Windows Mail

How to Reinstate Windows Mail in Windows 7​

   Warning

Microsoft no longer supports Windows Mail, aka WinMail. It's recommended you use another well known supported email client. This Tutorial is for Advanced users who importantly have the Technical Ability to make the changes, have backups of everything including your OS, and to be your own tech support for WinMail going forward. If you decide to complete this tutorial you accept the fact that you are using WinMail as-is. It might be necessary to uninstall other email clients to resolve any WinMail conflicts in some environments. Understand it's likely that new OS updates from Microsoft will break WinMail's operation, and to fix make it necessary to rerun the tutorial again to reinstate it. With those things in mind, this tutorial was written so that you can rerun it without affecting WinMail user data.
Please see this Errata (Bug List) post before you install, to be aware of the current information about known issues using WinMail within Windows 7, these issues are programmatic and in most cases cannot be resolved by this tutorial, and will never be fixed.

Having said all of that disclaimer, if you have the technical ability, and can put up with the annoying minor byproduct bugs, then like so many of us still enjoy using WinMail on Windows 7 ...ymmv!

   Tip

As of January, 2025, the instructions given here supersede all other instructions given in forthcoming older posts. Realize some of the posts that follow are over 16 years old, and many of the link pointers within have become mislinked over time, many of the files or information within them is outdated, incomplete, or superseded with more accurate information - and so be careful. However you can always be sure that the latest info from all research is incorporated into this tutorial post, and its downloads are the latest available. This post is continuously kept up-to-date, and so..
...Always refer to this Tutorial post for the very latest updated information

This is the 4th iteration of the Windows 7, WinMail tutorial.

The process of this tutorial Will Not work to reinstate WinMail on Windows 8/10 !
Windows 8/10 users please go Here

Start here

1. Download tutorial package TutReWinMail.zip
   
   Download
   
   
2. Extract the TutReWinMail.zip into your user Downloads folder
   • Note: Be sure once extracted this is the address of the ''TutReWinMail'' folder:
   • C:\Users\username\Downloads\TutReWinMail... ... (if it's not there please put it there)
3. Navigate to your user Downloads\TutReWinMail folder to be sure the above is correct.
   • (..if you need more verbose install instructions to follow, download this WinMail Local Tutorial.zip)
   • Advanced Users can proceed below:

     ---

     (..log in for Full Access, being able to get support, remove ads, like, and even to post, etc..)

Advanced Users: ..use this easy excellent overview of the steps in the local tutorial:

• Open an Administrator Command Prompt. (screenshot showing in Administrator mode)
• copy/paste this line into the command prompt: cd %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\TutReWinMail\
• Your command prompt must now be showing you are at That Same Folder Address ..which contains the tutorial files that the batch file in the next step executes programs and copies files specifically from that folder address - if it's not there the batch file will fail since it cannot find what it needs!
• Next type in either winmail32 or win64mail <matching OS bit, to interactively process These Next Steps
• If you've finished to the bottom as shown in last screenshot, restart your machine (sets registry)
• Create a shortcut from WinMail.exe to your Desktop
• Open WinMail - it may prompt you one (or both) of These Two Notices ..click yes, and okay.
• They now should be already set, but you can manually check/set at any time These Default Settings
• That's pretty much all there is to it, and from here you setup the rest of the Windows Mail client (aka: WinMail) as normal within its various tab menus for Accounts, Options, Layout, etc, etc, to suit your individual needs.
• Lastly, but should be the First thing you do, is to Create A WinMail Backup (new version) ..Go to this next link and when you get there scroll down to the heading: Backup/Restore Procedures for further instructions.

   Information

See How to open an elevated Administrator Command Prompt
Important: The exact text provided by the tutorial must be entered into the Administrator Command Prompt.
Hint: to avoid typos, copy/paste the entire line containing the command into the Command Prompt window.
Also see: How to Enable Copy to Clipboard from the Windows 7 Command Prompt

---

Every effort has been made to make this a step-by-step process, however, it is beyond the scope of a single tutorial to provide information on every command or concept. Search the Main Tutorial Section if you need greater detail on a concept or command presented in this tutorial.

