Cannot delete message from Trash

Hi
I have more than 10,000 deleted messages under Trash, in a folder named "on my mac".
When I try to empty that folder o just empy the whole Trash, Mail crashes due to the high volume.
I would like to delete those messages from the Finder, but I cannot find there the "on my mac" folder.
Any ideas on how to get rid of the deleted messages?
Thank you.
Eneko

The messages are .emlx files, but there is an index file that will still point to them unless they are deleted in mail.
Try opening a few of the ( you say it's 60 000 now? it was 10 000 before ) messages - I hope you'll get a message saying they can't be displayed.
If you do, go to the mail menu Mail-Mailbox-Rebuild . this should re-work the index so it reflects the true number of messages.
Having said that - have you tried just deleting the mailbox, rather than trying to empty it? highlight the 'on my mac' trash mailbox & choose Mail-Mailbox-Delete.
Failing all that - I'd be tempted to move your wanted messages to various new mailboxes, ( in modest numbers per mailbox - perhaps not numbered in the 10 000's?) make a copy somewhere safe of the entire Mail folder, then force Mail to start from scratch & import your old wanted messages into mail.
To do this - after you've created your new mailboxes & moved the messages you want to keep into them; copied the Mail folder and Quit Mail
In Finder locate home/library/mail/ & trash that folder.
Then locate home/library/preferences/com.apple.mail.plist & move it onto the desktop, just in case things go wrong. ( I mean Move, don't leave the original file in the Preferences folder )
Open Mail again - you'll be asked for account details ( you wrote them down first?)
Just in case you get asked "do you want to import..." at this stage - Don't do it.
Then. from Mail, use Mail-File-Import Mailboxes & point it to the "mailboxes" folder inside the copy of the Mail folder you made.
Choose only the new mailboxes that you made, & moved your wanted messages to . Import them & they should all be viewable in mail.
Try the 'rebuild' or delete mailbox first though - & if any of the above isn't crystal clear - ask before you proceed.

Similar Messages

  • Cannot delete messages from inbox, cannot move messages out of inbox, message do not copy to "sent" or "draft"

    The following problems occur:
    - cannot delete messages,
    - cannot move messages out of inbox,
    - messages do not copy "sent"
    - messages cannot be saved to "draft"
    This applies to imap and to gmail accounts.
    The following has not helped:
    - compact trash and other folder
    - deinstall and reinstall TB 31.4.
    - archive profile with mozbackup and replace profile from archive after reinstall of TB.
    - deinstall and reinstall TB 31.3 downgraded
    - delete all folders and files with "trash*" in the file name (all IMAP)
    - delete all files of 1 mail account completely in the TB profile and resync from server (IMAP)
    This might coincide with these system changes:
    - upgrade to TB 31.4.
    - some of these email accounts were installed on ios8 iphone.
    Not sure if the problems had already started before these 2 occurrences.
    Any help is appreciated to solve this.
    Thanks!
    fashi

    What type of mail account is this (POP, IMAP, .Mac)? If POP, what are your Preferences > Accounts > Advanced > Remove copy from server settings?
    You may be able to get rid of those messages in Mail doing Edit > Cut (⌘X) (for best results do it with one message or just a few at a time), but you should remove them from the server first if they’re still there.
    Does this account allow web access? If not, you may find the Account Info window useful to solve this problem — choose Get Info (⌘I) from the Action menu (gear icon) located below the mailboxes list in the main Mail window.

  • For some reason, I cannot delete messages from my Inbox.  How do I correct this?

    I am unable to delete messages from my Inbox on my MAC.  What can I do to correct this?

    Patrick
    Thanks for the instructions.  I got as far as Disk Utility, then hit Verify but couldn't find Repair Disk, the Mail icon was there but couldn't click on it.
    Someone else suggested I hit the control button then delete which did work.  Perhaps it was a combination of closing out of Mail and hitting the Control button/delete that helped?  Weird............
    thanks again,

  • Cannot delete messages from the Drafts folder in Mail.

    I am running Mail 2.1.3. For some reason I am no longer able to delete draft messages from my Drafts folder. It is by no means a serious problem, just annoying! Can anyone figure this out? Thanks.

    Hi Dubaiman, and a warm welcome to the forums!
    I'm having trouble finding exactly where that is stored, but maybe move these to the Desktop in case we want to put them back, quit Mail first...
    /Users/YourUserName/Library/Mail/[email protected]/.mboxCa che.plist
    /Users/YourUserName/Library/Mail/Mailboxes/.mboxCache.plist

  • Cannot delete file from trash - tried EVERYTHING

    Wow. I have an incredibly stubborn file (named :VBL followed by a bunch of non English symbols) in the trash that I cannot get rid of. I have tried all the usual methods of deleting, secure deleting, using Cocktail, and literally _EVERY SINGLE METHOD_ listed on both of these websites:
    http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html
    http://osxfaq.com/Tutorials/LearningCenter/HowTo/Trash/page2.ws
    All to no avail. There still is one file in my trash that will not go away. Any other alternatives?
    Message was edited by: Chase9998

    Chase9998 wrote:
    That worked!! Thank you so much. Can't believe I went through all those other methods and it was as simple as a Windows chkdsk. I wonder how it even happened that the Windows partition created an undeletable file in my OS X partition??
    it actually wasn't in the OS X partition. it was still in the windows partition but due to some file system errors in the windows partition it became visible (but not deletable) from OS X.

