How to search historical emails on Samsung S4 with stock email app

[Odd_Job]

Hi All

Total noob here, hope you can help me.

I have a yahoo email account and a gmail account which I access as a combined inbox on my S4, with stock email app.

I recall in the early days when I got the phone, I could search my emails for a name or number and if it wasn't in the emails on the phone, I had an option to then search on server.

I somehow do not have this option and my searches are returning zero results. I have verified on my PC that the historical emails do exist, I just need to know how to get at them on my phone. Ideally I would like it to always look on the server if the search comes up with no hits on the phone.

Thanks for your help in advance!

[Retired-Sarah]

Hi Odd_Job,

Welcome to the eForum.

Which stock email app are you using?

The Gmail app is push mail and will be able to search for historic emails on the server and the email app runs on pull mail and won’t show anything previously.

Thanks,

Sarah 

[Odd_Job]

Hi Sarah

I'm using the email app, that's the one I have been using from the start.

[hrym · Accepted solution]

I presume you mean the offline client (the one that, when I was using it had the icon of a white envelope with a red @ in it)?   If you've updated the operating system on the phone, it's possible that the search facility has been removed in a later version of the app.

There are various options:

1. Try a different app - search the Play store

2. Try the dedicated app for your service; both Yahooo and Gmail have them

3. Contact Samsung (Service tab on their UK wesbite) and ask if they can help you. They're more likely to know what's in which version of their own app.

Did you know that you can set Gmail up (from the website) to pull in emails from other services and then send as-from any address you like and to respond as-from the address to which an incoming message was sent?   That way, you can use the Gmail app to manage all you messages and online folders.   The only downside is that new messages will always go from one address -  I don't think there's an option to choose from more than one.   It's easier than messing with the offline client, though this may not help with your search needs.

[Odd_Job]

Hi Hrym

That makes sense, I was using the offline client (but I don't underatand how I used to have the option to "search on server.")

Anyway I have solved my problem by downloading the Yahoo app from the Play store as you suggested.

Many thanks for the advice, all!

[hrym]

I assume it'll go online to search the server. Sort of obvious, but still a neat trick. Maybe they had trouble implementing it generically and that's why it's gone.