Good luck, and long live WinMail

   Note

Made possible by members:
Mark (aka Mr GRiM) - provided the original tutorial
Poppa Bear - continued Mark's work within the 2nd version
endeavor - provided continuous feedback, changes, invaluable testing instrumental to tutorial operations
EKManitis - propose the batch code that made operations easier
Slartybart - updated, tested, and consolidated all of the above into the 3rd version
endeavor - reviewed, updated, tested, and incorporated all of the above into this 4th version
...and also a special thanks to All the other members who presented discovery for this project

Related Tutorials

---

• How to Backup/Restore Messages in Windows Mail (Vista version)
  
• Windows Calendar - Import into Windows 7
• Vista Windows Sidebar - Reinstate on Windows 7
• Windows Live Mail - Import Windows Mail Messages
• Windows Live Mail - Import Windows 7 and Vista Contacts

 

[poppa bear]

Setting WinMail as default

To Ex_Brit re:

I see no tutorial or link to one, on how to make Windows Mail the default email/news application. There is a fix for that here: Can't Make Windows Mail Default

I believe that some people think it still needs work but it worked for me in making Windows Mail the default mail client at least.

Hi Ex-Brit, don't know if you've looked at my guide to importing WinMail in Techspot forum, but when the steps there are used, on first start-up of imported WinMail, a prompt appears asking if you want to use WinMail as default.

I didn't read the whole post which your link refers to, but in the hypothetical situation where the prompt to set WinMail as default does not appear, after running the steps in my guide, would the workaround shown in your link fix this problem?

If it does, I'll add it into my post as a back-up in case the prompt doesn't happen, and anyone experiences problems in setting WinMail as default.

Cheers PB

 

[akwexavante]

A New WinMail.exe installer is on the way with added registry keys to make things even better.

WinMail will become The Default Mailing Client and will open emails from the desktop in the next version faster and easier. Mailto htperlinks on webpages will open easier and faster too.

Not going to be able to resolve the Windows Mail Help issue without help from microsoft. Thats not going to happen!

The only i'm struggling on is a way to "Pin to Taskbar" from a batch file.

There has to be a way to do it.

Taskbar shortcuts are placed in the location:
C:\Users\LegalUser\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\TaskBar

but there must be some registry entries too because pklacing a Windows Mail shortcut here is not enough.

New Improved Version:

http://www.welcomecomputing.co.uk/downloads/WinMailFix.exe

Mark

 

[Ex_Brit]

No I didn't spot those but will take a look for future reference. I just thought that a link to a "How-to" for default client would have been useful on the 1st post in this thread.

Thanks Guys.

 

[Greg S]

After all our hard work, Akwexavante's installer, (back one page), will probably make my Guide redundant! In fairness to anyone reading my post, to make it more user friendly, I should really refer them to his installer link. I'll also be interested to test it and see if it has any issues with other mail programs installed like WinLiveMail, or with running sfc /scannow or MRT.

Even if it does replace it, it's been a really educational experience working out the various registry issues, and I've learned heaps from you. But even if nothing else had come out of it, I learned how to disable the WinMail splash screen.

Cheers PB

You can do the installer with your way of getting winmail, which is keeping mostly Win 7 files for it. If I'm not mistken, his installer is just a zip file that automates the process. I mentioned doing this somewhere in this thread. Got a go PB, I'll be back this afternoon with more info on the questions you asked

 

[poppa bear]

Importing WinMail

To akwexanavnte re:

A New WinMail.exe installer is on the way with added registry keys to make things even better.

WinMail will become The Default Mailing Client and will open emails from the desktop in the next version faster and easier. Mailto htperlinks on webpages will open easier and faster too.

Not going to be able to resolve the Windows Mail Help issue without help from microsoft. Thats not going to happen!

The only i'm struggling on is a way to "Pin to Taskbar" from a batch file.

There has to be a way to do it.

Taskbar shortcuts are placed in the location:
C:\Users\LegalUser\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\User Pinned\TaskBar

but there must be some registry entries too because pklacing a Windows Mail shortcut here is not enough.

New Improved Version:

http://www.welcomecomputing.co.uk/do...WinMailFix.exe

Mark

HI, have just downloaded the WinMailFix from your link and tried to run it on a virgin bare bones copy of Win7 Ultimate, but it wont' install and keep getting the error message:

Error 0 running command\WinMailFix\WinMail.bat

Any idea why this would be so and how to fix it?

Cheers PB

 

[akwexavante]

At what point do you get Error 0 running command do you get the error immediately you start the installer?

