OL97: How to Back Up Outlook Data

ID: Q168644

The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Outlook 97

SUMMARY

This article describes how to back up data created in Outlook including e- mail messages, contacts, appointments, tasks, notes, and journal entries. Outlook stores its data in Messaging Application Programming Interface (MAPI) folders. MAPI folders can be stored in a file on your hard drive called a Personal Folder file, or if you are using Outlook with Exchange Server, the data can be stored in a mailbox on the server.

This article covers the following topics:

  • Making a backup copy of a Personal Folder file


  • Exporting Personal Folder data


  • Importing Personal Folder Data


  • How To Back Up Data Using Outlook with Microsoft Exchange Server


  • Backing Up Personal Address Books


  • Backing Up Outlook Settings Files



MORE INFORMATION

Making a Backup Copy of a Personal Folder File (.PST file)

If you are not using Outlook with Microsoft Exchange Server, Outlook will store all of its data in a Personal Folder file. If you want to back up or export a particular folder such as Contacts or Calendar, use the steps in the section: Importing/Exporting Personal Folder Data.

Use the following steps to back up the entire Personal Folder file:
  1. Close any mail-related programs such as Outlook, Microsoft Exchange, or Windows Messaging.


  2. Click the Start button, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.


  3. Double-click the Mail and Fax icon. If you do not have Microsoft Fax installed, you will see a Mail icon.


  4. Click the Personal Folders service you want to back up. By default this service is called "Personal Folders", however, it may have been named something else. If the service has been named something else, you can determine what a service is by selecting the service from the list of services and clicking Properties. On the dialog box that appears, the title bar will say "Personal Folders" if the service is a Personal Folders service. After reading the title bar, click Cancel. Use this method to check the type of any service you are unfamiliar with.

    You may have more than one Personal Folders service in your profile and if so, each set of personal folders must be backed up separately.

    If there are no Personal Folders services in your profile and you have been able to store information such as e-mail, contacts, or appointments in Outlook, then your information is most likely being stored in a mailbox on a Microsoft Exchange Server. If this is the case, see the section titled, Backing Up Data When Using Outlook with Microsoft Exchange Server.

    If there are no personal folders in the list of services and you are not storing information in a Microsoft Exchange Server mailbox, Outlook can only be used for browsing files and the features in Outlook that store data can not be used. If this is the case, there is no data to back up.


  5. Click Properties and make a note of the path and file name listed in on the Properties dialog box. NOTE: You can possibly reduce the size of a Personal Folder file by clicking Compact Now. This is especially useful if you plan to back up the Personal Folder file to a floppy disk.


  6. Click OK, then click OK again to close the Properties dialog box.


  7. Make a copy of the file you noted in step 5 using the Windows 95 Explorer or the My Computer icon. For more information on copying files in Windows 95, click the Start button, then click Help. On the Index tab, type "copying, files" to view the related topics.


If you ever need to restore a Personal Folder file, simply copy the backup copy of the file you created with the above steps to the same folder and name you noted in step 5.

Exporting Personal Folder Data

Use the following steps to export an individual folder such as Contacts or Calendar to its own personal folder file:
  1. On the File menu, Click Import and Export.


  2. Click "Export to a personal folder file", then click Next.


  3. Click the folder you want to export and click Next.


  4. In "Save exported file as", type the name of the file to which the data will be exported.


  5. Click Finish.


Importing Personal Folder Data

Use the following steps to import a personal folder file into Outlook:
  1. On the File menu, Click Import and Export.


  2. Click "Import from a personal folder file", then click Next.


  3. Type the path and name of the personal folder file you want to import, then click Next.


  4. Click the folder into which the data will be imported.


  5. Click Finish.


Backing Up Data Using Outlook with Microsoft Exchange Server

If Outlook is being used with Microsoft Exchange Server you can choose to have Outlook store information on the Microsoft Exchange Server or in a set of Personal Folders on your hard drive. Use the following steps to determine where Outlook currently stores its data:

  1. In Outlook, on the Tools menu, click Services.


  2. Click the Delivery Tab.


  3. Examine the "Deliver new mail to the following location" field. If the field contains the word "Mailbox" followed by an e-mail name, Outlook will store new e-mail, contacts, appointments, and such, in a set of folders on the Exchange Server. If the field contains the words "Personal Folder" or another name of a set of personal folders, Outlook will store new e-mail, contacts, appointments, and such in the personal folders on your hard drive.


When Outlook information is stored on a Microsoft Exchange Server, it is typically backed up at the server. For more information on backing up or restoring information stored on an Microsoft Exchange Server, see your Microsoft Exchange Server Administrator. If your information is being stored in a set of Personal Folders on your hard drive and you want to back up the data, see the section above titled Making a Back Up Copy of a Personal Folder File.

Backing Up Personal Address Books

Although Contacts information may be kept either in a Microsoft Exchange Server mailbox or Personal Folder and accessed via the Outlook Address Book, the Personal Address Book creates a file that is stored on the workstation hard drive. In order to assure that this address book is backed up, you must include any files with the .pab extension in your backup process.

To locate your personal Address Book file, follow these steps:

  1. Click Start, point to Find, and then click Files Or Folders.


  2. Type "*.pab" (without the quotation marks), and click to select My Computer in the Look In list. Click Find Now, to start the search.


  3. Note the location of the .pab file and include it in your backup.


If you need to restore this address book either to the same computer or a different computer, simply add the Personal Address Book service to the profile and point to the .pab file.

Backing Up Outlook Settings Files

If you have customized settings which you want to replicate on another computer using Outlook, you may wish to include the following files in your back as well as the Personal Folders file:

  • <Profile Name>.fav - This is your Favorites file that includes the settings for the Outlook bar.

    NOTE: When attempting to use the Favorite file from a backup of the Outlook configuration, the profile created on the new machine must be identical in all respects to the originating profile, otherwise the Favorites file will be invalid and a new generated.

    For additional information about replicatng the Outlook Bar, please click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
    Q196346 OL2000: Cannot Replicate the Outlook Bar


  • <Profile Name>.rtf - This file stores the Rich Text Format Autosignature.


    • NOTE: If you use Word as your e-mail editor, signatures are stored in the Normal.dot as Autotext entries. This file should be backed up as well.
Custom views are integrated to the folders on which they were created. If you export items from one Personal Folder to another, the views are not maintained.


REFERENCES

For additional information about the Personal Address Book, profiles and information services, please click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q162203 OL97: User Profiles and Information Services
Q169709 OL97: How to Copy the Personal Address Book to Another Computer

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbinterop kbdta GnlFold
Version : WINDOWS:97
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbhowto


Last Reviewed: August 30, 1999
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