Lost email messages upon install of XP

[R Hubbell]

When I installed XP Update Home Edition, all of my email
messages in explorer were deleted, including sub
folders. Is there any way to retrieve them. To MSFT:
There was no warning that I needed to copy these files
before the installation. If they are truly lost ---
THANK YOU!!???X?X?!@@

 

[Pegasus \(MVP\)]

When I installed XP Update Home Edition, all of my email
messages in explorer were deleted, including sub
folders. Is there any way to retrieve them. To MSFT:
There was no warning that I needed to copy these files
before the installation. If they are truly lost ---
THANK YOU!!???X?X?!@@

You write "all of my email messages in explorer were deleted".
Explorer is a file and folder management program, not an
EMail program, so it is not clear what exactly you mean here.

The following might help in resolving the issue:
- You say "When I installed Windows XP Home Edition".
What did you have before? Did you upgrade from something
else? If yes, what?
- What EMail facility did you use? Outlook Express? Outlook?
Yahoo? Hotmail? Something else?
- If your Email files were important, you must have backed
them up. Did you try to restore them from backup?

 

[Len Segal]

If you did an install to a clean HDD, of course you will lose everything
that you didn't copy to some removable media.

If you did an install over a prior OS, the files may be "lost" but they
should still be on your system and just need to be found.
- If you use Outlook, do a global search for *.pst and then tell Outlook to
use that as your data file (Tools, Options will get you to the settings for
this).
- If you use Outlook Express, the files end in dbx. WinXP stores them in
C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Application
Data\Identities\{a long ID string here}\Microsoft\Outlook Express. NOTE: The
"Application Data" folder is a Hidden Folder and you'll need to change your
Tools, Folder Options, View tab to show all hidden files/folders first. I
can't tell you precisely where the old files would be, but if you do a
global search for the phrase "Outlook Express" you might find it (if all
files/folders are no longer hidden from view). Do an import of the database
files to your new OS/OE when you find the location of the old files.