Hi...

I've lost all the messages in my Outlook Express 6 inbox, didn't know that I
could create some sort of back file to retrieve them when things like this
happen, and I'm wondering if there is any way I can get my messages back... hopefully a way that's not too complicated for me to understand.

I still have all the messages that were in my drafts and sent folders, and
still have the addresses in my address book, it was just the messages in the inbox that disappeared.

This is what led up to them disappearing. My computer had just come out of
stand-by mode and I opened Outlook Express and clicked on a new message I had received. The little hourglass appeared on my screen and the message didn't open, so I figured Outlook Express had froze and I opened up task manager to do the "end task" procedure. That didn't appear to be working either, perhaps I was just being impatient and didn't give it enough time to do it's thing, and thinking that my entire computer was frozen I flipped the switch on the power bar and shut everything down. When I turned my computer back on again and opened Outlook Express, all my messages were gone.

Are there any steps I can take to try to retrieve them? Some of the messages were important so I'm in a panic at the moment!

Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Do a search on .dbx.  Your OE folders are saved in files with extenstion .dbx.  Did you find them?  Is Inbox.dbx there?Hi Soybean...

Cute name 

I found two dbx files... one CALLED Inbox and another called Inbox (1)

Inbox (1) is the smaller file... 203 KB. Perhaps that's for my second email account, which doesn't have as many messages in it.

The file called Inbox has 206,206 KB. My main email account, the one where the messages disappeared, had a lot of messages in it. Some of the more recent ones were quite important, which is why I'm in a panic to retrieve them.

Any suggestions as to what I should do next?Inbox (1) would not be for a second email account.  I suspect Windows added it during the improper shutdown. 

First thing I would do is copy all .dbx files to another location or use a backup utility to create a backup file for them.  Then, open OE, go to Tools, Options, Maintenance, and click on the button for Clean Up Now.  The process MAY take a few minutes or longer.  LET it finish.  Then, SEE whether your messages appear in Inbox.Hi Again, Soybean...

When it comes to computers, I'm a mental midget, so when you say to copy the dbx files to another location, or use a backup utility to create a back up file for them, I haven't the foggiest idea what to do 

To copy to another location, is that simply making a duplicate of the dbx file and moving it to another folder? That seems too easy somehow   If that's all I have to do, is there a particular folder or place on my computer you recommend?

By the way...

When it's time to do the Clean Up Now step, which option do I choose after I click on Clean Up Now... Compact, Remove Messages, Delete or Reset?

I told you I'm dumb when it comes to this stuff!  Yes, it can be as simple as a copy and paste procedure.  To make this easy, I'll suggest just creating a folder in My Documents for this.  Open My Documents and click on File and add a folder named OutlookExpress or My Mail or whatever.  Then, copy the .dbx files to it.  Now, be sure to put them in a separate folder; don't co-mingle with other files in My Documents.  The reason of creating a new folder is to keep them separate.

For a permanent storage location, i.e. folder, I would not keep them in My Documents but it will be OK for a temporary situation. Quote from: island chick on May 29, 2007, 12:44:20 PM

By the way...

When it's time to do the Clean Up Now step, which option do I choose after I click on Clean Up Now... Compact, Remove Messages, Delete or Reset?

I told you I'm dumb when it comes to this stuff!