Outlook all types of Issues

Method 1: Start Outlook in safe mode


To start Outlook in safe mode:



Windows Vista

Click Start.

Type outlook.exe /safe in the Start Search box.

Press Enter.

Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, or Windows 2000

Click Start.

Click Run.

Type outlook.exe /safe.

Click OK.

Starting Outlook in safe mode starts Outlook without add-ins, the preview pane, or toolbar customizations and could indicate a damaged profile or conflicting third-party application or add-in. See method 2 to create a new e-mail profile. To obtain help in identifying a conflicting application or add-in, you may want to contact Support.
 
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Scanpst.exe : C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12 \SCANPST



search .pst .ost



Backup pst file:



Windows Vista: disk drive:\users\username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook



Windows XP and Windows 2000: disk drive:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook





http://support.microsoft.com/kb/287497



http://support.microsoft.com/kb/934545





How to use the Inbox Repair Tools to recover e-mail messages in Outlook 2002, Outlook 2003, and Outlook 2007



This article helps you use the Inbox Repair Tool (Scanpst.exe) to recover folders and items from a corrupted Personal Folders (.pst) file or offline folder (.ost) file in Microsoft Outlook 2002, Outlook 2003, and Outlook 2007. Scanpst.exe is a hidden file that is installed automatically when you install Windows.



If you are interested, this article also describes what the tool does and how the tool validates and corrects errors in the .pst or .ost file. See the "More Information" section. However, this supplemental information is not required to use the Inbox Repair tool.



This content is designed for an intermediate computer user, unless otherwise stated.

How to use the Inbox Repair Tool

To recover folders and items from your corrupted .pst or .ost file, you have to do the following:

Run the inbox repair tool. For more information, go to "Step 1: Run the Inbox Repair Tool to diagnose and repair errors" section.

Recover the repaired items. For more information, go to the "Step 2: Recover the repaired items" section.

Optionally, you can try to recover additional repaired items from the backup personal folder. For more information, go to the "Step 3: Recover repaired items from the backup file" section.

Note The examples in the following sections show how to use the Inbox Repair Tool on a .pst file. However, you can use the same procedures for an offline folder (.ost) file.

Step 1: Run the Inbox Repair Tool to diagnose and repair errors

To recover your data, you must first run the Inbox Repair Tool.



Note If you are using Outlook 2002 or if you are using a .pst file in Outlook 2003 that was created in an earlier version, the Inbox Repair Tool may not work if your .pst file has approached the 2-GB size limit. Therefore, check the file size before you continue. Depending on your Windows version, your .pst file might be located in one of the following folders.



Windows Vista: disk drive:\users\username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook



Windows XP and Windows 2000: disk drive:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook



If the file has approached the 2-GB size limit, you can use the PST/OST cropping tool to make the file smaller. For more information about the PST/OST cropping tool, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

296088 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/296088/ ) Oversized PST and OST Crop tool To run the Inbox Repair Tool, follow these steps:

Exit Outlook.

Make sure that the Show hidden files and folders option is enabled in your folder options. The Scanpst.exe is a hidden file on your computer, and you might be unable to locate it if this setting is not enabled. To check this setting, follow these steps:

a. Click Start, and then click Run.



Note If you are using Windows Vista, use the Start Search box.

Type Control Folders, and then click OK.



Note If you are using Windows Vista, right-click Control Folders, and then click Run as administrator.

If you are using Windows Vista, double-click Folder Options.

Click the View tab.

Under Hidden files and folders, make sure the Show hidden files and folders option is selected, and then click OK.

Click Start, and then click Find or Search, depending on which version of Windows that you are running.

In the search box, type Scanpst.exe. If you cannot find the Scanpst.exe file by using Find or Search, try to locate the file manually. Check the following locations for the file. Where the file is located depends on which version of Windows you are using:

Default location for Outlook .pst file

C:\Documents and Settings\Len\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\outlook.pst

disk drive:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE12

disk drive:\Program Files\Common Files\System\Mapi\1033\

disk drive:\Program Files\Common Files\System\Mapi\1033\NT

disk drive:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\1033

disk drive:\Program Files(x86)\Microsoft Office\Office12

disk drive:\Program Files(x86)\Common Files\System\Mapi\1033\

disk drive:\Program Files(x86)\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\1033

Double-click the Scanpst.exe file to open the program.

Click Browse to locate the .pst file.

