Windows Mail

To t8769 re:

One problem though. But in my Windows7, there is no Windows Mail folder in Programs, only Windows Live Mail
Is it possible to put a 32bit Windows Mail folder in a 64 bit 7 system?

Another member, Meriu, had the same problem, in post 187, page 19 of this thread.

Edit. Yes Yes Yes ! I have installed it on my PC. The problem was that I didn't Install it in the correct 'Program Files' but in 'Program Files (x84)'. I have got 2 folders named Program Files. When I put it into proper Program Files, everything started and works!

First off, delete Windows Mail Live entirely by using the Add/Remove option in Control Panel/Programs.

If you can't find Windows Mail you're probably looking in the wrong set of Program Files. Usually in a 64 bit installation of Windows 7 there will be two sets of program files. The 64 bit one for the operating system; and a 32 bit one for any old 32 bit applications. It should be in the 64 bit set of program files.

Yes it is possible to put a 32 bit version of Windows Mail from Vista into a 64 bit version of Windows 7.

To do so, totally delete the original 64 bit Windows Mail folder, (do a backup copy first to be safe). If you don't do this you will get conflicts.

Now copy and paste the entire 32 bit Windows Mail Vista folder into the 32 bit Program Files of Windows 7.

You may be able to get the 32 bit Windows Mail Vista folder by clicking here.

If you haven't already found it, this is a link to a comprehensive step-by-step guide to the whole process by clicking here. In this post it tells you to only replace two files in Windows Mail. However, since you are installing a 32 bit version you will need to import the full folder, not just the two files.

Good luck. PB

poppa bear said:

To GregS re:

FYI, you don't need to delete/replace everything in the Windows Mail Folder in order to make WinMail work in Win 7. All you need is msoe.dll and the WinMail.exe from a Vista install.

Thanks for that info Greg. I did a clean instal of Win7 and only replaced those two files with the equivalent files from Win Mail Vista and it worked fine. I've updated my Techspot guide accordingly.

Cheers PB

I didn't do any further testing but am curious as why msoe.dll needs to be replaced. Could it possibly be due to the initial setting of the splash screen or maybe import option etc..?? Just thinkin out loud. The only visible difference I see is the file version, vista sp1 and rtm 7.

Are both reg files on your Techspot guide needed? I assumed they were and haven't had any hiccups after applying both.

To GregS re:

I didn't do any further testing but am curious as why msoe.dll needs to be replaced. Could it possibly be due to the initial setting of the splash screen or maybe import option etc..?? Just thinkin out loud. The only visible difference I see is the file version, vista sp1 and rtm 7.

Are both reg files on your Techspot guide needed? I assumed they were and haven't had any hiccups after applying both.

I can't really comment on why either of the two files "msoe.dll" & "WinMail.exe" are needed, and other files not needed. I'm not a programmer or techo, and have come at this purely from a trial and error basis, without any real knowledge of the functions of each file, aside from the obvious function of the .exe one. What started out for me as a query in the Techspot forum turned into a research and development project, using info from this and other forums.

Where did you come by the knowledge that only those two files needed to be replaced? In the original post in this thread, the moderator Mr. Grim, stated that the entire Windows Mail folder in program files had to be replaced, so I just took that at face value, and it worked. Your modification makes it a heck of a lot easier given that "Take Ownership" didn't work in my PC environment, and I had to manually take control and delete every file... a long, tedious process.

When I contacted Microsoft as to why they included the Windows Mail application in the program files of Windows 7 when it was inoperable, I was told that it had originally been intended to go in all versions of Win7. However, due to the dispute between Microsoft and the European Community, they could not include it in Windows 7 intended for the European market. They then debated whether to have two versions of Win7; one for the European market without Win Mail and another version for all other markets with it included. The final compromise is what we've got now, with Win Mail in all versions, but it's inoperable.

When I first imported WinMail I only used the one auto registry, "Windows Mail.reg", because I couldn't find a download for "Windows Mail2.reg", (plus the manual registry edit), and it worked fine. However, tangentJohn in this forum suggested both should be used, so to cover all bases, I included both for completeness in the guide.

I also found out that the registry key that needs to be manually edited by this change, "C:\Program Files\Windows Mail\winmail.exe" /eml:%1", is not present in a clean installation of Win7, but only appears after Windows Live Mail is installed in the OS. So if you've never loaded Win Mail Live, you needn't worry about this step.

Cheers PB

To Greg S re:

I discovered the two file technique the same as you, trial and error. I'm a glutton for PC punishment. I use Eaz-Fix plus image backup as secondary recovery

What is Eaz-Fix? I looked it up on Google and it seems to be like Windows restore application? I'm already using Acronis back-up image of my OS, and the image which is in a separate storage folder is regularly auto updated. It takes about 10 minutes to reload the image, restoring the whole OS.

Totally ID with "nothing works for me!" Feel like I'm jinxed a lot of the time.

Like yourself I like tinkering. When I bought a new DVD burner it came with Nero 8 bundled. And everytime you started Nero, it asked if you wanted to register, and I couldn't get rid of it... the only option was to select: "Ask later". Then when you started Nero next time it came up again, ad infinitum!

Anyways, I went into Nero program files, and went to the folder which I thought was most likely causing the problem, and one by one, typed ".BAK" on the end of each file, until I found the one that caused the registration notice to appear. It gave me great satisfaction to turn off the registration nag screen. It's bad enough getting them in freeware, but you accept it as part of the deal. But with paid for programs... Hello!!! I don't think so!

Cheers PB

poppa bear,
Can you check something for me? After using the two file technique, is the Windows Mail and Windows Mail(News) listed in the Default Programs control panel? Everything works fine and both are default but are now not listed in Default Programs control panel. I think at one time, both were listed in there and it may have been after using the all files replaced technique but I'm not for certain. It also may be related to my WinCal reg fix but I doubt it. Thanks

Update: I managed to get Windows Mail back in the Default Programs control panel by replacing en-US folder with the one from Vista. The Windows Mail(News) is still missing in action.