In 2013 Microsoft discontinued the services offered by the instant messaging platform called MSN / Windows Live Messenger, replacing it with Skype. Thankfully, if you're using the same hard drive, old conversations should have been saved, even though you've started using Skype. This article explains how to find old chats.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Retrieve Archived MSN Logs
Step 1. Determine if chat logs are still available
Since they were saved locally from MSN / Windows Live Messenger, you need to have the same hard drive on which the program was installed or where the chat logs were saved. Also, you must have activated the saving of conversations in the MSN / Windows Live Messenger client. If not done, it will be impossible to recover the logs.
Step 2. Locate the folder that contains the chat logs
When activating the saving of conversations, the user is given the possibility to select a destination folder. If you set it manually, then you need to look for this specific folder, otherwise you need to go to the default location:
- C: / Users / Documents / Received files / History (Windows Vista, 7 or 8).
- C: / Documents and Configuration / Documents / Received Files / History (Windows XP).
Step 3. Open a chat file using your preferred browser
Old MSN / Windows Live Messenger logs have been saved with.xml extension and can be read by a browser. To open one, click on the file with the right mouse button, select "Open with …" and choose the browser of your choice from the list.
Method 2 of 2: Search for an XML File
Step 1. Consider where you have saved the chat logs
If you think you've changed the default directory but can't remember it, don't lose hope. You can search for conversations within Windows, considering that the files have the following extension:.xml. However, the process can be a bit tedious.
Files in.xml (eXtensible Markup Language) format are used for text data. Just like HTML, they can be read with a browser, but the format is more flexible in how the data is applied between programs. They can also be opened in a text editor, but generally a browser allows for better reading of the data
Step 2. Search for.xml files on Windows
Go to "Start"> "Search" and type "xml" to start the search.
Step 3. Analyze the results
Many will appear, but you can make the process easier by looking at the file path of each result. Look for a path that is familiar to you. With a little luck and persistence, you can find the archives you need!
Advice
- If logs are important, save the files to an external hard drive to protect them.
- Make sure you turn on saving Skype conversations so that you can access old chats in the future.