Windows 98 or Windows Me: disk drive\Windows\ Local Settings\Application Data

Windows NT 4.0: disk drive\WINNT\Profiles\username\Local Settings\Application Data

Windows XP or Windows Server 2003: disk drive:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook

Windows Vista: disk disk drive:\users\username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook

Note If your operating system is not listed or if you cannot find the file, see the Help provided with Outlook.

Click Start. The Inbox Repair Tool scans the file and reports whether it found any errors.

Click OK.

After you run the Inbox Repair Tool and restart Outlook, you should see a list of recovered folders in the left navigation pane in Outlook. The next step is to move the recovered items to a new Personal Folders (.pst) file in your profile. To do this, go to "Step 2: Recover the repaired items."

Step 2: Recover the repaired items

Now that you have run the Inbox Repair Tool, you are ready to recover the repaired items. To start, create a new Personal Folders (.pst) file entry in your profile. Then, you can move the recovered items to your new Personal Folders (.pst) file.

After you run the Inbox Repair Tool, start Outlook. If you use multiple profiles in Outlook, make sure that you select the profile that contains the Personal Folders (.pst) file that you tried to repair.

On the View or Go menu, click Folder List to turn on the Folder List view.

In your Folder List, you should see the following recovered folders:

Recovered Personal Folders



Calendar

Contacts

Deleted Items

Inbox

Journal

Notes

Outbox

Sent Items

Tasks



These recovered folders are usually empty because this is a rebuilt .pst file. You should also see a folder named Lost and Found. This folder contains folders and items that the Inbox Repair Tool recovered. Unfortunately, items that are missing from the Lost and Found folder may be beyond repair.

Create a new Personal Folder (.pst) file in your profile. The steps may be different, depending on which version of Outlook you are running.



Outlook 2002

On the File menu, point to New, and then click Personal Folders File (.pst).

Click Create to open the Create Microsoft Personal Folders dialog box.

Enter a file name for your new Personal Folders (.pst) file, and then click OK.

You should have a new Personal Folders (.pst) file in your profile.

Outlook 2003

On the File menu, point to New, and then click Outlook Data File.

Click OK to open the Create or Open Outlook Data File dialog box.

Enter a file name for your new Personal Folders (.pst) file, and then click OK to open the Create Microsoft Personal Folders dialog box.

Enter a file name for your new Personal Folders (.pst) file, and then click OK.

You should have a new Personal Folders (.pst) file in your profile.

Outlook 2007

On the File menu, click Data File Management.

Click Add to open the New Outlook Data File dialog box.

In the Types of storage dialog box, click to select Office Outlook Personal Folders File (.pst), and then click OK.

In the Create or Open Outlook Data File dialog box, select the location and a file name for your new Personal Folders (.pst) file, and then click OK.

Click OK.

You should have a new Personal Folders (.pst) file in your profile.

Drag the recovered items from the Lost and Found folder to your new Personal Folders (.pst) file.

When you have finished moving all items, you can remove the Recovered Personal Folders (.pst) file from your profile. This includes the Lost and Found folder.

If you are satisfied with the information that you recovered, you are finished. However, if you want to try to recover additional information, go to "Step 3: Recover repaired items from the backup file."

Step 3: Recover repaired items from the backup file

Note If you could not open your original Personal Folders (.pst) file before you ran Inbox Repair Tool, the following procedures may not work. If it does not work, then unfortunately, you will be unable to recover any additional information. If you could open the file, the following procedure may help you recover additional items from your damaged Personal Folders (.pst) file.



When you run Inbox Repair Tool, the option to create a backup of the original Personal Folders (.pst) file is automatically selected. This option creates a file on your hard disk that is named "File name.bak" (without quotation marks). This file is a copy of the original File name.pst file with a different extension. If, after Step 2, you think that you are still missing items, you can try to recover additional information from this backup file by following these steps:



Locate the .bak file. It is located in the folder of your original Personal Folders (.pst) file.

Locate the .bak file. It is located in the folder of your original Personal Folders (.pst) file.

Make a copy of the .bak file and give the file a new name with a .pst extension. For example, name the file "New name.pst" (without quotation marks).

Import the New name.pst file that you created in the previous step by using the Import and Export Wizard in Outlook. To do this, follow these steps:

On the File menu, click Import and Export.

Click Import from another program or file, and then click Next.

Click to select Personal Folder File (.pst), and then click Next.

Under File to import, click Browse, and then double-click your Newname.pst file.

Under Options, click Do not import duplicates, and then click Next.

Under Select the folder to import from, click to select the Personal Folders (.pst) file, and then click to select Include subfolders.

