Member Avatar for unb0und

Is there a way i can save the messages and my address book to another location for backup purposes in Outlook Express?

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Dani AI

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Good catch by — backing up Outlook Express means saving two different things: the Address Book (contacts) and the mail store (message folders). The Address Book is stored as a .wab file; mail folders are stored as .dbx files (one .dbx per folder, e.g. Inbox.dbx, Sent Items.dbx). Always close Outlook Express before copying these files — copying while OE is running can corrupt the files.

Typical file locations (Windows 2000 / XP):

  • Address Book: C:\Documents and Settings\<User>\Application Data\Microsoft\Address Book\ (.wab)
  • Mail store (OE 6 with identities): C:\Documents and Settings\<User>\Local Settings\Application Data\Identities\{GUID}\Microsoft\Outlook Express\
  • Mail store (older/no identities): C:\Documents and Settings\<User>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook Express\

Also export account settings (Internet Accounts) to an .iaf file so server names/usernames are saved; note exported account files do not include passwords, so record those separately.

Restore notes and quick checklist:

  • Close OE, copy your backed-up .dbx files into the current store folder, and copy the .wab into the Address Book folder. Start OE and verify folders/contacts appear.
  • To move to another machine, import the .wab via the Address Book import and import .iaf via Internet Accounts.
  • If restored messages don’t show, confirm you copied files into the exact store path for the active Windows user/identity. If a .dbx is corrupt, OE may refuse to open it — use a tested DBX-repair utility or import from a working backup.

Suggested routine: export .iaf, export or copy the .wab, copy all .dbx files after closing OE, and keep an external copy. This complements ’s answer and gives the concrete file names/locations and restore caveats to avoid common pitfalls.

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Member Avatar for caperjack

open address book /file /export.

for emails open outlook go to tools /options /maintenence / click on stor folder and this will show you the path to the folder where the emails are stored go there and copy the folder for backup .

Member Avatar for unb0und

sweet thanks.

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