Where is my Outlook express Mail

  • Thread starter Thread starter Marc Dimmick
  • Start date Start date
M

Marc Dimmick

I have upgraded to Vista Busienss and want to import my mail from my xp
installation which is in the windows.old fold. But I am having problems in
locating the file any ideas???? :(
 
Hi Marc--

In Vista, modifications have been made to Outlook Express and it's called
Windows Mail. It uses a different storage format, so I'm not sure if you
can "merge them." I've been told by MSFT personnel who work closely with
that team you cannot, but you could copy the mail from an XP machine into a
folder easily and then copy the folder to your Vista desktop or anywhere
else. That's what I've done.

People who go from one machine to another are going to have a more difficult
time synching the mail to Vista than people who say, I'm done with XP--I'll
back up my OE mail, and then copy to Vista.

Steve Cochran, who is an OE and Win Mail expert or some others may have a
way to "join" the mail if you're on a dual boot. I don't. They use different
storage formats. I wonder if you could configure OE on XP and Win Mail on
Vista on a dual boot so that mail sent to one would also appear in the
other. You asked where the application is though. To open Win Mail just
click the Vista start button, or type msimn into the run box just as you
would on XP. OE on WinXP and WinMail on Vista use different storage
technologies, so they can't point to the same store location. OE uses .dbx
files to store e-mails, while WinMail stores each e-mail as a separate .eml
file in the Vista file system, and includes redundancy.

There is a Vista mail group you could post on, or Steve or someone may pick
this thread up.

You can merge Outlook (one of the Office apps of course) though more than
one way. Here is one:

Simply go into Outlook on both operating systems and point Outlook to the
same .pst file as your default delivery location:

1. In Outlook, click on Tools, E-mail Accounts, then click the Next button
2. Click View or Change, then Next
3. In the Delivery New E-mails section,
4. Click the New Outlook Data File button
5. Click OK, then browse to the shared .pst file.
6. Click Ok, then Finish.

There is also an Outlook 2003 backup that is supported on Vista and
supported by Outlook 2007, and it's here:

www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=8b081f3a-b7d0-4b16-b8af-5a6322f4fd01&DisplayLang=en

CH
 
The OE files were marked as hidden in XP.
Each OE folder had a dbx file.
Search for hidden dbx files.
--
Ronald Sommer

:I have upgraded to Vista Busienss and want to import my mail from my xp
: installation which is in the windows.old fold. But I am having problems in
: locating the file any ideas???? :(
:
 
I thought your question was what has become of OE? Your minimal information
doesn't say if you are on a dual boot or want to find the OE files or want
to find the Win Mail files.

On Vista your Win Mail location is C:\Users\Mark's Profile
\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows
Mail\Backup\new Folder

From Steve Cochran on the Vista Mail group:

"See the directions for importing OE messages here:
www.oehelp.com/backup.aspx#oe2wm

When you get to the stage to import from OE6, do not choose to import from
an Identity. Choose to import from a directory and then specify the
directory for that Identity (see also www.oehelp.com/OETips.aspx#4).

See www.oehelp.com/backup.aspx#wm

That has it for OE and WinMail."

[End of quote from Steve]

In XP your .dbx folders are stored in one folder called the store root, or
store root folder, or store folder, and in at least one place in OE, the
Store root directory. It's default location is

C:\Windows\Application Data\Outlook Express\{GUID}
or
C:\Documents and Settings\<User>\Local Settings\Application
Data\Identities\{GUID}\Microsoft\Outlook Express

where {GUID} is the Global Unique IDentifier (technical jargon for a unique
long number) used to specify an Identity. Depending on your operating system
and upgrade history, your store folder might be located elsewhere. To
determine the location of your store, click Tools| Options| Maintenance|
Store folder.


See:

http://www.insideoe.com/files/store.htm


Further refs:

How To Backup OE:

hth,

CH
 
Mark--

Bryan Starbuck of the Win Mail team at MSFT is blogging here (or it seems
before he left MSFT he was on the Win Mail team from what I can tell--maybe
the archives have something useful for you):

http://bryanstarbuck.spaces.live.com/

Also see:

http://channel9.msdn.com/showpost.aspx?postid=116711

I should add as I read through posts by Steve Cochran and Robear Dyer
(OE/Win Mail MVPs for years) and others on the Vista Mail group, there are a
number of defects that you may encounter in trying to get a transfer done.
I have always perceived this to be because MSFT software is driven by their
money managers in large part, and Win Mail and OE are free programs with
little attention to them by Redmond Softies, so they leave much to be
desired.

I perceive that the OE/Win Mail MVPs made a big effort to liason with MSFT
to get changes made that were often promised but did not show up, just as
happened to many of us on the Vista Beta when they ignored thousands of
suggestions that would have prevented the many many bugs that Vista has
embedded in it now.

I use Win Mail/OE for newsgroups, and send messages to it when I want to
retrieve info easily. I try to have Outlook up as well, so that the server
will send the messages there too.

You should take a look at the Win Mail group for some of their comments for
perspective. I searched the MSKBs for good articles on Win Mail and found
NADA. The only one I found was an update for junk mail definitions.

CH

You know your country has flown deep into the ground when a major network,
NBC has a cable channel that is a purported news channel and it is now the
"Anna Nichole Smith" "How Life can become a dysfunctional dream and
captivate America the stupid Channel."

Analysis of the Libby trial? Hell no what's that. Anna Nichole Circustime.
Bring it on 24X7 to create a more educated, enlighted America the Stupid.

What MSNBC (I'm trying to figure out what the MS stands for in MSNBC) won't
discuss is how disingenuous Tim Russert was in telling all to the FBI when
they knocked on his door, and then months later trying to claim a First
Amendment privilege when testifying before the Grand Jury when he had
already spilled the beans to the gov. There ain't no defense lawyuhs
present in a Grand Jury FRCP 6(e) proceeding.

Russert's comment that when he talks to big shots from the gov that he is
default "off the record" really ran it up the flag pole for journalistic
integrity and concern that people get accurate and complete information.

In otherwords, media journalists are the West Wing's puppie dogs--and
access, not accurate information is the name of the game along with ratings.
If a trainwreck gets eyeballs then put it on 24/7. From the United States
of Dumbed Down Anna Nicholeville.
 
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