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The following are some common reasons why some of your messages might be missing:

• You might have a filter on that hides some or all of the items (item: An item is the basic element that holds information in Outlook (similar to a file in other programs). Items include e-mail messages, appointments, contacts, tasks, journal entries, notes, posted items, and documents.) in the folder. If there is a filter on the active folder, the words "Filter Applied" appear in the status bar (status bar: A horizontal bar at the bottom of the screen that displays information about the current condition of the program, such as the status of items in the window, the progress of the current task, or information about the selected item.). To remove a filter, on the View menu, point to Arrange By, point to Current View, click Customize Current View, click Filter, and then click Clear All.
• Grouped items might be collapsed. To expand groups to show details, click the expand button . To collapse groups to hide details, click the collapse button .
• The item might be in another folder. Check any appropriate folders in the Folder List (Folder List: Displays the folders available in your mailbox. To view subfolders, click the plus sign (+) next to the folder. If the Folder List is not visible, on the Go menu, click Folder List.).
• You might have the folder set up to AutoArchive (AutoArchive: To automatically remove items to another folder periodically or delete them, based on the amount of time that they have been in the folder.) items after items reach a certain age. On the Tools menu, click Options, click the Other tab, and then click AutoArchive. If the Run AutoArchive every x days check box is selected, the item you want could have been archived. The archive file name appears in the Move old items to box. After you know the name of your archive file, you can retrieve archived items.

• You might have accessed your messages from a computer other than your main one, and the other computer had AutoArchive enabled. In that case, Microsoft Outlook might have archived the messages to the Personal Folders file (.pst) (Personal Folders file (.pst): Data file that stores your messages and other items on your computer. You can assign a .pst file to be the default delivery location for e-mail messages. You can use a .pst to organize and back up items for safekeeping.) on the other computer.

• If you changed where messages are sent from and received, you might be looking in the wrong Inbox.
• If you are working offline, the folder might not be set up for offline use or might not have been synchronized.
• If you have any rules set up, the message could have been automatically moved or deleted.