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[Howto] import Outlook Express email into Vista’s email client (Windows Mail).

It seems that Microsoft changed the way you can import email with Vista. Gone are the days when you could just simply export to a .pst file.


The Problem:

Getting your old email messages into your new Vista box.

Outlook Express:

  1. In Outlook Express, click Tools menu then click Options.
  2. On the Maintenance tab, click Store Folder.
  3. Remember the folder location.
  4. Open Windows Explorer, and browse to the folder location in step #3.
  5. Select and copy all the files in the folder to a USB thumbdrive or burn them to a disk.
  6. Once you get the files on the Vista machine open the “Windows Mail” program.
  7. Click File then click Import then click Messages.
  8. Next choose the profile you want to apply the messages too. (or choose the bottom option).
  9. Finally point to your thumbdrive or CDROM and choose the folder that holds your old emails.At this point “Windows Mail” will ask you which email folders you want to import (inbox, outbox, deleted, etc..). After you make your selection here you should be done.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 15th, 2007 at 10:09 pm and is filed under How To. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

2 Responses to “[Howto] import Outlook Express email into Vista’s email client (Windows Mail).”

  1. Bill Boyce Says:
    March 11th, 2008 at 1:05 pm

    OK Houston, I’ve got a problem.
    I copied the email folders from my external hard drive to “documents” on the C drive.
    In step 9, when I browse to the location where the folders (.dbx files) are located, it tells me that “no items match your search. However, when looking in the file I stored them on in the external drive and the C drive, they are there plain as day. What do I do to get Vista to recognize that the dbx files are in the folder where I put them? Thanks, bill-also a userfriendlymyass unhappy Vista user(?)

  2. Mac Says:
    March 11th, 2008 at 2:30 pm

    Bill,

    It sounds like Vista wont see the files in the location that you have stored them. In that case you should be able to point to your external hard drive and import the emails from there. As to what is causing this issue I’m not quite sure at this point.

    However, I don’t think it matters where the files are. Once you import them they are then stored in the proper place.

    Mac

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