"Pam" <Pam@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:20F6ABEC-3289-48D3-A75A-029337ECD80A@microsoft.com...
>I have a Toshiba Satellite laptop running Vista and using Windows Mail. I
> have McAfee Security Center virus program. In my recent online searches I
> see reports of McAfee being problematic with WM, but I haven't had any big
> problems, until -
>
> Jan31 I noticed I can no longer find messages that are more than 6 mos
> old.
> The oldest message is exactly 6 mo old (8/1/2007). Last time I know I
> could
> see messages older than that was mid Jan, when I could see messages from
> Jul2007. At first I thought that this may be an AutoArchive thing, but
> can't
> find any *.eml files or references to auto archiving in WM. It is quite
> distressing to think that all these messages are gone!
>
> Any help would be appreciated.
>
I think Toshiba is the company that often includes a program with SMS
in it's name on their computers, even though it causes problems with
Windows Mail. Check if your computer has such a program installed,
and if so, whether it does anything you want more than to get Window
Mail working. You could always uninstall it.
McAfee, Norton, and recently Trend make the antivirus programs that
interfere with Windows Mail, but seldom do it immediately. They need
to be uninstalled, not just disabled, to stop them from causing problems.
You should also run this program for more cleanup:
<http://service.mcafee.com/FAQDocument.aspx?id=107083&lc=4105&partner=McAfee& type=TS&ia=1>
Sometimes you also have to remove the email account under Windows
Mail, then create again, for yet more cleanup.
You may also want to check if outgoing messages are piling up in your
Outbox instead of going out, and if so, whether you can move the oldest
such message to your Drafts folder or delete it. Then restart Windows
Mail.
If this solves your problems, you may want a replacement antivirus
program. I recommend either avast! or AVG, either one with a custom
install that tells it to leave out the part that scans email.
http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html
http://free.grisoft.com/doc/5390/us/frt/0?prd=aff
Also, are you using the IMAP method of connecting for mail, which
often leaves copies of the mail on your email provider's server? If so,
your provider may be deleting the old messages, not anything on your
machine.