How to reinstate WinMail onto Windows 8/10/11

[Jody Thornton]

Just for fun I installed WinMail on Win8 this afternoon (May, 2012) to play a little...
I was surprised to see that MS must have intended to use WinMail on 8 since for whatever reason 8 comes stock with the same 'Program Files/Windows Mail' folder as it was on 7, just like Vista has where of course WinMail works as is. On 7 & 8 successively MS had built even newer version WinMail files too, but upon each OS's release WinMail was not activated and so all by themselves the files would not start WinMail until retro modifications were made, similar to what we did on 7. I suspect it's very possible they use these files for their current built-in Mail client and is why they keep updating them - but I've not confirmed that yet; I've not tried the new built-in mail client yet either.

Doing a little work on 8, transferring files from 7 and a few other things although not exactly like it's listed in posts above, iow, I did not need to regsvr the msidcrl30.dll (gave me a dllregisterserver error when I did) ...but anyway it worked without regsvr. You do not need a specific version of msidcrl30.dll like it says above, since I tried many different versions and they all work, but might as well just use the current msidcrl30.dll out of 7 as it is today, since WinMail works very well with it there and so just copy it from your /System32 folder from 7 over to 8. Keep in mind of course what OS you're using whether x86 or x64 since you cannot mix or substitute files from one into the other.

Now when I went to delete the existing 'Program Files/Windows Mail' folder with the necessary permissions, at first I started typing the cmd's out but was a p.i.t.a, and so instead I used our forums administrator Brink who created This neat little 'Add_Take_Ownership.reg' to do it quicker, with benefits. After using that, then right click on the Windows Mail folder, Take Ownership, and then deleted the folder. Then copied my existing 'working' Windows 7 (or Vista) Windows Mail folder over to Windows 8. (I have my own so didn't need to use the Windows Mail folder attached to the first post) Next I merged WinMailEdit.reg (which as of June, 2015 now supplied at the bottom of this post) This registry file is nearly identical (minus SxS keys) to the WinMailEdit.reg offered over on the WinMail on Windows 7 thread for its benefits which makes WinMail more accurate for all the reasons that have been discussed over the years within the WinMail on 7 thread. The same process applies to Windows 8 or Windows 10.

Note: The first thing you should do after you first setup WinMail and get it Working - is then make a copy of your 'Windows Mail' folder and save it just for these reasons below:
~If you update from Windows 8 to 8.1, or any version of 10, as well with many major MS updates that come along, they Will stop WinMail from working by overwriting many of the WM programs folder files, but no problem, just replace the Windows Mail folder again with your working one to bring it back working.
~Also! ..if you run SFC /SCANNOW it Will Break WinMail's operation each time you run it, no matter if you are on Windows 8 or Windows 10 - it will replace Many of the files within your Windows Mail folder. The way to fix it is very easy though, once again copy/paste your saved 'working' 'Windows Mail' folder replacing the one that's there. (you'll first have to take ownership of it again if needed, as already described)
Anytime any new MS Windows Updates or SFC /SCANNOW ..breaks WinMail ..you can fix it simply by Taking Ownership of the Windows Mail folder again (needed when having done major updates/upgrades) and replacing the current Windows Mail folder with your saved 'working' backup one.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The above paragraphs are just a previous time-line & informational conversation, etc..

Updated 2015
Advanced users can just start here:
How to install WinMail to Windows 8 or 10

(...first be sure in Folder Options these settings are set as shown in my screenshot Here)
1. install Brinks Take Ownership.reg Here (is what I use, but see there's also Win8 & Win10 versions too)
2. Then right click on your "Program Files/Windows Mail" folder* and click Take Ownership.
* "Program Files/Windows Mail" folder only! ..x64 users don't touch the ''Programs Folder (x86)'' listing!
* Also remember if your OS is x86 or x64 you cannot mix/substitute files from one into the other!
3. Then right click on your "Program Files/Windows Mail" folder, and Delete it.
4. Then copy/paste your saved 'working' Windows 7 (or Vista) 'Windows Mail' folder to Windows 8/10 same.
5. Create a shortcut from the program folder 'WinMail.exe' file you just copied - to the Desktop.
6. copy/paste your Windows 7 * ''C:\Windows\System32\msidcrl30.dll'' file over to Windows 8/10 same.
7. Download the WinMailEdit.reg (supplied at the bottom of this post) ..and merge it (is for both x86 or x64)
~ Then you are done..
~ Start WinMail and she opens immediately..
...from here you setup the Windows Mail client as normal...

