Apple Mail issue

Software
1

So a friend of mine called asking for help with Apple Mail. They had a folder inside of their inbox disappear. The person is not too computer savvy so trying to solve this over the phone is challenging. Any thoughts?

2

I always discouraged my users from creating folders under INBOX. Depending on the email server the folder may be there but Apple Mail cannot display it.

I would suggest they log into their account through webmail. If the folder is still there have them move it.

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3

I tried that option last night with no luck. I am having him search for old mail that might have been in that folder.

4

There is always a chance the folder was accidentally dragged into another one. I’ve seen that happen on file servers more times than I can count. :crossed_fingers:

5

Few thoughts to pick & choose from, you may already have covered these:

  • Where there other folders in the same location, are they missing too?
  • Is there another interface for the mail account (i.e. web interface like on hotmail/outlook)
    – Can they connect through that & verify if the folder is there & it’s just a display thing or has it genuinely gone walk-about.
  • Can they send you screen shots so you can see what they see. maybe it’s as simple as the folder structure display is collapsed & they need to click the little arrow thing to expand the tree (this is best case scenario though I suspect you’ve already ruled that out!)
  • The remote screen tool via messages is still there isn’t it? would they let you connect to their machine so you’ve a better chance of clicking about & figuring it out?
  • Did it actually display under “inbox” or was it else-where. I’ve a hotmail account I access with Apple Mail, a lot of the folders actually appear under the email account name at the bottom of the side bar. When you hover over the account name then a “show” / “hide” appears depending on if it’s collapsed or not. At that level there isn’t the little arrow to the left to show if it’s a collapsed parent node or not.
  • Is there a deleted folder? That may require a manual check, I’ve noticed with some email services, deleted emails are excluded from searches.

Good luck!

6

I was able to remote in and sure enough the missing mailboxes were inside other mailboxes unbeknownst to the user (had no idea how it happened). Happy ending!

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