How I rebuild Entourage 2008 on a Mac with a Gmail POP account
(you can delete any emails that are undeletable and generally speed things up)
1. In Finder: Office 2008 Identities: Main Identity: make a copy of Signatures keep it somewhere else under a different name (Signatures copy is ok).
2. As an extra precaution, in Entourage: Tools: Accounts: double-click on Gmail (POP), then take 5 screenshots:
a. Account settings;
b. ditto but first click on advanced receiving options;
c. ditto but first click on advanced sending options;
d. Options;
e. Mail Security.
3. In Entourage: File: Export: Items to an Entourage archive, it will be: Main Identity.rge make sure there are ticks in Mail, Local Contacts, Local Calendar Events, Tasks, Notes. Select: No, keep the items in Entourage after they are exported.
4. Quit Entourage.
5. In Finder: Office 2008 Identities: drag Main Identity to the bin (but don't delete it yet).
6. Launch Entourage, quit Entourage.
7. In Finder: Office 2008 Identities: Main Identity: delete Signatures and insert Signatures copy, change its name (back) to Signatures.
8. Launch Entourage and File: Import: Entourage information from an archive or earlier version:
Click on the arrow keys (bottom right);
select Entourage archive (.rge);
select the Main Identity.rge you exported in step 3.
9. In On My Computer (all your email folders) select and move all emails to their correct folders and delete only empty / surplus / duplicate folders any undeletable emails should now be deletable.
10. If you need to set up your email account again, in Tools Accounts: select new POP mail account and configure manually using the screenshots from step 2.
11. Check all is working ok, empty the bin, set Preferences.
12. As an extra refinement check that Main Identity does not include surplus old database files, you can drag those to the bin. I keep spare copies of Main Identity in Office 2008 Identities, and copies of Main Identity.rge and Signatures in my Dropbox folder, just in case.