Click to select Import folders into the same folder in, and then select your new Personal Folders (.pst).

Click Finish.

Note Remember that the backup file was the original corrupted file, and you may find that you cannot recover anything other than what was recovered in the Lost and Found folder. If you cannot import the Newname.pst file into Outlook, unfortunately you have lost all the information that is not in the Lost and Found folder.



What the Inbox Repair Tool does

When you run the Inbox Repair Tool on a Personal Folders (.pst) file, it does the following:

The Inbox Repair Tool analyses the Personal Folders (.pst) file directory structure and item headers to try to recover all folders and items.

If the Inbox Repair Tool recovers the Personal Folders (.pst) file, it means that the repair tool found problems, and repaired what it could.

The Inbox Repair Tool tries to turn any file into a Personal Folders (.pst) file. For example, if you rename an executable file to "Something.pst" (without quotation marks), the tool changes the file to a mountable .pst file.

The Inbox Repair Tool makes a backup copy of any Personal Folders (.pst) file before trying to repair the file.



How the Inbox Repair Tool validates and corrects errors

ScanPST mostly validates and corrects errors in the internal data structures of a .pst file. The .pst file is a database file. Therefore, structures, such as BTrees and reference counts, are checked and repaired as necessary. These low-level objects have no knowledge of the upper-level structures, such as messages, calendar items, and so on, that are built upon them.



If ScanPST determines that a specific block of the structure or table is unreadable or corrupted, ScanPST removes it. If that block was part of a specific item in Outlook, the item will be removed when it is validated.



You may not expect this behavior. However, the removal of the item is appropriate given the circumstances. Also, this specific kind of situation is probably very rare, and it will always be entered in the ScanPST log file.



At a higher level, the more visible changes that you see involve folders and messages.

Folders

ScanPST examines every folder in the .pst and performs the following operations:

ScanPST makes sure that there are the correct tables associated with the folder.

ScanPST checks every row in each table and makes sure that the message or the subfolder exists in the system.

If ScanPST cannot find the message or the subfolder, ScanPST removes the row from the table.

If ScanPST does find the message or the subfolder, ScanPST validates the message or the folder.

If that validation fails, the message or folder is considered corrupted, and it is removed from the table and deleted from the database.

If the validation succeeds, ScanPST does another analysis to make sure that the now-recovered message values are consistent with the values in the table. Corrupted folders are recreated from scratch, if necessary. These folders contain no user data.

Messages

Most users will be concerned by message operations, because a corrupted item is likely to cause something to be deleted from the .pst file. ScanPST performs the following operations on messages:

ScanPST does some basic validation of attachment tables and recipient tables. This operation resembles how a folder works with the messages in it.

As soon as the recipient table is validated to guarantee correctly formatted recipients, ScanPST makes any changes that are required to synchronize these valid recipient table contents to the recipient properties on the message. ScanPST also guarantees that the message's parent folder refers to a valid folder. The following message properties are checked to make sure that they follow valid data formats:

PR_MESSAGE_CLASS



ScanPST checks that this property exists. If the property does not exist, it is set to IPM.Note.

PR_MESSAGE_FLAGS



Each flag is validated separately.

PR_SUBMIT_FLAGS



This validation resembles the operation for message flags.

PR_CLIENT_SUBMIT_TIME



If the submit flags indicate that the message is marked as submitted, this property must exist. If not, the time is set to Now.

PR_SEARCH_KEY



This property must exist. If the property is not present, a random GUID is generated for it.

PR_CREATION_TIME



This property must exist. If the property is not present, the time is set to Now.

PR_LAST_MODIFICATION_TIME



This property must exist. If the property is not present, the time is set to Now.

PR_MESSAGE_SIZE



Sizes are recalculated and compared to stored values. If sizes differ by some delta, the calculated value is written.

No validation is explicitly done on body-related properties or on subject-related properties, except the implicit low-level validation that this article discusses earlier. The recipient display properties are modified to be consistent with the recovered recipient table. As soon as this operation is complete, other algorithms are run to collect all the orphaned messages and to put them in an Orphans folder.



For more information about binary trees (btrees), visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/Aa289150(VS.71).aspx (http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/Aa289150(VS.71).aspx)



2)

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/934545



Error message when you start Outlook 2007 in Windows Vista: "

<FileName>.pst file could not be opened"



To work around this problem, use the Inbox Repair Tool (Scanpst.exe) to repair your personal mail file. To do this, follow these steps:

Exit Outlook 2007.

