How to Copy Outlook Express Files Into Windows Live Mail

Windows Live Mail is the successor to Outlook Express and Windows Mail. The program boasts a slick new interface and many features that its predecessors lacked, such as offline access to contact lists, better picture management, RSS feeds, multiple accounts consolidation and integration with other Windows Live mail products such as Messenger and Spaces. If you are a longtime user of Outlook Express, do not be afraid to make the transition. It is fairly easy to copy data from one program to the other.

Instructions

Copy Outlook Express Messages to Windows Live Mail

1. Click the "Control Panel" link in the Start menu. Point to "Appearances and Themes," and then click "Folder Options." When a dialog box appears, click the "View" tab. You will see a list of options that let you customize how Windows folders appear.

2. Look for "Show hidden files and folders" under "Hidden files and folders." If the radio button is not selected, click it. This will make the Outlook Express mail storage folder visible.

3. Launch Outlook Express. Click "Options" in the "Tools" menu. Point to the "Maintenance" tab. Click "Store Folder." When the "Store Location" box appears, right-click the text and click "Select All" and then click "Copy." This is the exact location of your Outlook Express files.

4. Click the Start menu, and click "Run." If the text you copied does not immediately appear in the "Run" field, click the field and press "Ctrl" and "V" to paste the text into it. Click "OK." This displays the Outlook Express folder's contents in its own window.

5. Click the "Up" icon to go up one folder. Click the "Outlook Express" folder to select it. Press "Ctrl" and "C" to copy it to memory.

6. Insert an external storage device, such as an external hard drive, into your computer. When this Windows reads and opens a window for the device, press "Ctrl" and "V" to paste the copied folder there. You have now made a backup of your Outlook Express files.

7. Launch Windows Live Mail in the computer where it is installed. Or if you are moving to Windows 7 from Windows XP in the same computer, install Windows 7 first, and then launch Windows Live Mail. Press "Alt" to reveal the menus, or click the "Menus" icon and enable "Show menu bar."

8. Go to the "File" menu. Click "Messages." When the "Windows Live Import Wizard" appears, select "Microsoft Outlook Express 6." Click the "Browse" button. Insert the external storage device and select the Outlook Express backup folder. Click "OK" and click "Next."

9. Select the folders to be imported in the next step. You can choose either "All folders" or "Selected folders." If you choose the latter, click only the folders you want to import. Click "Next." Windows Live Mail will import all the folders you chose. Click "Finish."

Copy Outlook Express Contacts to Windows Live Mail

1. Start Outlook Express. Click "File" on the menu bar. Point to "Export" and click "Address Book."

2. Choose a format to export the Outlook Express address book to. For example, choose "Text File (Comma Separated Values)." Click "Export."

3. Click the "Browse" button in the next page. Insert an external storage device such as a USB flash drive or an external hard drive into your computer. Browse to that drive and create a folder there to save the address book in. Type a name for the address book and click "Save."

4. Check all the information you would like to include in the address book. For example, check the boxes for "First Name," "Last Name" and "Email Address." Click "Finish," and then click "OK."

5. Open Windows Live Mail in the computer where it is installed. Or if you are doing a custom install from Windows XP to Windows 7, install the latter first and then launch Windows Live Mail.

6. Click "Contacts" on the bar on the lower left of the screen. Press "Alt" to display the "File" menu. Click "File" and then click "Import."

7. Select the format you saved your Outlook Express contacts in. For instance, click "Comma Separated Values (CSV)." Click "Browse" to locate the address book, and click "Open" and click "Next." Windows Live Mail will display all imported contact information in its "Contacts" window.

Tips & Warnings

• When you upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7, you can install the new system with or without formatting your hard drive. If you choose not to format your hard drive, there is no need to back up your Outlook Express data to an external device. Those files will remain on your hard disk (assuming nothing goes wrong), and you can restore them after installing Windows 7. However, Microsoft still recommends you back up your data to a removable device.

• If you are already running Windows Live Mail on Windows XP, you can import your Outlook Express messages directly from its default Store Folder into Windows Live Mail. When importing mail, enter the Store Folder's location as the source directory, and then import.

• If you are already running Windows Live Mail on Windows XP, you can import the address book directly to Windows Live Mail contacts. Click "File" > "Import" > "Windows Address Book" and browse to "C:\Documents and Settings\your Windows profile name\Application Data\Microsoft\Address Book" and import the WAB file.

References

• Microsoft: Windows 7--Importing Your Email, Contacts and Calendar into Windows Live Mail

Resources

• Windows Live: Desktop--Windows Live Mail