# Solved: How do I safely uninstall & reinstall Gmail?



## wilemar (Jul 14, 2005)

I have Gmail on both my browsers - Firefox & IE9. Gmail on IE9 appears to be corrupted. Can I safely uninstall and then reinstall Gmail in IE9 without affecting the Gmail and all its contents on Firefox? I have many emails saved in various folders & also in the archive, as well as my address book. Everything I have in Firefox Gmail is duplicated in IE. I can sacrifice the data in IE Gmail but cannot afford losing it in Firefox Gmail. Just want to be sure it's safe to do before chancing it. wilemar


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## cwwozniak (Nov 29, 2005)

wilemar said:


> IEverything I have in Firefox Gmail is duplicated in IE.


That is because everything is stored on the Gmail server. You are only accessing the information with each browser. If your delete anything using Firefox, it will be gone when you access Gmail with IE.

EDIT: Are you talking about Gmail Offline?
http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=97535


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## Lozzy-loz (Feb 5, 2010)

The information is not stored on your computer it is stored on Google servers.You can access you gmail from any computer with your login details and your emails will be the same on all.


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## Ent (Apr 11, 2009)

What do you propose by "uninstall and reinstall" Gmail? 

It should be sufficient to clear the browser cache and cookies, but it may also be worth checking that the IE compatibility view mode is not turned on.


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## wilemar (Jul 14, 2005)

Thanks for the three answers to my question. From those answers I believe my question needs clarification. Firefox is my main browser. I also have IE because occasionally it is required for certain sites (like Microsoft). I rarely use the Gmail in IE and don't even remember putting it there. So I can ignore it. The IE browser works fine, but when I go to Gmail in IE, all I get is a blank white page that is rapidly blinking. Very weird and I have tried hard to "fix" it but nothing I try corrects the problem. Thus I concluded it has become corrupted. From the replies I have had it sounds like I will lose all my saved emails, etc if I uninstall (i.e. remove) it just from IE. Am I missing something? Is there another way to correct this? wilemar


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## Ent (Apr 11, 2009)

I'm afraid you are missing something. It doesn't exist IN Internet explorer. Nor does it exist in fireforx. These browsers simply ask for a copy of the emails, as a web page, from the googlemail server whenever you log in. Uninstalling it makes as much sense as trying to "uninstall" this site, or google, or whichever website you want. It'll still be out there online even if you never look at it. 

That means that if you clear your cookies, your cache, your passwords, or anything else in IE you will not affect what is stored in Gmail. Only if you instruct the Google server to disable your account or delete you emails would the account or emails be lost.

What have you done to try to "fix" the problem in IE?


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## wilemar (Jul 14, 2005)

I do understand that Gmail does not exist in either browser. I was just trying to explain that when I am using Firefox and check my email, I can access Gmail with no problem. Everything is intact and I can read or send email as usual. But, if I am using the IE browser (which works fine) and decide to check my Gmail, l all I get is an empty page that appears to be blinking quite rapidly. What caused it? Well, for the three years I have had Gmail I have been able to go to it when in either browser without having to enter my user name or password. All I did was type in the first letter of my user name and the rest of the name and entire password filled in automatically. Suddenly and for no apparent reason I now have to type in both. No big deal, just extra time. When I posed that problem on this forum I had several answers all involving enabling the acceptance of cookies, which I had disabled from the beginning. So I enabled cookies in Gmail when using Firefox and Bingo - problem solved. So I said great, now I'll do the same thing in IE. Did it, BUT it did not work and I got the blinking blank page. Not an earth shattering problem, it just makes no sense and I am baffled. I did restore my original settings to not accept cookies but nothing changed. Blinking page still there. So any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks for listening. wilemar


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

You might try an IE Reset.


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## AdamP (Dec 29, 2005)

Did you try clearing cookies and cache in IE? It really just sounds like it has some bad cookies. Try going to Internet options and just clearing the Cookies and Temporary Internet Files then closing IE and opening it again and see if it still has the same issue.


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## JVeitch (Nov 7, 2011)

Are you using the new version of gmail? They recently released their "new look" and if you're using an old version of Internet Explorer (which since you don't use it often I assume you are), it probably won't display correctly or maybe not at all.

If your concern is that you only want to be logged into Gmail on one browser simply follow these steps:

Open Internet Explorer
Go to Tools > Internet Options
Look for "Browser History"
Click "Delete"
In the dialouge box that appears, untick everything but "cookies" and "passwords"

This will stop ie from automatically logging into Gmail. Please also note that this will delete your cookies for any other sites, too. However, this will only be for Internet Explorer and won't affect Firefox at all.

[*Inappropriate request deleted by mod.*]


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## TerryNet (Mar 23, 2005)

*JVeitch*, please review the forum rules. In particular ...



> For the safety of our members, we must require that all technical support take place in the forums. This offers the opportunity for peer-review with the hope that bad advice can be corrected. Having problems and solutions publicly visible may also help someone in the future who is experiencing the same issue. As a result, we do not allow assistance to be given via email or Private Message. Due to the risks involved, we also do not allow live remote control of computers by our volunteers. If you're looking for live support, there are other (paid) sites that provide that service.


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## wilemar (Jul 14, 2005)

TerryNet said:


> *JVeitch*, please review the forum rules. In particular ...


I did try IE reset but it did not change anything. Thanks for the suggestion. wilemar


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## wilemar (Jul 14, 2005)

AdamP said:


> Did you try clearing cookies and cache in IE? It really just sounds like it has some bad cookies. Try going to Internet options and just clearing the Cookies and Temporary Internet Files then closing IE and opening it again and see if it still has the same issue.


I did try clearing cookies and cache in IE but nothing changed. I too think/thought it must have something to do with cookies since enabling them is when this problem started. Can't seem to undo what was done. Thanks for your suggestion.


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