Anyway, within minutes I had WinMail start up instantly in each of these OS's below.
Here's the first run screenshots back on Win 8 beta CP, to Win 8.1, to all Windows 10 versions so far.
Screenshots of WinMail on Win8 CP to Win 8.1 Pro & Win10 build 9841, 10041, 10162, 10240, 10586

Disclaimer, and truthfully I agree with the warning article written at the WinMail on 7 thread, Please Read it!
Basically using WinMail on 7, let alone using it on Windows 8 or especially Windows 10 - is Not Supported! ..and if used is a special per-user decision who Understands Completely what the article is saying!
..reactivating WinMail is for die-hard WinMail or expert users only! ...otherwise please move onward to more supported email clients! ...having said that, if you totally do get it, and can put up with the minor bugs, and 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 can do that, then like so many of us enjoy and much prefer using WinMail on Windows 7, 8, or 10 ..ymmv

WinMail Bug List which affects using WinMail in Windows 7, 8, or 10, and Most likely will never be fixed.

~As of September 5, 2015 because of requests I've now supplied all necessary files needed for the WinMail transition available all in one place - attached at the bottom of this post. I'd much prefer each person getting use to using their own saved working x86 or x64 Windows Mail program folder, and x86 or x64 msidcrl30.dll, however I realize sometimes people change from x86 to x64 OS's, or lose their own copies - and so these attachments below are now all here in one place for your convenience.

..and for heaven's sake, if this information has helped you, please don't forget to 'log-in' to then be able see and then click the little 'hand-thumbs-up' icon on the bottom left of the post that helped you, this gives recognition to the poster and shows your appreciation for the work that's been done which has been a lot! I see it, and it is always greatly appreciated!

How did I ever miss this post? Thank you. It's working completely now! WooHoo!

 

[Jody Thornton]

Now is there a way to allow the Compact Database function to work again (on every 100 shutdowns for example)?

 

[endeavor]

How did I ever miss this post? Thank you. It's working completely now! WooHoo!

I don't know how you did not see it because it's linked all over the place!

Your problem was you had not merged the registry file given which within it automatically sets WinMail as the default client and the setting up of the MAILTO protocol.

I'm glad you got it working again Jody, good job; ...and btw you do know how to use the rep button right
Thank you for your support!

EDIT:
The compact button has not been fixed, just rerun the tutorial to pick it up.

Instructions on how to reinstate WinMail on Windows 8 or 10

 

[Jody Thornton]

Well anyway I'm glad you got it working again Jody, good job; ...and btw you do know how to use the rep button right
Thank you for your support!

Now about the Compact button on x64, funny you should mention that, as I've just run across that the other day in this post Here
I had always had my Win7 x86 WinMail set at 100 since that's really where it should be, and as I said there is absolutely no advantage of doing it any sooner. I will work on it when I get a chance and determine if it's just a x64 bit issue or if it exists in Win8/Win10 x86 too. Win7 x86 you can set it at whatever number you want and it works. fwiw x64 has proven to be more problematic than x86 in that Advanced Options area as you can see by looking at the WinMail bugs list. However it's an extremely minor problem comparatively, which will most likely end up getting added into the linked WinMail bugs list. imho, if in the end that every 6 months one has to manually click to Compact - then so be it. We're lucky WinMail still works as good as it does.

You know instead of quoting that whole post above, since it does not contain the attachments, you could of just cleanly linked to the WinMail post like this:

Instructions on how to reinstate WinMail on Windows 8 or 10

I don't see where I can press for Repatation Comments. I'm looking ...lol. Meanwhile, I dug out the Windows Mail Utilities which allows me to manually compress the database.

 

[endeavor]

I don't see where I can press for Reputation Comments. I'm looking ...lol.
Meanwhile, I dug out the Windows Mail Utilities which allows me to manually compress the database.

...just as it says on the bottom of the tutorial

Click the little 'hand-thumbs-up' icon on the bottom left of the post that helped you, this gives recognition to the poster and shows your appreciation for the work that's been done which has been a lot! I see it, and it is always greatly appreciated!

