17 replies to this topic

[DAVID E]

Hey, guys-I wondered if you could help me resolve an email problem using Windows Live Mail. I've tried for two days and talked with Comcast no less than three hours trying to find a solution. They haven't been a lot of help and in fact, I even resorted to agreeing to pay $49.95 for their "Xfinity tech service" to try and find the problem remotely-that was the desperation.

It started Thursday when I got home from work and saw there were no emails in my inbox sent that day. I didn't pay much attention to it until the next day(Friday) I noticed still no new messages. I knew something was up so after trying all I knew I called Comcast. Initially it had something to do with my password which I couldn't remember since I never have to use a password-just click on the icon and my email client comes up. At any rate, I was turned over to someone else that went through the steps they have written down and in short, no dice. Finally yesterday they gave me a ticket number and number to call for more tech support...for a fee of course. He found all my emails were being forwarded to another email address that didn't even exist in that the suffix was .nett. I knew the person and remember once typing their name in but mistakenly gave it the .nett suffix instead of .net at the end. Of course the email didn't go through and I realized what I had done and started over with the proper .net. Why after 3-4 years that bogus address would end up anywhere is a mystery. Well, he deleted it, since it didn't exist.

Just prior to his calling me back, I was desperate and decided against better judgement, to do a system restore. Within a minute or two of it finishing is when Comcast tech called me. Here's the problem. After he deleted that bogus address we noticed I had no email in my Inbox. He was doing this on the website and nothing showed nor did it show in my Live Mail account. I can't say for sure whether he did something wrong or whether by some unknown alien deleted all my emails (about 200) from my inbox but I also checked and I had none in my Sent box, Drafts,Junk or Deleted items...zero, nothing showed. I had a lot of research and other emails in that Draft box that is now empty just like my Inbox. All my folders are there with their emails but every email gone from everywhere else.

What happened to all those emails? Can I get them back some way? The odd part is I decided to do a Search for a couple places I had received emails from and just typed it in, hit enter, and that email showed up?? So, apparently it must still be on the server somewhere or I couldn't have retrieved it. The thing is, I can't remember half of those emails and do a search on them. The tech told me he was turning in another ticket and sending it to the "International..." something or other, I didn't catch the entire name and they're suppose to contact me "withing 24-72 hours".

There was no problems until the other evening when I came home and noticed no emails. Noting was wrong the night before other than me updating some of Microsoft's wonderful updates and the only one I recall was an update for "IE 9". It apparently didn't take as when I checked later I still had IE 8.

Any guidance on this would be greatly appreciated as I'm against the wall now and don't think Comcast is going to be able to help. I still can't receive emails as I've sent myself a test message and it didn't come in-just like the one I tried yesterday. It shows up as Sent, but not received.

[Broni]

Quote

The odd part is I decided to do a Search for a couple places I had received emails from and just typed it in, hit enter, and that email showed up?

You searched where exactly?

[DAVID E]

I just hit the search button and typed in the beginning of a company name and it brought it up. What I'm not sure about is maybe that was extracted form one of my storage folders I keep messages in.

[Broni]

You searched your computer?

If you go to Comcast site can you see your mail there?

[DAVID E]

Nope-that's what they were doing yesterday and nothing showed. Yep, I searched the computer.

[Broni]

Well, I don't think we can do anything here.
It must be some issue on Comcast email server level.

[DAVID E]

That's just part of the problem. The initial problem was I couldn't receive email-that still stands. I can send but not receive. That's what started it all. When I send and email to my work or to myself at home, it shows up in my Sent box but I never get it.

[Broni]

It looks like Comcast server is sending it somewhere else.
It must be some simple solution.
Push those idiots.

[DAVID E]

They're suppose to get back with me"in 24 hours or so". This only makes about the fourth time I've talked with them-out $49.95 and still can't receive nor retrieve my emails from my Inbox...not happy today.

[Broni]

I fully understand.
Call them back, ask for supervisor.

[Broni]

I'd also ask them for 50 bucks back.
It clearly looks like a problem on their side.

[Keeper]

Try this if you are using a Live-mail account: Go into your Live mail, click on Accounts at top, Properties, then click on server tab. Make sure that" http://mail.services...2.0.0/sync.aspx "(Do Not Click This Link) is in server URL.
Next would be to check to make sure you have correct email address and the box checked at bottom "include this account when receiving mail or synchronizing".
Try adding another email account to Live to see if you get email from them. I have 4 emails using Live mail, 2 gmail, hotmail (livemail)and gmx.mail; as you can utilize Live to gather other mail from different email accounts. If you are already using an account other than Live-mail then make sure their correct settings are in place, similar to instruction above
Here is some information on using Live-mail,.http://explore.live....ndows-live-mail
Otherwise you may have to re-set the entire account with Comcast, more than likely a snafu on their part.

[JohnT]

It really does not like a server problem, but Keeper and Broni are right it is a network problem and they should be able to tell you something within a day or so. Like Keeper said I would setup a new Live account and check functionality. I have my web mails set up to go to other email addresses for example I have my Comcast web mail go to Yahoo and Hotmail. This way if one has a problem I will still get the email at a different account.

[DAVID E]

I've been on the phone for no less that three hours total with two different Comcast people. The first gal was a real pleasure to work with and she really tried all she knew. She wrote another ticket and sent it to some other tech support guy and he called some 30 minutes later. I was on the phone with him and we went around the mulberry bush for some time and he discovered one of the problems had to do with a filter I had set. I kept getting an email from an "evideo" place so, I set up a filter to block it and delete. Somehow after this all my emails were apparently deleted whenever they tried to send another email, probably a couple days ago when this started. I'm still lost as to what this had to do with my email. I have other filters set and never experienced a loss of connection in my email client and especially didn't loose all my email in several folders-mostly my Inbox and Drafts. They ended up deleting my account and started all over again. Initially, I couldn't send or receive any email from their website much less from my end.

Unfortunately he couldn't retrieve all those lost emails but did get me back up running again with a new password and a few tweaks under my account. This has been a real PITA and I sure won't change any filters again. I still don't know or understand how a filter addition could have done this.

They changed my outgoing email(smtp) from port 25 to 587 for whatever the reason and changed the password under Incoming Email Server. It's been a rocky road since Thursday evening when most of this started. I must say, this is the first real problem I couldn't solve with my email client and it kills me to know I've lost all that email. Why it got deleted in my Drafts will remain a puzzle. Thanks for these suggestions and I do hope this has subsided now and won't happen again. I'm not going to believe all is well for a few days-been there before. Hopefully it won't flare up anymore.

[Broni]

Good news afterall :)

[DAVID E]

Well, yes and no. I can send/receive but lost all them emails.:(

[Keeper]

How to Back-up Windows Live mail, including All of your Mail account settings, Contacts, and E-Mail Messages. .....http://www.emailques...ail-2011-a.html

[DAVID E]

I'll save those instruction, Keeper...thanks. I don't have the Windows 2011 version-still have Live Mail 2009. I still think somewhere out there in cyber space is my emails. It's just too ironic to have lost all that was in the Inbox as well as sent and draft folders. That just doesn't fit right to me. Makes me sick I've lost all of it.