This issue usually happens when MSG files don’t handle attachments in a simple way. Some are embedded inside the email body, some are linked, and a few tools just skip them without showing any error.
- Inline or hidden attachments often don’t get picked up
- Outlook drag-and-drop can miss files if there are multiple attachments in one email
- If MSG files are slightly corrupted, some items won’t export properly
- Extraction can sometimes behave differently for different formats like PDF, Excel, images
Manually opening each file in Outlook works but it is slow and it is easy to miss things when the count is high.
For bulk extraction, using the
Softaken MSG Attachment Extractor is sometimes the best way to extract all attachments at once, especially if they are spread over many emails. It reduces the possibility of missing files compared with doing it one by one.
Small tip from experience: always check a few random MSG files after extraction. Sometimes one or two emails behave differently and it’s better to catch that early.