Thank you for your support!
Instructions on how to reinstate WinMail on Windows 8 or 10

 

[Jody Thornton]

Just another situation (albeit very minor; just an irritant). I posted this over at MSFN. But I'd like to run it by you all here. I probably pulled a stupid.

Ever since I started using the Windows Mail client from Vista on Windows 8, one thing I really noticed was how fast the send/receive dialog flipped by when I engaged it. Recently though, there was an authentication issue on Zoho's end (Zoho is my mail provider). Thinking it was something on my end, I attempted recreating the accounts, compacting the database, and even running CCleaner.

Now the Zoho issue is resolved but I notice that the send/receive process is noticeably slower. It appears that messages are about to come down, even when there are none. The progress bar goes across regardless, whereas before, it was lightning fast, even when messages were downloaded.

I have deleted the WinMail program folder, reinstated it, reregistered the app to work with Windows 8 mail defaults, and recreated my accounts, but it's still a tad slower (not obtrusively but enough to know it's not like before)

Any takers?

One thing I can think of having done that may have added to the situation was be removing Internet Explorer 10. I not only disabled it from Add/Remove Features, but I also removed the payload on disk with the DISM command. So the IE program folders have some of the rendering stuff still installed, but the browser itself is gone. (I have since attempted reinstalling Internet Explorer 10 with the updates, but no improvement there.)

 

[endeavor]

Hello Jody,

My thinking is it's on their end still, and not yours.

Mine is mostly (but not always) fast (2 seconds total process to request a send & receive) and I am polling for 3 mail accounts (I have 5)

Once in a while though, it goes slow just like you mention, maybe 5 seconds and once in a while a little more sluggy, but it's certainly nothing to do on our end, since, it's simply the connection between your computer and the server of your isp, and for me to also add into the circuit my particular .com server travel comes into play as well.
Same thing when I go online and pull from my yahoo email account, heck sometimes it's fast, and sometimes it's lethargic.

To prove it out for your local WinMail operation, and since restoring images of your C:\ partition only takes a few minutes (if you use partition image software) ..you could make a current backup partition image of your C:\, and then restore C:\ back to a time when there was no problem, and I'm pretty sure you will find it's now slow on that now too, and so once you prove that out - then just re-image back to the one you just made before you restored to put it back to todays current.
If you don't use partition image backups for their enormous potential across the board to save your backside, then it's time you start. (if you want to that is)

Anyway, that's my guess, and also an answer to prove out the theory; but it sounds like a normal anomaly to me from the way you explain it.

And to your last paragraph, you know, I never not had IE installed or un-installed it and I choose to use it specifically; however you answered your own question I think since you put it back and it's still the same (here too though, if you had a saved backup partition image of C:\ created of the time before your removed IE and WM was still fast, then as a test and proof, you could restore that and prove out your questions, and restore back if warranted)

edit:
fwiw, there have been times over the years where a number of instances, I restored back in time for one reason or another to prove out and troubleshoot a problem, and I chose to leave it at that time point because it fixed the problem, and so decided to continue on from that particular time-point.
I usually create an OS partition backup once a month, and a full HD(s) clone not more than after two months of use. For a fool proof backup ability.

 

[Ex_Brit]

Microsoft ended support for anything below IE11 January 12 so I suggest you install IE11 asap for your machine's security, whether or not you use IE doesn't matter. Windows 8 is also unsupported as of 13 Jan so upgrade to 8.1 at least, preferably 10 asap too.

 

[Jody Thornton]

Microsoft ended support for anything below IE11 January 12 so I suggest you install IE11 asap for your machine's security, whether or not you use IE doesn't matter. Windows 8 is also unsupported as of 13 Jan so upgrade to 8.1 at least, preferably 10 asap too.

Again (I only say "again" because I've posted a lot about it... lol), I have to stay on Windows 8 x64, because my xw8200 workstation utilizes a pair of P4 based Xeons which won't run the x64 versions of 8.1 or 10. However, I want to use new tax software, and it won't run on Vista. And I prefer x64 Windows builds. Sorry I won't go back to x86 versions now that I'm used to having 7 gb of RAM.