  • Cannot delete items from Trash

    Hi there,
    I have around 1650 items in my trash bin, tried to secure erase, but after deleting the first ones it stopped and 16305 are still in the bin. Anyone knowing a solution??
    Thanks, Frans

    It isn't unusual for one or two items to remain stuck in the trash, if the system thinks they are still in use, but that many items is unusual!
    Are these, by any chance, files that were on an external device such as a USB thumb drive? If so, they can't be deleted unless that device is present.
    Stubborn files can usually be emptied from the trash after a reboot - though I once had to safe boot (holding the shift key down immediately after the startup chime and until the Apple logo and progress indicator appears) before a really stubborn file could be removed.
    However, before going to that extreme, try 'Secure Empty Trash' in the Finder menu.

  • I cannot delete mail from my inbox and get a message saying (msg) could not be moved to the mailbox trash-POP account".

    I suddenly cannot delete mail from my inbox and get a message saying " (msg) could not be moved to the mailbox trash-POP account".  It does not matter if I am trying to delete a single message or mulitiple messages.  Can anyone help?

    If you're running Leopard, as your profile says, then you need to post your question in that forum, not the Snow Leopard forums. So if you're really running Snow Leopard, you need to update your profile to show that, as well as give more details about what kind of mail accounts you have, and who your email provider is.

  • I delete some emails ,there are moved to trash . I delete them from trash folder too and they still appear in a folder called 'all messages". I repeat the same actions and after a while they appear again!what should i do to delete them permanently??

    I delete some emails ,there are moved to trash . I delete them from trash folder too and they still appear in a folder called 'all messages". I repeat the same actions and after a while they appear again!what should i do to delete them permanently??

    If you are using Apple's Mail app 6.5 is the latest version irrespective of what a previous poster says. It does sound though that you are using a gmail account online via a web browser. Please confirm and fill in missing information.

  • Cannot secure delete items from trash: 180 items (pictures, files, folders) remain even if I check "remove all items"

    I cannot secure delete items from trash: 180 items (pictures, files, folders) remain even if I check "remove all items".  Macbook Pro, 10.6.8

    Maybe the items are locked.
    Mac OS X 10.6 Help: Shortcuts for working with items in the Finder
    Shortcuts for working with items in the Finder Command (⌘)-Shift-DeleteEmpty the Trash without any warning or when it contains locked filesCommand (⌘)-Shift-Option-Delete
    http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.6/en/cdb_cpmvfky.html

  • I have dragged 2 files to the trash bin but I cannot delete them from the trash bin. It keeps telling me these files are in use when they are not. How do I delete these files? One is a txt file and the other is an xls file

    I have dragged 2 files to the trash bin but I cannot delete them from the trash bin. It keeps telling me these files are in use when they are not. How do I delete these files? One is a txt file and the other is an xls file

    From the Finder menu select 'Secure Empty Trash'. If this or the suggestion above doesn't resolve the problem take a look at the various suggestions in this link:
    http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/trash.html

  • Deleted messages from in box and sent box do not appear in trash

    For years deleted messages from my in box and sent box appeared in the trash where I would hold them for a week or two just in case I had to retrieve a message I had deleted. About 6 months ago deleted messages stopped showing up in the trash. What do I do to get deleted messages to once again appear in the trash? I'm no computer geek... please be gentle with any suggestions. Thank You.
    Ron Mabey

    While trying to find a solution, I am discovering my mail problem is much deeper than just messages not appearing in the "Sent" mailbox.  I have found some of them appearing in the "Trash" mailbox and some appearing there mulitple times, often with my account name in the "TO" field.  I'm also finding some unread mail there that should be in the "Junk" mailbox.  So it would appear there are many problems with ISO 7 and mail.  I have tried deleting and restablishing the account and two complete iPhone restores.  Neither helped. What is the biggest puzzle is that on my second iPhone, the one that upgraded without an error, mail is working perfectly well.  Has anyone found a solution to any mail problems on ISO 7 devices?  If so, please reply.  

  • When i try to delete messages from my email in box, they turn into a "No Sender" email and I cannot delete these.....

    when i try to delete messages from my email in box, they turn into a "No Sender" email and I cannot delete these.....

    Hello there, Paso Kid.
    The following Knowledge Base articles provide some assistance with locating content in your iTunes Library:
    iTunes: Finding lost media and downloads
    http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1408
    and
    Where are my iTunes files located?
    http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1391
    If you have already reviewed those steps and still cannot find the songs you purchased from iTunes, delete the songs and download them again using the information in this article:
    iTunes 11 for Windows: Download previous purchases from the iTunes Store
    http://support.apple.com/kb/PH12491
    Thanks for reaching out to Apple Support Communities.
    Cheers,
    Pedro.