Since i updated the installer this am i have used it on three new builds and its run perfectly.

I googled Error 0 running command and many people get this error installing numberous other applications on the Ultimate versions of both Vista and 7.

Some people have a norton or a Comodo product installed on Ultimate versions, could this be a coincidence.

I haven't tried this on an Ultimate version and not likely too in the future as i use Home premium only on new builds.

Adding another 203 Registry entries to the Installer after the W/E that i have found on Vista related to Windows Mail.

Mark

 

[poppa bear]

To akwexavante re:

At what point do you get Error 0 running command do you get the error immediately you start the installer?

Since i updated the installer this am i have used it on three new builds and its run perfectly.

I googled Error 0 running command and many people get this error installing numberous other applications on the Ultimate versions of both Vista and 7.

Some people have a norton or a Comodo product installed on Ultimate versions, could this be a coincidence.

The error occurs as soon as the setup button is pressed.

No I'm not running Norton or Comodo on this installation. It's a bare bones virgin installation using Windows Firewall. I tried the earlier version with the same result. Also tried turning off the firewall but made no difference.

Cheers PB

 

[akwexavante]

Then its the Ultimate Version itself thats causing it and i have no idea why. Its working perfectly on Home Premium.

I'll explore this further after the weekend but i don't think i'm going to be able to do much about this one, but lets see what i can come up with. If its a simple fix i'll do it but if its going to take up too much of my time i won't.

Mark

 

[poppa bear]

Conflict with WinMailLive

To GregS re:

You can do the installer with your way of getting winmail, which is keeping mostly Win 7 files for it. If I'm not mistken, his installer is just a zip file that automates the process. I mentioned doing this somewhere in this thread. Got a go PB, I'll be back this afternoon with more info on the questions you asked

Thanks Greg. No urgency about answering the questions I asked, but at your convenience.

Forgot to mention that with the revised method of importing WinMail using all your regedits, and removing WinMail attributes, it even works with Windows Mail Live installed; and over-rides it, offering to make WinMail default on first start up.

Cheers PB

 

[poppa bear]

To akwexavante re:

Then its the Ultimate Version itself thats causing it and i have no idea why. Its working perfectly on Home Premium.

In order to test this I ran it on my copy of Vista Ultimate, but it wouldn't run and got the same error message at the same point of installation. Unlike the virgin copy of Win7, Vista already had WinMail imported, so maybe that blocked the program from running?

Bernie

 

[Greg S]

To GregS re:

You can do the installer with your way of getting winmail, which is keeping mostly Win 7 files for it. If I'm not mistken, his installer is just a zip file that automates the process. I mentioned doing this somewhere in this thread. Got a go PB, I'll be back this afternoon with more info on the questions you asked

Thanks Greg. No urgency about answering the questions I asked, but at your convenience.

Forgot to mention that with the revised method of importing WinMail using all your regedits, and removing WinMail attributes, it even works with Windows Mail Live installed; and over-rides it, offering to make WinMail default on first start up.

Cheers PB

UAC is User Account Control and SRP is Software Restriction Policy. The latter being one of the best free security controls available and it's built into windows. I have mine set to turn off or on via a shortcut in the start menu which points to a batch file that is coded to either turn off or on. It's the same as going into local security policy but it's quicker with a shortcut especially if one installs and test alot of apps.

Moving on, I've extracted the installer and it appears to be using the Vista versions of WinMail so maybe akwexavante could get on board and modify his installer to use your method which in my opinion is better in the long run.

 

[johannes778]

Win Mail in Winows 7

Cheers Mate,
It works wonders

Also that take ownership is fantastic.
Thanks a million

Han

 

[poppa bear]

Enable WinMail in Win7 Revised method

Modified Method to Enable Windows Mail in Windows 7

Please note: The credits for researching & developing the modifications in this guide go primarily to GregS; and to Ex_Brit for the regedit to disable the splash screen at startup.

Without forgetting the originator, Mr. Grim, without whom none of this would have been possible in the first place.

This method incorporates the various modifications discussed in this thread to simplify the process and remove conflicts.

Here's how!

See OPTION TWO in tutorial on first page.


Hope this helps. Cheers PB

 

[Greg S]

Modified Method to Enable Windows Mail in Windows 7

Please note: The credit for researching & developing the modifications in this guide goes to GregS.