Besides, it MIGHT be possible to use Server 2012 updates on the Windows 8 codebase (no different than Server 2003 updates on XP x64 which worked). We'll see. Besides, most XP users haven't seen diddley issues with running a post-EOL OS. And Windows 8 is way more stable than XP. I'm not too worried.

 

[Ex_Brit]

Well I'd still install IE11.

 

[Jody Thornton]

My thinking is it's on their end still, and not yours. Mine is mostly (but not always) fast (2 seconds total process to request a send & receive) and I am polling for 3 mail accounts (I have 5) ... To prove it out for your local WinMail operation, and since restoring images of your C:\ partition only takes a few minutes (if you use partition image software) ..you could make a current backup partition image of your C:\, and then restore C:\ back to a time when there was no problem, and I'm pretty sure you will find it's now slow on that now too, and so once you prove that out - then just re-image back to the one you just made before you restored to put it back to todays current.... Anyway, that's my guess, and also an answer to prove out the theory; but it sounds like a normal anomaly to me from the way you explain it.

I will try reinstalling Windows 8 after tax season and see if that rids of the issue. I have a Yandex and a GMX account. I set those up in Windows Mail, and excluded my two Zoho accounts from the Send/Receive lineup. They still lag a bit.

 

[Jody Thornton]

Well I'd still install IE11.

Windows 8 can only support IE 10. Windows 8.1 only supports IE11.


Good to meet you by the way. I'm working near the 404/16th Ave right now ...lol

 

[ReneVanDelft]

@Endeavor, thanks for the well written tips... however, after painstakingly following your lead, I click WinMail, but nothing happens (not even an error).

 

[billg226]

@Endeavor, thanks for the well written tips... however, after painstakingly following your lead, I click WinMail, but nothing happens (not even an error).

His tips got Winmail working on my Windows 7, 8, 8.1, & 10 OS. Thanks again Endeavor

 

[endeavor]

I click WinMail, but nothing happens

Which means you did not follow the directions exactly, and you missed a step or are using the wrong programs folder.

Every step and word is written specifically.

Do it again, until you succeed, and let us know what you missed the first time.

 

[ReneVanDelft]

You are right, and I found what I did wrong: I used "Program Files (x86)" instead of "Program Files". In the meantime I found the extended Tutorial with the automatic bat actions. I tried to follow that. Unfortunately I have a bigger problem now: each time I try to start WinMail, it is activated tens (or hundreds) of times in the background (according to my Taskmanager). Only way to stop this is to shut down the computer. So I am lost again... Help appreciated.

 

[endeavor]

You are right, and I found what I did wrong: I used "Program Files (x86)" instead of "Program Files". In the meantime I found the extended Tutorial with the automatic bat actions. I tried to follow that. Unfortunately I have a bigger problem now: each time I try to start WinMail, it is activated tens (or hundreds) of times in the background (according to my Taskmanager). Only way to stop this is to shut down the computer. So I am lost again... Help appreciated.

By your explanation you are using another wrong file again.
Also don't keep opening multiple instances of the wrong file - it will keep opening multiple instances of its wrong self, and so here you can Not proceed until you reboot and clear those instances.
You need to know if you are running x86 or x64 in order to proceed; but once you click the wrong WinMail.exe file, then you will have to end task on it, or better yet reboot. Again you cannot proceed with anything until you do.

Also there is no extended Tutorial, if you are talking about the one for only Windows 7 then that is not for Windows 10.
There is only one tutorial that you should be doing, otherwise I cannot help you.
Don't keep posting about these things from you not following directions properly and going rouge.
Stop, Read, Think, and proceed slowly, and specifically, following the directions, thank you.
This process is only for advanced users please, following the directions on Post #1 will work, thank you.

 

[ReneVanDelft]

I understand, and I would like to re-follow the instructions in post #10.
Only it appears to be quite difficult to undo all the actions to start again. (With extended instructions I meant the tutorial I found; I guess now that was not meant for Windows 10...)

 

[endeavor]

You may not have to undo anything, read what I said again above, reboot to get clear, then making sure you are replacing the Correct programs folder depending if you have an x86 or x64 operating system! ...and start over from post #1.
I can't hold you hand with this - it's very easy to do, but if you are not computer savvy and don't understand how to follow those directions or what they mean, then you should stop now, thank you for your effort.

 

[ReneVanDelft]

Reboot didn't help, but I will solve it anyway, thx so far...