years. 

Please first check the mailbox in Outlook.com on the web, then look in Deleted Items, Recover items deleted from this folder, Junk Email, Archive, and any custom folders. Microsoft notes that messages removed from Deleted Items are only recoverable for 30 days, and messages in Junk Email are also automatically removed after 30 days. 

If the old messages do not appear in Outlook.com on the web and are not in the recovery folders, then unfortunately there is no supported self-service way to recover mail that is no longer in the mailbox.

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Answer 2

For classic Outlook on Windows, older messages often stop appearing in search or in the local view because of sync and storage settings, even if the account has always been active.

Try these checks in classic Outlook (desktop app):

1. Increase how much mail is cached locally
   1. Select File > Account Settings > Account Settings.
   2. On the Email tab, select the email account and choose Change.
   3. Move the Download email for the past: slider to a longer period or all the way to All.
   4. Select Next, then Done, close the window, and restart Outlook.
   This ensures Outlook downloads and indexes older mail so it can be viewed and searched.
2. Include Deleted Items in search (if looking via Search)
   1. Select File > Options > Search.
   2. Turn on Include messages from the Deleted items folder in each data file when searching in All Items.
   3. Select OK and restart Outlook.
3. Check Online Archive / In-Place Archive If a Microsoft 365 archive mailbox is enabled, older items may have been moved there:
   1. In the folder list, look for Online Archive.
   2. Expand it and browse the folders for older mail.
   3. Search within the specific archive folder using Current Folder scope if needed.

If the account is Outlook.com and has not been inactive for more than a year, the mailbox should not have been closed or auto-deleted. If mail still cannot be found after expanding the cache and checking archive/Deleted Items, those messages may have been permanently deleted earlier and are no longer recoverable.

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References:

• Troubleshooting Outlook search issues
• Manage email storage with In-Place/Online Archive mailboxes
• Email is missing from your Outlook.com inbox