How do i replace the snmaster.idx file.  i use aol ...

Have you contacted AOL yet?  Did you get an answer to your question?

There are lots of people who have reported a problem with snmaster.idx.  But I haven't found any reports of a solution, except for uninstalling and reinstalling the software.  If you're computer-savvy, you could manually delete the folders created by AOL after you've used AOL's uninstall function, and then attempt a reinstall.  Or you could see if these troubleshooting pages for other .idx file problems are helpful:  Message: "The Main.idx Database File Is Damaged (65-FONL)" and Message: "Your Main.idx Is Damaged. Please Reinstall the America Online Software."

Another Yedda user, hubble, found a link to an AOL help page:

Message: "snmaster.idx is missing"

Also, there's new software called AOL Desktop, though you can still download AOL 9.1.

Free AOL Downloads

Another Yedda user asked a similar question and got some great responses. You can read them here.

You can also check out the help page AOL set up for this problem here.

how do i intall aol idx file

I had the same problem and I uninstalled everything, deleted all folders relating to the old AOLs and installed the older version of AOL which is 9.0 Optimised.  The 9.1 has big problems once you start getting the error SNMaster missing.  The old version 9.0 works great on the 64 bit vista OS and even seems a lot faster than the 9.1 when it worked.  I really only use AOL because of my existing E-mail.  The AOL desktop software and trying to access AOL through internet explorer stinks because the mail lags when viewing and deleting.  If anyone is having the SNMaster problem and until AOL figures what's going on I recommend you go back to version 9.0.  At least it works. 

The following article may also be found in our Online Help area.

You may receive the message "snmaster.idx file is missing" while installing the AOL® software if certain data files are not installed in the correct location. Moving these files to the correct location will resolve this issue.

You will need to know what version of the Microsoft® Windows® operating system is installed on your computer. If you do not know how to find this information, follow the instructions in the online help article entitled How to Determine Which Version of Windows® I Have.

• Copy the SNMaster.idx file to the right location using Windows Search (Windows® XP)
• Copy the SNMaster.idx file to the right location using Windows Search (Windows® Vista®)
• Copy the SNMaster.idx file to the right location using C: drive
• Uninstall and Reinstall the AOL software

1. Click the Start button, and then click Search.
2. If using Windows XP, under What do you want to search for?, click All files and folders.
3. In All or part of the file name: box, type SNMaster.idx. Click the Look in: drop-down box, and then select Local Hard Drives (C:).
4. Click the More advanced options menu to expand it, check the Search hidden files and folders box, and then click the Search button.
5. Select the SNMaster.idx file, click the Edit menu, and then click Copy.
6. Click the Address drop-down arrow, and then click (Local Disk C:).
7. Double-click the Documents and Settings folder.
8. Double-click the All Users folder.
9. Double-click the Application Data folder.
10. Double-click the AOL folder.
11. Double-click the C_AOL 9.0 folder.

Note: If there are multiple copies of the C_AOL 9.0 folder, double-click the folder with the later alphabet next to it. E.g.: If you have C_AOL 9.0a and C_AOL 9.0b, then C_AOL 9.0b is the folder that needs to be opened.

12. Right-click the idb folder, then click Paste.

Note: If you were receiving the message SNMaster.idx file is missing, you may simply launch the AOL® software at this point and should be able to sign on. If the AOL software installation was failing at 99%, continue to the next step.

13. Click the Back button to navigate back to the C:\ root folder.
14. Double-click the Program Files folder.
15. Double-click the AOL 9.0 folder.

Note: If there are multiple copies of the AOL 9.0 folder, double-click the folder with the later alphabet next to it. E.g.: If you have AOL 9.0a and AOL 9.0b, then AOL 9.0b is the folder that needs to be opened.

16. Right-click the aol icon, select Send to, then click Desktop (create shortcut).
17. On the desktop, double-click the Shortcut to aol icon to launch the AOL® software.

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1. Click the Start button then click Search.
2. In the Search Results box, type c:\.
3. In the Search box, type SNMaster.idx.
4. Click the Advanced Search button to view the advanced search options, then click the Include non-indexed, hidden, and system files box to place a check mark in it.
5. Right-click the SNMaster.idx file, then click Copy.
6. Click the Back button to navigate back to the Local Disk C:\.
7. Double-click the ProgramData folder.
8. Double-click the AOL folder.
9. Double-click the C_AOL9.0 folder.

Note: If there are multiple copies of the C_AOL 9.0 folder, double-click the folder with the later alphabet next to it. E.g.: If you have C_AOL 9.0a and C_AOL 9.0b, then C_AOL 9.0b is the folder that needs to be opened.

10. Right-click on the idb folder, then click Paste.

Note: If you were receiving the message SNMaster.idx file is missing, you may simply launch the AOL® software at this point and should be able to sign on. If the AOL software installation was failing at 99%, continue to the next step.

11. Double-click the Program Files folder.
12. Double-click the AOL 9.0 folder.

Note: If there are multiple copies of the AOL 9.0 folder, double-click the folder with the later alphabet next to it. E.g.: If you have AOL 9.0a and AOL 9.0b, then AOL 9.0b is the folder that needs to be opened.

13. Right-click the aol icon, select Send to, then click Desktop (create shortcut).
14. On the desktop, double-click the aol-Shortcut icon to launch the AOL® software.

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1. Click the Start button, then open My Computer.

Note: If using Windows Vista, click the Start button, then click Computer.

2. Access the AOL folder.

• If using Windows 2000 or Windows XP, double-click the Local Disk (C:), then navigate to Windows\All Users\Application Data\AOL folder.
• If using Windows Vista, double-click the Local Disk (C:), then navigate to the Windows\ProgramData|AOL folder. Windows Vista users can alternatively search for C_AOL90 to find it.

3. Right-click the C_AOL90 folder, then click Copy.

Note: If there are multiple copies of the C_AOL90 folder, copy the folder with the later letter next to it. e.g.: If you have C_AOL90a and C_AOL90b, then C_AOL90b is folder that would need to be copied.

4. Paste the folder into the correct location.

• If using Windows 2000 or Windows XP, navigate to the C:\Documents And Settings\All Users\Application Data\AOL folder. Right-click the AOL folder, then click Paste.
• If using Windows Vista, navigate to the C:\ProgramData\AOL folder. Right-click the AOL folder, then click Paste.

Notes:

• If you do not find the Application Data folder, it may be hidden. To see all hidden folders on Windows XP or 2000, click the Tools menu, click Folder Options, then click the View tab. Under Hidden files and folders, choose the Show hidden files and folders option by clicking it, then click the OK button.
• If you do not find the ProgramData folder, it may be hidden. To see all hidden folders, click the Organize menu, click Folder and Search Options, then click the View tab. Under Hidden files and folders, choose the Show hidden files and folders option by clicking it, then click the OK button.

5. Launch the AOL® software again.

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If none of the above solutions work, we recommend you to uninstall the AOL software on your computer, and reinstall it. Please see our Online help article for instructions to uninstall and reinstall the AOL software.

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About this article:
Last updated: Thu Jan 10 04:01:43 EST 2008
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i lost my snmaster.idx file, how do i re-install?

I was online with aol last night for 3 hours and they couldn't figure it out.  I then deleted everything from my hard drive with AOL's name on it.  I then load aol 9.0 from an old DISK and it loaded perfect.  Everything works great.