How to Make Microsoft Office Backup Files

Microsoft Office can back up user files.

When you're working on a document, whether it's a Word document, spreadsheet or email, it's important to make sure you don't accidentally lose your work. A good way to do this is have the authoring application create a backup file your work. In Microsoft Office, you can create backups in different applications, such as Microsoft Word or Excel. Each program works differently to back up files.

Instructions

In Word 2007

1. Open Microsoft Word. Click the "Microsoft Office" button.

2. Click "Word Options," and select the "Advanced" link.

3. Go to the "Save" section. Select "Always Create a Backup Copy," and click "OK." This will save an extra copy of each Word file, which is the version of your file before your last save. If your file is deleted or damaged, you will have a previous version of it available. A new backup copy is created each time you save. The backup is in the same folder as the document, and has the file extension .wbk.

In Excel 2007

1. Click the Microsoft Office" button in Microsoft Excel.

2. Click "Excel Options." Under "Save," scroll to "Save Workbooks."

3. Click the "Save AutoRecover Information Every" box. Select how often you want Excel to create a backup copy in the "Minutes" box.

4. Click "OK." The AutoRecover feature will automatically save a backup copy of your Excel workbook.

In Outlook 2007

1. Exit Outlook. Download the PST Backup tool. It will create a backup file of the Personal Folders file (PST) that saves all your Outlook data.

2. Set up the tool by opening the Pfbackup.exe file on your computer. Complete the on-screen instructions to install it. Restart Outlook.

3. Click "File," select "Open," and choose "Outlook Data File" to open the PST file. Click "File," and select "Backup."

4. Click "Options." Select a backup reminder. Select which Personal Folders files you want to backup. Select a file location for the backup file, and click "OK."

5. Click "Save Backup."

In OneNote 2007

1. In OneNote, click "Tools," and select Options."

2. Click "Backup" in the Category field.

3. Select the check box for "Automatically Back Up My Notebook at the Following Time Interval."

4. Select the time interval and click "OK."

References

• Microsoft Word 2007 Help: Save and Recover a Backup Copy of a Document
• Microsoft Excel 2007 Help: Automatically Save a Backup Copy of a Workbook
• Microsoft Outlook 2007 Help: Back Up Outlook Data with the PST Backup Tool
• Microsoft OneNote 2007 Help: Backup and Restore Your Notes

Resources

• Microsoft: PST Backup Tool