Click Start

Collapse this imageExpand this image

, type %ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Office\Office12\ in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.

Double-click Scanpst.

In the Enter the name of the file you want to scan box, type the path and file name of the Outlook .pst file that you noted in step 6.

Click Start.

When the Inbox Repair Tool finishes, click OK.







Where is ScanPST.exe on Windows Vista & Windows XP Office

Jul 14th, 2009 12:54:33 pm - Subscribe

Mood: full

Music: Pussy Doodles



I received a call from our Houston office today (here at work), letting me know that they were having an issue with one of the terminals. Seems as though Microsoft Office Outlook was displaying and error upon populating the .pst file.



Well obviously you would use the ScanPST.exe but heck, Where is ScanPST on Windows Vista & Windows XP Office? Well here are the locations for you. Hopefully this will save you some time.



Location of Windows Vista ScanPST.exe

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12



Location of Windows XP ScanPST.exe

C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMapi\1033\Scanpst.exe



Be sure to allow the viewing of hidden files and folders on your machine. If you do not there is a chance that you will not be able to locate the ScanPST.exe file that you need to run.



How to Allow Hidden Files and Folders

Start > Control Panel > Files and Folders or Folder Options > View > Under Hidden Files and Folders > Bubble in Show Hidden Files and Folders > Apply > Ok



Good luck!











anonymous - January 20th, 2010

You have the Operating Systems and the corresponding directory paths mixed up.

Vista/Win7 is C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMapi\1033\Scanpst.exe



WinXP is : C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12



anonymous - February 22nd, 2010

I found this site while searching on Google. You carry it and even run it off of your USB drive! www{dot}techs-on-the-side{dot}mysite{dot}com. I do I.T. and I'll tell you it saves me time from having to hunt for this file.



peteperry - February 25th, 2010

Thanks so much for your invaluable assistance in solving my outlook problem (finding scanpst.exe)!















How to back up and to restore Outlook Express data

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/270670

How to back up Outlook Express items

Step 1: Copy message files to a backup folder

Step A: Locate the Store folder

Start Outlook Express.

Click Tools, and then click Options.

On the Maintenance tab, click Store Folder.

In the Store Location dialog box, copy the store location. To do this, follow these steps:

Put the mouse pointer at one end of the box under the Your personal message store is located in the following folder box.

Press and hold the left mouse button, and then drag the mouse pointer across the Your personal message store is located in the following folder box.

Press CTRL+C to copy the location.

Click Cancel, and then click Cancel again to close the dialog box.

Step B: Copy the contents of the Store folder

Click Start, click Run, press CTRL+V, and then click OK.

On the Edit menu, click Select All.

On the Edit menu, click Copy, and then close the window.

Step C: Create a backup folder

Right-click any empty area on your desktop, click New, and then click Folder.

Type Mail Backup for the folder name, and then press ENTER.

Step D: Paste the contents of the Store folder into the backup folder

Double-click the Mail Backup folder to open it.

Right-click inside the Mail Backup folder window, and then click Paste.

Step 2: Export the Address Book to a .csv file

Important Make sure that you follow this step if you use multiple identities in Outlook Express.



Microsoft Outlook Express 5.x and Microsoft Outlook Express 6.0 use a Windows Address Book (.wab) file to store Address Book data. The individual data for each identity is stored in a folder by user name within the .wab file that is used.



The only way to separate the Address Book data for different identities is to export the data to a .csv file while you are logged in as a specific identity. If the .wab file becomes dissociated from the user identities, the data can be exported only as one total. In this case, the data cannot be exported folder by folder.



There is another reason to export the .wab file to a .csv file. If the .wab file not exported to a .csv file, but the .wab file is shared with Microsoft Outlook, the addresses are stored in the personal folders (.pst) file in Outlook. When you export the file to a .csv file by using the File menu in Outlook Express, the correct contacts are exported. However, if the Address Book is shared with Outlook, you cannot use the File menu option to export from the Address Book. This option is unavailable.



To export the Address Book to a .csv file, follow these steps:

On the File menu, click Export, and then click Address Book.

Click Text File (Comma Separated Values), and then click Export.

Click Browse.

Select the Mail Backup folder that you created.

In the File Name box, type address book backup, and then click Save.

Click Next.

Click to select the check boxes for the fields that you want to export, and then click Finish.

Click OK, and then click Close.

Step 3: Export the mail account to a file

On the Tools menu, click Accounts.

On the Mail tab, click the mail account that you want to export, and then click Export.

In the Save In box, select the Mail Backup folder, and then click Save.