Hope this helps. Cheers PB

Honestly, the real credit should be Mr GRiM for letting us know that something like this was even possible. Also to you for your continued testing on a Win 7 clean slate as a tester outter,lol

 

[andjayik]

why do we need to do all that? All i did was copied and paste the vista mail into my 7 mail and works no problem! Wasy and no extra downloads and stuff.

 

[poppa bear]

To andjayik re:

why do we need to do all that? All i did was copied and paste the vista mail into my 7 mail and works no problem! Wasy and no extra downloads and stuff.

Without wishing to sound critical, I'd say you are one of a very small percentage of the lucky ones, and that's great if it worked that easy for you... more strength to you. But if you read the previous 300 plus posts in this tutorial it didn't work that easy for most people.

When I tried to do it the original way and ran Take Ownership, it didn't work on all the files, so I had to take full control manually. Then when I finally got everything imported I couldn't open email .eml files on the desktop. Even after associating .eml files with WinMail, when I clicked on them it opened the main WinMail program, not the email itself.

Finally, after I got that sorted, I had to manually set Windows Mail as the default program. And to cap it all off, when I ran the system file check command "check scf /scannow" in the Run box, it borked the system. And ditto when I ran Windows updates. Also, in some environments having WinMailLive installed also borked it.

The upgraded and simplified method developed by GregS, and incorporated into post 317, (three posts up on this page), deals with all these problems in one hit.

- The regedit file WinMailEdit.reg enables email .eml files to open on the desktop; disables the WinMail splash screen on startup; and removes an x86 registry key that conflicts with the imported Vista "msoe.dll" file.

- The cmd in the Run box: "attrib -s -h WinMail.exe", (which removes attributes), prevents conflicts from updates; and from running the system file check command: "sfc /scannow".

- "Footnote 1" gives a workaround if certain complications occur in manually taking full control of the file "msoe.dll" when "Take Ownership" won't work.

- "Footnote 2", shows how to modify a registry key which appears in some environments and stops email .eml files from being opened on the desktop.

- Finally there's a bonus thrown in. The WinCal RegEdit.reg file allows the Windows Calendar button in the top taskbar of WinMail to work after importing Windows Calendar from Vista. The only thing that couldn't be fixed was the help files.

However, probably the most important aspect of this revised method is that it only replaces one of the original Windows Mail files, "msoe.dll", keeping all the rest which are auto compatible with the Windows 7 operating system, and hence create no conflicts which need to be fixed. This new method only needs to deal with conflicts created by the imported Vista file "msoe.dll".

Post 317 was developed as an all round summary for installation, and fix, for most of the problems encountered.

Phewww!!! Does that answer the question?

Cheers Poppa Bear... keep on truckin, eh!

 

[tuckinrimins10]

I need the windows mail link for 64bit.. anyone have a link?


Thanks

 

[poppa bear]

To tuckinrimins10 re:

I need the windows mail link for 64bit.. anyone have a link?
Thanks

There were links but Microsoft asked for them to be removed as they contravened the copyrights.

If you have access to a 32 bit version of Vista Windows Mail file, there is a work around. See General Notes 3, at bottom of post No 317, on previous page of this thread.

Cheers PB

 

[tuckinrimins10]

A admin pm'd me them last time but my pm's were removed some how. I tried what you sent me but was unable to get it to work.

 

[poppa bear]

WinMail 64bit

To Tuckinrimins10 re:

A admin pm'd me them last time but my pm's were removed some how. I tried what you sent me but was unable to get it to work.

When importing a 32bit Vista WinMail to a 64bit Win7 OS, it is essential to delete the entire original 64bit Windows Mail folder from the 64bit Program files, after first making a back-up copy.

Then import the entire 32bit Vista Windows Mail folder, not just the msoe.dll file.

And it must be imported to the 32bit Program files in Win7, which is named Program files (x86), as can be seen as in this picture, which can be enlarged by clicking on it.

​

This means you will have to take ownership of every file in the original Win7 Windows Mail folder to be able to delete them. I found that Take Ownership worked with single files, but not with folders. So I had to take full control manually as shown in Footnote 2 of the guide.

Also, you will still need to do all the other steps of running the download regedit file WinMailEdit.reg; removing the attributes with the Run command: attrib -s -h WinMail.exe, etc.

Good luck, PB