Windows live mail

AlPrentice

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Jul 14, 2013
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Having had windows live mail working satisfactorily for some time, I now find that I cannot open a new email or reply/forward to another. Each attempt is showing the message "a problem occurred while trying to open this message, please try again
 
Solution
All signs point to Comodo, but it is what it is. Thank you for sticking with this post this long. Persistence is key.

I have two more ideas, short of going blank slate which you probably will not want to undertake just for one misfit program.

Option 1: Perform a system restore. This is Windows equivalent to Time Machine found in Mac OSx. I do not know how frequent you programmed your restore points, but by default a restore point should be created after a major change to system is made. In your case, this will be the installing of Comodo or any other program you may have missed between the time WLM was working and not. Start with the nearest date you recall WLM working as it should. Do not worry all your documents, files, folders will...

AlPrentice

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Presently using Mozilla Firefox. Should tell you that I am not very computer literate so if you have any ideas can you please keep it as simple as possible. Thanks for your help
 

theclouds

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Jun 24, 2013
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You're doing fine. I just realize you aren't using "mail.live.com/" (i.e., using internet browser to access your email/hotmail), but Windows Live Essentials.

Follow these steps:
1) Click Start (the Windows Orb on the bottom left corner of your desktop)
2) Click Control Panel
3) Click Programs
4) Click Programs and Features
5) Browse and double click to select Windows Live Essentials
6) Click Repair all Windows Live programs.

This should resolve the issue. If so, click solved to close this thread. Good luck!
 

AlPrentice

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Tried That (twice) but same result. Might have misled a bit in the opening paragraph - I can receive and delete emails, but cannot create a new one or forward/reply to existing ones
 

theclouds

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No harm done. Just curious, when did this error message begin appearing? Between the time it was working flawless to now, have you installed a new antivirus or any software for that matter? Any changes to your preexisting system?

If all else fails, you could just restore windows to earlier state when Windows Live Essentials was working.
 

AlPrentice

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I have recently installed a new anti-virus (Comodo) but I am not sure if the problem started then or not, it could be related. Would it be advisable to uninstall the A-virus?
 

theclouds

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We're on the right track. Let's keep Comodo installed for now. Before we perform an uninstall let's try to make your anti-virus work. I suspect the firewall settings needed to be adjusted. Would you navigate to the following screen:

tTv9p71.png


Press Control+Alt+Delete and make sure the Windows Live Mail process is closed.

Untick/uncheck the box marked Enable Firewall.

Start Windows Live Mail. Try to create an email or forward/reply to existing emails. If you are successful, then the solution to your problem is to create a new rule for Comodo to recognize Windows Live Mail. To do this:

Press Application Rules

d7rDJVg.png


Search for Windows Live Mail. Mark the boxes to Allow all connections where applicable. Click okay when done. Restart the system.

If you cannot find the application in the list, click the upward arrow on the bottom portion of the Comodo window to bring up an options panel.

HteML7o.png


Click Add, then browse. Navigate the directory to Windows Live Mail. Firefox.exe is used as an example in the image below.

Zluu0vW.png


Click Okay after allowing permissions. Restart your system. Let me know if that works.
 

AlPrentice

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Sorry but having trouble finding the first page. I have clicked on Programmes/Comodo which gives 2options (1) Comodo Firewwall and (2) Add/remove components, and neither produces Advanced settings. (told you I was not clever at this sort of thing!!!)
 

theclouds

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The images above were pulled from Comodo's website, which I assumed was from the latest version of the software. No matter..

You mentioned 2 options; choose option 1, Comodo Firewall. From there you should see displayed something similar to the first image I posted above. This is the Firewall Settings. It may not be a carbon copy of what you see in the image above, but use it as a guide to navigate.

If you're still stuck, click the ? on the top right hand corner and tell me the version number. I may be able to find the version you are using and walk you through it.

Plan B: We'll choose another antivirus program for you that is less of a hassle, more straight-forward. They're some great free alternatives, but if you prefer there are some subscription-based as well.

Either case, don't fret. This will be resolved one way or another.

We're getting close, and you got this. Just needed someone to point you in the right direction.
 

theclouds

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It may not be instantaneous. Untick enable firewall, confirm by clicking okay. Then restart the computer. After booting back up, open Comodo to confirm enable firewall is unticked. This will ensure your new firewall settings are in full effect. Check to see if the problem with live mail persists.

Edit: Other than "a problem occurred while trying to open this message, please try again" are there any error codes displayed that may hint at the underlying problem?
 

AlPrentice

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I have unticked enable firewall/ok/ then restarted computer and enable firewall remains unticked.
Mail problem still exists and there are no error codes shown. By the way I did not go any further with your instructions re making a new rule for Comodo to recognise Windows mail, as the initial bit was not successful - hope that was correct.
 

theclouds

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Absolutely correct. The instructions for creating a new rule is when we determine the firewall is indeed the culprit, which it is not. At this point, I'm confident Comodo is not the problem and see no benefit in uninstalling.