Repeat these steps for each mail account that you want to export.

Click Close.

Step 4: Export the newsgroup account to a file

On the Tools menu, click Accounts.

On the News tab, click the news account that you want to export, and then click Export.

In the Save In box, select the Mail Backup folder, and then click Save.

Repeat these steps for each news account that you want to export.

Click Close.

FPRIVATE "TYPE=PICT;ALT=" Back to the top

How to restore Outlook Express items

Note To restore items when you use multiple identities in Outlook Express, you may have to re-create the identities before you follow these steps. Repeat each step as needed for each identity.

Step 1: Import messages from the backup folder

On the File menu, point to Import, and then click Messages.

In the Select an e-mail program to import from box, click Microsoft Outlook Express 5 or Microsoft Outlook Express 6, and then click Next.

Click Import mail from an OE5 store directory or Import mail from an OE6 store directory, and then click OK.

Click Browse, and then click the Mail Backup folder.

Click OK, and then click Next.

Click All folders, click Next, and then click Finish.

Step 2: Import the Address Book file

On the File menu, click Import, and then click Other Address Book.

Click Text File (Comma Separated Values), and then click Import.

Click Browse.

Select the Mail Backup folder, click the address book backup.csv file, and then click Open.

Click Next, and then click Finish.

Click OK, and then click Close.

Step 3: Import the mail account file

On the Tools menu, click Accounts.

On the Mail tab, click Import.

In the Look In box, select the Mail Backup folder.

Click the mail account that you want to import, and then click Open.

Repeat these steps for each mail account that you want to import.

Click Close.

Step 4: Import the newsgroup account file

On the Tools menu, click Accounts.

On the News tab, click Import.

In the Look In box, select the Mail Backup folder.

Click the news account that you want to import, and then click Open.

Repeat these steps for each news account that you want to import.

Click Close.



With the presence of hidden folders it sometimes happens that duplicate contacts end up being stored in the WAB. This is not really a serious problem, but it can be confusing to type in a name in a new message, only to be presented a dialogue asking to choose between 2 identical contacts. To view all contacts in all folders, regardless of which Identity is currently logged on, click Start
Run and type wab /a. If needed, click View
Folders and Groups to see the folders. You can now find any duplicates and move them to the Shared Contacts folder, rather than in each Identity's folder.



C:\Program Files\Outlook Express\wab.exe.







Backing up local Microsoft Outlook files.





Microsoft Outlook Express users

Microsoft Outlook Express stores the files in the below types of files.

*.wab files are Microsoft Outlook Express address book files.

*.mbx files are Microsoft Outlook Express mail folders.

The Microsoft Outlook Express 5x Block Sender List and Other Mail Rules are stored in the computer's registry.

Backing up the Outlook Express address book.

Locate the file by using the Windows find tool. Click Start / Find / Files or Folders.

In the Named box type *.wab - ensure the Look in box is looking on the drive that Microsoft Outlook is located (usually the C: drive).

Click Find Now

This should locate the Microsoft Outlook Express address book, if present. Generally, this file will be the Outlook Express user's name.

Once this file is located, copy the file to an alternate drive or backup media such as a Zip disk.

Backing up the Outlook Express mail

Locate the file by using the Windows find tool. Click Start / Find / Files or Folders.

In the Named box type *.mbx - ensure the Look in box is looking on the drive that Microsoft Outlook is located (usually the C: drive).

Click Find Now

This should locate the Microsoft Outlook Express address book, if present. If more than one .mbx file is located, it is likely that you have more than one mail folder and it is recommended that you copy all the files you wish to backup.

Once this file is located, copy the file to an alternate drive or backup media such as a Zip disk.

Backing up the Outlook Express 5x Block Sender List

Note: The below steps take the user through the system registry. If you are unfamiliar with the system registry and the potential risks you take by editing the registry, please see our registry page first.

Open the Registry by clicking Start / Run and typing regedit and clicking ok.

Locate the below registry key.



HKEY/CURRENT/USER\Identities\{Identity Number}\Software\

Microsoft\Outlook Express\5.0\Block Senders



Once in the above registry key, click Registry in the Regedit menu and click "Export Registry File..."

Save the Block Senders.reg file to desktop or your backup location.

Backing up the Microsoft Outlook 5x Other Mail Rules

Note: The below steps take the user through the system registry. If you are unfamiliar with the system registry and the potential risks you take by editing the registry, please see our registry page first.

Open the Registry by clicking Start / Run and typing regedit and clicking ok.

