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General discussion

Deleted E-mail Retrieval

Mar 26, 2004 7:01AM PST

Is it possible to retrieve deleted e-mails and how would I go about this?

Discussion is locked

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Re:Deleted E-mail Retrieval
Mar 26, 2004 7:32AM PST

J,

Whenever posting questions on these forums, please give us as much information as possible about your computer. We need the operating system, processor speed, amount of RAM installed, brand name of the computer, (if there is one), and any EXACT error messages you are receiving, plus, in your case, the e-mail client you're using and whether you're using an Exchange server to download your mail from, a pop3 mail server, or webmail. The more information you give us, the better informed our answer will be.

Hope this helps and let us know.

Grif

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Re:Re:Deleted E-mail Retrieval
Mar 26, 2004 8:28AM PST

It's a Sony PCV-RZ56G with a Pentium 4 processor, 800MHz Bus, 1 Gb RAM. I'm using a POP 3 mail server. The operating System is Windows XP Media Edition.

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I ask you
Mar 26, 2004 9:56AM PST

What possible need could there be for the processor, processor speed, amount of RAM or the brand name of the computer for this question?

How do any of those things relate in even the slightest to retrieving a deleted email message? All that's necessary to know is how the mail is being accessed, and assuming it's POP3, what email client is being used. Everything else is as pointless as it is useless, so unless you're doing some sort of survey or study on the types of computers people are using, why even bother bringing it into the conversation?

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That One's Easy.....
Mar 28, 2004 8:25AM PST

....I routinely ask such questions of members that don't post enough information. I do so because I want to get the best description of the user's environment and the question they are asking. In this case, the user didn't say whether he/she had deleted the e-mail message directly from an e-mail client, whether someone else had deleted it from the e-mail client, whether it had been automatically deleted from a webmail program, or whether the message had been "saved" to a CD or the hard drive and had been deleted from there.

Indeed, "deleted" could mean a number of things. Maybe the message simply "disappeared" while attempting to send it. Maybe the thread will evolve into fixing a modem, or reinstalling the e-mail client, or who knows what. You've been around here long enough to know that the thread could change to something entirely different than the subject line began with.

And most importantly, I like to know everything about each user's computer because I hope to help them again some time in the future on these forums. I'm not here every day, but I am here most days, and I will probably help most member multiple times. If I'm working on a customer's computer sitting in front of me, I don't have to ask those questions, because I can check for myself. Unfortunately, on these forums, we can only work with what is given us and I try to take a personal interest in the responses I give.

"Useless"...."pointless"...maybe to you. Not to me.

Hope this helps.

Grif

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Re:That One's Easy.....
Mar 28, 2004 8:58AM PST

So I take it that's your long winded and round about way of saying, "None" to my question of what's the point.

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Not Correct !
Mar 28, 2004 9:35AM PST

I responded why I will make "use" of the information and why there is a "point" for me to ask the question. Your interpretation of that answer is up to you, as it should be.

And in regards to another of your original questions, maybe we need to ponder about how relevant this "sub thread" of ours is....

"How do any of those things relate in even the slightest to retrieving a deleted email message? "

Hope this helps, too.

Grif

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Re:Deleted E-mail Retrieval
Mar 26, 2004 9:14AM PST

It may be in the deleted mail folder, if you have not deleted it from there. For web mail, there may be a time limit for deleted mail to br kept there. For POP3 mail, deleted mail will usually not be removed from the deleted mail folde unless you delete them manually or configure your mail client to do so automatically after a period of time.

Your ISP or the POP3 mail server provider may also be able to help you retrieve the deleted mail, provided that srvice is available. Some providers keep a copy for a limited time.

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Re:Re:Deleted E-mail Retrieval
Mar 26, 2004 11:31AM PST

That's the problem. I deleted all the mail in the delete folder. I'm afraid it's gone for good.

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Re:Re:Re:Deleted E-mail Retrieval
Mar 26, 2004 5:16PM PST

As I have mentioned, try your ISP (e-mail service provider). Explain your requirements and see whether they have archieved your e-mails, but you have to be quick. Do you know who you sent the e-mails to, or who sent the mail to you ? You can always ask them to send a copy to you, although the request may seem 'strange' .

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addendum
Mar 26, 2004 5:36PM PST

You may try to get back the e-mails by using a 'Go back', Unerease, Restoration...or similar programs. Unfortunately, these programs restore files, and the deleted e-mails are only part of a file (if you are using Outlook Express, its the deleted items.dbx file at the Application Data/Microsoft....folder) Some are free over the net. You have to Google it to find such a program.

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Try the demo.....
Mar 28, 2004 8:32AM PST
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Following Papa's Lead Here....
Mar 28, 2004 8:36AM PST

If you're using Outlook Express, (you'll still haven't told us which e-mail client you're using), then you might be able to find some of the deleted e-mail in the "Deleted Items.dbx" file. Do a search for files named "*.dbx" (without the quotes) and you should be able to find the file named "Deleted Items.dbx". There may be a few different ones that are displayed in the search window. Find the largest one, that is included in your particular user ID, then RIGHT click on the "Deleted Items.dbx" file in the search window, choose "Open With" from the menu, make sure to UNCHECK the box that says: "Always use the program to open this file type", then double click on the "Notepad" selection.

The "Deleted Items.dbx" file should open and be displayed in a text format. Although some of the information will be "computer language", you should be able to find some of the messages that were deleted recently. At least you could copy any text that would be found there.

Hope this helps.

Grif

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Re:Following Papa's Lead Here....
Apr 1, 2004 6:22AM PST

I'm running Outlook Express. I discovered there are several retrieval programs available that will allow me to retrieve deleted e-mails. However they are only good for the day the e-mail was deleted. As it turned out the e-mail I was trying to retrieve was re-sent to me.

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(NT) J, Good Job & Thanks For Posting Back
Apr 1, 2004 6:49AM PST

.

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To Levin6481, post deleted.
Jun 10, 2008 9:47PM PDT

Your first post, replying to a post made 4 years ago, (did you notice that?), and it is advertising.

Sorry, no advertising allowed in these forums. That's why I deleted your post.

Mark