How to Recover Deleted EmailsMost of us will at some stage need to recover emails that have been accidentally deleted. Here we will look at the various options of recovering lost emails, like:
Using Undelete FeatureWhen you delete an email it is not necessarily deleted but instead marked/flagged for deletion. Most email clients will move a deleted email/message from the folder (usually inbox) to a special folder called deleted items or trash. This is what is known as a soft delete. Messages/emails that are in the deleted items/trash can be permanently deleted by deleting them again, usually accomplished by emptying the deleted items folder or trash, this is then an hard delete. They can also be easily recovered by undeleting them. Restoring from a BackupEmail restores from backup are usually only done when you have lost lots of emails due to some form of database corruption. However if you have been using email backup software that allows you to recover individual emails then you can use it to restore the missing messages. When evaluating email backup software it is a good idea to give preference to software that allows for single message restores. Using a Server CopyEmail can be stored on your PC/laptop and/or on the email server or both. If you are using a POP3 client and have configured the client to leave email on the email server then when you accidentally deleted the email it was deleted on your PC and not the email server. The client will not retrieve the missing email from the server as it already has done so but another client can. The best client to use is a web based client as connecting another POP3 based client to the mailbox requires careful configuration, so as not to delete the emails from the server (standard configuration with a POP3 client). In addition the new client will retrieve the entire mailbox which could take a long time depending on the mailbox size. Using Recovery SoftwareBecause email client store emails in proprietary databases email recovery software that is available will usually only recover email for a specific client. Email recovery software is used to restore/recover permanently deleted email, i.e. email that has been deleted from the trash/deleted items folder. Most vendors offer a free trial with limited recovery capability but sufficient for you to evaluate the product. RecommendationsIf your email is important to you then you really should be doing regular email backups. Related Articles: Useful Resources|SiteMap|Privacy Policy||Disclaimer/Disclosure | Contact|About Me| -------------------------------------------------------------------- |