Try this:
1. Restart the computer,
2. Do not open Windows Live Mail or any subprogram of Windows Live Essentials.
3. Click Start, type CMD.exe where it says Search Programs and Files
4. Right click cmd.exe, select Run as Administrator
5. Command prompt should open: C:\Windows\system32>
6. Copy the following entirely using Ctrl+C
esentutl.exe -d "%userprofile%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail\Mail.MSMessageStore"

7. Click the command prompt window and press Ctrl+V, you should see something like this:
C:\Windows\system32>esentutl.exe -d "%userprofile%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail\Mail.MSMessageStore"

8. Press enter.
9. Restart your computer.
 

AlPrentice

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Managed it on 3rd attempt! After restarting I tried to open Windows Live Mail and after about 30 secs the following appeared
"Windows Live Mail could not be started. The application was unable to open WLM Message Store. Your WLM mailbox data is currently being used by another prog such as a virus protector. Close the program or wait for it to complete it's operation, then open WLM again. (0x800C0155.2)"
I have tried 3 more restarts but all with the same result.
 

theclouds

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Jun 24, 2013
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I'm going to retract my previous statement, bc 1) Comodo/virus protector appears to be intercepting outgoing mail. 2) The issue arose shortly Comodo was installed. 3) Worst case scenario, if it isn't the culprit, you'll just have to reinstall Comodo. Worth the expense.

Let's uninstall Comodo completely.
Option 1) You may use the default Windows uninstaller. Click Start orb, Control Panel, Click Uninstall Program. Select Windows Live Email.
Option 2) Use something a little more comprehensive. I prefer revo uninstaller. Download link: http://www.revouninstaller.com/download-free-portable.php

Restart the computer.

Reinstall the latest version of Windows Live Mail. http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=255475

Check your email as you normally would.

Cross fingers.

Also should have mentioned this earlier, make sure all your updates at Windows Update are current.
 

theclouds

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Jun 24, 2013
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All signs point to Comodo, but it is what it is. Thank you for sticking with this post this long. Persistence is key.

I have two more ideas, short of going blank slate which you probably will not want to undertake just for one misfit program.

Option 1: Perform a system restore. This is Windows equivalent to Time Machine found in Mac OSx. I do not know how frequent you programmed your restore points, but by default a restore point should be created after a major change to system is made. In your case, this will be the installing of Comodo or any other program you may have missed between the time WLM was working and not. Start with the nearest date you recall WLM working as it should. Do not worry all your documents, files, folders will be preserved.

An excellent and short guide from Windows on performing System Restore:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/products/features/system-restore

Option 2: Use an alternative program that is arguably less temperamental. My choice is Thunderbird.

Here is a excellent guide to migrate from WLM to Thunderbird, step by step:
https://support.mozillamessaging.com/en-US/kb/switching-thunderbird

I know Option 2 sounds like a cop out and going around the problem, but better software in my opinion is as good as any solution especially one that requires tweaking the existing software to make it work. Going through the forums you'll see your problem with WLM is echoed from a lot of users.

While I have a few other ideas (I'm never really out of them, a curse and blessing to a stubborn nature) it's hard to explain unless I am physically able to work on the computer. Regardless, Option 2 will most certainly allow you to resume checking mail as you used to. Option 1 is the Hail Mary, well technically reinstalling the OS is.

I'm sorry I am not able to help you any further. My last helpful gesture of goodwill is bumping your post up when I submit this reply. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable than I will come to your aid. Good luck
 
Solution

susan k

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Aug 5, 2014
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hello, I am not by no means a computer expert but this worked for me without having to reinstall Windows Live. I have Windows 7. My computer and all programs have worked fine
problem-could not reply or send emails with Windows Live got error message "problem-an error has occurred, blah blah"
Also other problems such as homepage didn't show, History bar hidden, and various other headaches.

After doing a system restore to a time before that update and problems still existed, I was looking for a fix for hours trying to find a solution without having to uninstall and reinstall Window Live, and I did this:

Using CC cleaner I made sure I cleaned all applications
I did a cleanup w/ CC Cleaner tools by removing startup items that I have never seen before for all applications-just left AVG and I believe Adobe
I cleaned the registry with CC Cleaner

Done! It worked! I really think a Windows update was the cause of my misery. One evening as I shut down my computer I saw windows update appeared, updating for example 100 of 680??? Then it shut down quickly. I have seen this before.
The next day I could not send or reply to Windows Live mail and the other above problems.

I think a Windows update added files to my startup menu that corrupted my Windows Live and other programs. Like I said, there were items on my startup in all applications I have never seen before.

I would like to hear from people who have had Windows updates install files that corrupted their computers like it did mine.


 

MiggieNH

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Aug 21, 2014
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I just spent quite a bit of time troubleshooting this for a customer, and thought I might be able to help others who have found absolutely no solution to this problem "a problem occurred while trying to open this message". The customer had Windows Live Mail 2011, but I did almost every fix I found to no avail (including repairs and upgrading to WLM2012). I had already concluded that their existing messages were lost so the goal was just to get the program working again. I was able to make that happen by creating a new Windows user profile for the user, and setup the WLM email account from scratch. Now it works perfectly. It is possible that I could have tried to copy in the messages from the bad profile, but I did not try because they were already trashed by the time I had finished every other troubleshooting method, and since the user had email set to never delete off the mail server, I was able to download them all again anyhow. Hope this helps someone.
 

GAJIT

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Jan 8, 2015
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Have been tracking this problem for a customer of mine as he had the same issue.
Eventually found that if I ask WLM to Stop Signing in with a Windows Live ID, them problem goes away. My customer was not aware that they had configured WLM with a Windows Live ID, but hey, who know what Windows updates do.

Ctrl+Shift+o and the setting is on a tab there somewhere.
 

Brant Burnett

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Feb 4, 2015
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I had the exact same symptoms, this fixed the problem for me as well.