  • Mail:Cannot erase messages from Deleted Messages folder located on my mac

    Hi,
    I recently ran a script to discover that I have hundreds of thousands of messages sitting in the Deleted Messages folder located on my mac. I tried to erase them but no luck, no error messages of any kind but the messages are still there. Can anyone help with me with this as these unwanted messages are taking up a lot of space. I have run a disk verify just to check permissions etc and all is ok.
    Many thanks

    Hi,
    Many thanks for you reply. Yes it looked like the deleted messages from an old exchange account I had had were sitting in a folder on my mac and this was visible in the sidebar. However it was not simply called deleted messages it was named deleted messages (xxx xxx) where xxx xxxx was the name of the old mailbox. So when I went to mailbox to erase deleted messages this folder was not picked up. So I moved everything in the folder to the trash folder (took a long time) and then selected the option to erase trash on quitting. It took hours and hours when I quit mail but I left it running overnight and now the folder is empty and mail is functioning ok. Thanks again for your help

  • Delete messages from server?

    Hi Guys,
    I have a question regarding mail management.
    Here is my situation:
    I have a GMX e-mail account; when I manage my e-mail on a computer (any computer), I always use the web-based e-mail straight from the website. I have this e-mail address configured in Mail on my iPad as an IMAP account. When I check my mail via iPad, it shows me my current inbox, but if I delete messages from iPad, it moves the message to trash, but does not reflect this on the server. So when I go to login to my account from a regular computer, any e-mail(s) that I have deleted through my iPad are still in my inbox at the GMX website.
    On my iPad, I have turned Push to Off and I have Fetch set to manual, whenever I launch Mail. I have tried hitting the refresh on my iPad after I move a message to Trash, and my iPad's Mail settings are set to move deleted items to the "Trash" folder on the GMX server. Sending and receiving e-mails are no problem.
    What am I doing wrong here? I am tired of deleting messages on my iPad (such as spam) and then having to go onto a computer and login to GMX and delete them again.
    Btw, same exact issue on my iPhone with exact same e-mail settings.
    Thanks,
    Emile

    Thanks for the tip, Ralph.
    I just went over to the GMX website and went to their support forum and apparently this is a known problem when accessing e-mail through an IMAP or POP3 e-mail client. A post was made at the end of August saying they are aware of the problem and are trying to fix it.
    I've had this issue with my GMX account since my first-generation iPhone and they've just realized it a month and a half ago. I wonder how long it's going to take for them to repair the issue, sheesh!
    I will mark this thread as resolved but since I just have to wait for GMX to fix the problem on their side. At least we got to the bottom of this, thanks for the help guys.
    Message was edited by: MrElussive

  • Cannot delete mail from inbox

    I have been using an iptouch for a long time. Now suddenly I can't delete messages from the inbox. Keep getting an error message. I have tried changing the Trash location in the Settings and also deleting the mail account and re-setting my POP mail (Yahoo mail).
    Very frustrating. Any advice?
    Ken

    I have my email set up as an IMAP account and was getting the same "unable to move..." message. I suspected the problem for me had to do something with the trash bin on the phone and the trash bin on the server not communicating properly. I tried this and it worked for me, although from other posts, I see it doesn't work for everyone:
    1. Go to "Settings"
    2. Select "Mail, Contacts, Calendars"
    3. Select the mail account in question
    4. Select "Account Info"
    4. Select "Advanced"
    5. Select "Deleted Mailbox"
    6. Under "On My Server", Click the "Trash" folder (or whatever your trash folder is called on your server). This should put a check mark beside it.

Maybe you are looking for

  • Internet Explorer 8 Catch Mechanism

    Dear All, I'm java developer and this is my first time post   ,    I want to know the mechanism of "Browsing History" feature. I found 4 options    "Every  Time I visit the web page"    "Every I start the internet"    "Automatically"    "Never" Which

  • Running hardware diagnostics with Yosemite on iMac

    I'd like to run Hardware Diagnostics on a 2011 (maybe 2012) iMac.  Yosemite is installed. Have disconnected everything except keyboard and mouse, shutdown, and tried starting up with the "D" key held down.  With this option, the system boots normally

  • Imovie slow to save to file

    When I want to Share iMovie project to file it takes over 10 hours for it to process to the theatre or file as an mp4? Why does it take 10 hours to share a project in iMovie????? All of this program is slow, it is not user friendly, and like PC items

  • Add Resource to user as IDENTITY USER ADMINISTRATORS

    Hello experts, we have a problem adding a new resource to an user when the administrator is not SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR but just IDENTITY USER ADMINISTRATOR. I've the role IDENTITY USER ADMINISTRATOR(not SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR), if I add a new resource to

  • Having trouble with bank account with foxfire

    When I go to my bank account I can get into it ok, but when I go to the page where I want to trnsfer accounts it does not work right, I contacted Chase The page ios working right they said it might be the browser, It probaly is because I didn't have