Not Microsoft AOL And They Can't Help

[DShirleySB]

Windows XP, Service Pack 2,. I was having a lot of problems with my AOL. Freezing, not opening, programs, etc.

So, I tried reinstalling the AOL and lost my entire mailbox where all of my old sent and received mail was stored on my PC.

After working with AOL, they told me that there is no way to recover this mailbox. This had information to and from my mother who passed away last year along with other important information.

Is there anyone that knows anyway to recover this mailbox or did I "stomp" on this?

I have not done anything like run scan disk or defrag on this machine.

Please help me recover these files if possible.

Sicerely,

Daniel R. Shirley

 

[G0AOZ]

I know little about AOL. However...

1. Find out from the AOL technicians if mail is/was stored in a file, and ask them to tell you likely filenames, locations, etc.

2. Get Windows Explorer to search your hard drive for files of this name or similar. Bear in mind the file(s) might be hidden, etc.

3. If no go in Nbr.2 above, attach your hard drive as a secondary drive to another PC running XP which has had Get Data Back or Easy Recovery Professional loaded. Use either of these data recovery programmes (or something else similar) to search your hard drive for lost or deleted data.

The programmes mentioned above are not freeware or shareware, but do a good job in data recovery IMO. There is just a chance you might be lucky and recover your mailbox, but first you need to know what to look for.

I wish you luck.

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[drew1701d]

PC Inspector File recovery should bring those files back, download it use it, very simple to use, and free!

http://www.pcinspector.de/file_recovery/uk/download.htm

 

[G0AOZ]

I would urge caution in just downloading software, unless you're planning to use another drive as per my Nbr.3 in above post. If the mailbox is a deleted but recoverable file, there is always the chance that loading on a fresh software application might overwrite it...

ROGER - G0AOZ.

 

[linney]

If the data recovery programs do not succeed you could try System Restore and see if there is a restore point created before you uninstalled the original AOL that you can revert to?

Are there any backups you can salvage old e-mails from?

 

[drew1701d]

system restore is not a backup program, it just undoes changes made to the OS. As far as using the recovery software, you should be good to install it as chances are high that you haven't defragged lately, which if you have, would almost certainly wipe out any chance you have to recover the files. PC Inspector File recovery takes up very little space.

 

[cupid11213]

i'm sorry to hear about your lost info. i work for a competitor with similar software. and to tell you the truth when you tried to reinstall the software back on there you just rewrote over that previously deleted file( or the location where it was at). There is but a small chance that those programs mentioned above can retrieve this data. Good luck and hopefully there is some small but possible chance you can get all that back.

good luck!

Some people make things happen, some people watch things happen, while others wonder what happened.