Locate the below registry key.



HKEY/CURRENT/USER\Identities\{Identity Number}\Software\

Microsoft\Outlook Express\5.0\Rules\Mail



Once in the above registry key, click Registry in the Regedit menu and click "Export Registry File..."

Save the Block Senders.reg file to desktop or your backup location.

Microsoft Outlook users

Microsoft Outlook stores the files in the below types of files.

*.pab files are Microsoft Outlook address book files.

*.pst files are Microsoft Outlook mail files book files.

*.rwz files are the Microsoft Outlook rules wizard files.

Backing up the Microsoft Outlook address book

Locate the file by using the Windows find tool. Click Start / Find / Files or Folders.

In the Named box type *.pab - ensure the Look in box is looking on the drive that Microsoft Outlook is located (usually the C: drive).

Click Find Now

This should locate the Microsoft Outlook address book, if present.

Once this file is located, copy the file to an alternate drive or backup media such as a Zip disk.

Backing up the Microsoft Outlook mail

Locate the file by using the Windows find tool. Click Start / Find / Files or Folders.

In the Named box type *.pst - ensure the Look in box is looking on the drive that Microsoft Outlook is located (usually the C: drive).

Click Find Now

This should locate the Microsoft Outlook mail file, if present. Generally, this file is mailbox.pst.

Once this file is located, copy the file to an alternate drive or backup media such as a Zip disk.

Backing up the Microsoft Outlook rules wizard files

Locate the file by using the Windows find tool. Click Start / Find / Files or Folders.

In the Named box type *.rwz - ensure the Look in box is looking on the drive that Microsoft Outlook is located (usually the C: drive).

Click Find Now

This should locate the Microsoft Outlook rules file, if present. Generally, this file is rules.rwz.

Once this file is located, copy the file to an alternate drive or backup media such as a Zip disk.

Backing up the Microsoft Outlook signatures

Each of the Microsoft Outlook signatures you have are backed up as signature.txt, signature.rtf, and signature.htm, where 'signature' is the name of each of the signatures you have.

Locate the signature file by using the Windows find tool. For the name of the file type signature*.* where 'signature' is the name of one of your signatures. Usually these files are stored in C:\Documents and Settings\User\Application Data\Microsoft\Signatures or similar directory.

Once you have located them, select each of the signatures you wish to backup and copy to your backup destination.









SOLVING ADDRESS BOOK PROBLEM

Probably you will have a problem with the Outlook Address Book, especially if you overwrite the OUTLOOK.PST file with the archive from you previous Windows XP installation (Tools, Address Book). To solve this problem, right click the Contact icon the folder view on the left pane (if the different archive folders are not visible, enable this by View, Folder List) and select Properties, tab Outlook Address Book and enable the option Show this folder as an e-mail Address Book (if you feel the need to you can change the address book name). The next step in Outlook is Tools, Address Book, and in the new appearing window Tools, Options, and change the two combo boxes and in the lower pain remove the upper address book referrer.







DISABLE OUTLOOK ARCHIVING

I advise to disable the auto archiving option. This option is enabled by default, which will move old e-mail to the ARCHIVE.PST file. This way, they are no longer visible, and very difficult to find. Disable this option by Tools, Options, tab Other, button AutoArchive. (changing the default location to a safe location (example D:\DATA\MAIL) is also possible here). If you already have an ARCHIVE.PST file with old e-mail and would like to import them to your current OUTLOOK.PST file, you can import those by File, Import and Export, Import from another program of file, Personal Folder File (.pst) and Browse to the PST-file.







How do I move my Microsoft Outlook contacts?



In Outlook, on the File menu, click Import and Export.

Click Export to a file, and then click Next.

Click Comma Separated Values (Windows), and then click Next.

In the folder list, click the Contacts folder, and then click Next.

Browse to the folder where you want to save the contacts as a .csv file.

Type a name for the exported file, and then click OK.

Click Next.

Click Finish.

That gives you a comma separate list of your Outlook Contacts. Transfer that to your new computer, then you can import them into your new version of Outlook with the following steps:

On the File menu, click Import and Export.

Click Import from another program or file, and then click Next.

In the list, click Comma Separated Values (Windows), and then click Next.

Click Browse, locate your file, and then click Next.

Click your Contacts folder or another folder that contains contacts, and then click Next.

In the list, click the file that contains your address list, and then click Map Custom Fields.

That should get you going. If you need more help here are two reference pages from Microsoft, one on Exporting Outlook Contacts and another on Importing Outlook Contacts.