Windows XP File Locations

(1)

Last reviewed on September 13, 2012

We o en get ques ons like "Where is my Microso Outlook data stored?" "Where are my contact?" "How do I backup my calendar?"

Everything, your mail, calendar, and contacts in your Outlook folders are either in a mailbox on an Exchange Server or in Personal Folders .pst files on your computer.

Backup and dual‐boo ng between Windows versions all involve using the same files. There is no backup process built into Outlook. To back up, simply exit Outlook, then copy the files you want to back up. Below we provide a chart of Outlook 2010 file loca ons, followed by notes on par cular files.

Note that unlike older versions of Outlook, many configura on files are stored in the mailbox or PST.

If you are want to copy back and forth between machines so you can use the same informa on at the oﬃce and at home, for example. you'll need to copy at least the pst file. If you have Outlook profiles, name them the same on both machines, so you can use the same files easily. Use File tab | Account Se ngs to open the pst files that you copied.

See Moving Microso Outlook to a New Computer for the steps needed to move Outlook files to a new computer.

See How to move the IMAP personal folder (*.pst) for the proper way to move IMAP and Internet Subscrip on folders.

If you dual‐boot, your profile can point to the same .pst and .ost files (stored in a loca on both OS's can see), but you would need to copy other files to the correct loca on on the second opera ng system. Note that if you dual boot, you should use the same version of Outlook on both par ons for best results.

Windows XP File Locations

Where do you find these files? You can always start by using your opera ng system's Search or Find command to locate the par cular file types. You may need to use Tools | Folder Op ons | View in Windows Explorer and select Show hidden files and folders.

New to Outlook 2010, Personal Folders Files (*.pst) are in the Outlook Files folder in your My Documents folder.

When using Windows XP, Outlook stores *.ost, *.oab, and extend.dat in

Extend.dat and MSN Connector message stores can not be moved. See How to move the IMAP personal folder (*.pst) for the proper way to move IMAP and Internet Subscrip on folders.

All other Outlook configura on files are stored in

and cannot be moved.

Tip: Copy and paste these lines in Windows Explorer address bar to open the folder:

To access the folder holding the toolbar, VBA, rules, and nickname files, copy and paste:

To see the *.ost, *.oab files, copy and paste:

Note: Storing Personal Folders on an network file share is not recommended and may cause corrup on and data loss.

Type of File Name or

Extension

Outlook Profile Specific

Folder Location under the User Account path (C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\)

Personal Folders .pst files New profiles: pst files for POP3 accounts are created in your Mt Documents\Outlook Files folder.

If you are using a profile created in an older version of Outlook, pst files are in Local Se ngs\Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook (default, but .pst files can be anywhere on system)

Oﬄine and Cache folders used by Exchange server, Outlook connector.

.ost files Local Se ngs\Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook(default, can be moved to anywhere on the system)

C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook

C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook

%USERPROFILE%\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook

%USERPROFILE%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook

(2)

Nicknames for AutoComplete Now stored in the Mailbox or Personal folders file.

Customized print se ngs OutlPrnt \Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook

Customized Ribbon se ngs

Macros and VBA programs VbaProject.otm \Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook

Naviga on bar customiza ons .xml files X \Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook

Send/Receive group se ngs .srs files X \Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook

Signatures .r , .htm, and .txt files X \Applica on Data\Microso \Signatures

Sta onery .htm files \Applica on Data\Microso \Sta onery

Templates .o files \Applica on Data\Microso \Templates

Dic onary .dic files \Applica on Data\Microso \Proof

Installed Add‐ins extend.dat Local Se ngs\Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook

Do not backup or copy this file, Outlook will create a new copy.

Safe and Blocked senders lists Stored in mailbox as a hidden message

Can be exported from Tools, Op ons, Junk E‐mail. Export each list separately.

Vista and Windows 7 File Locations

Where do you find these files? You can always start by using your opera ng system's Search or Find command to locate the par cular file types. On Vista you may need to browse to Windows Explorer's Organize | Folder and Search Op ons | View tab and select Show hidden files and folders.

New to Outlook 2010, Personal Folders Files (*.pst) are in the Outlook Files folder in your My Documents folder.

Vista (and Win7) replaces Documents and Se ngs folder path with a Users path. As a result, you'll find Outlook stores the *.ost, *.oab, and extend.dat, in

.

Live Connector message stores cannot be moved but POP3 and Exchange oﬄine or cache storage can be moved to other loca ons. See How to move the IMAP personal folder (*.pst) for the proper way to move IMAP and Internet Subscrip on folders.

All other Outlook configura on files are stored in

and cannot be moved.

Tip: Copy the following lines and paste into Vista or Windows 7's Start menu "Start Search" field to open these folders:

To access the folder holding the toolbar, VBA, send & receive se ngs, and nickname files, copy and paste:

To see the *ost, *.oab files, copy and paste:

Note: Storing Personal Folders on an network file share is not recommended and may cause corrup on and data loss.

Type of File Filename or

Extension

Outlook Profile Specific

Folder path under C:\Users\<user>\AppData\

Personal Folders (including SharePoint Lists)

.pst New profiles: pst files for POP3 accounts are created in your Mt Documents\Outlook Files folder.

If you are using a profile created in an older version of Outlook, pst files are in Local Se ngs\Applica on Data\Microso \Outlook (default, but .pst files can be anywhere on system)

Oﬄine and Cached mode folders used by Exchange server and the Outlook connector.

.ost Local\Microso \Outlook

RSS feeds in Outlook 2010 .sharing.xml.obi X Local\Microso \Outlook

Installed Add‐ins extend.dat \Local\Microso \Outlook

This file does not need to be backed up, Outlook will create a new copy.

C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook

C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Outlook

%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Outlook

%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook

(3)

Nicknames for AutoComplete Now stored in the Mailbox or Personal folders file.

Customized print se ngs OutlPrnt Roaming\Microso \Outlook

Customized Ribbon & QAT se ngs olk*.oﬃceUI Local\Microso \Oﬃce\

Naviga on bar customiza ons .xml files X Roaming\Microso \Outlook

Send/Receive group se ngs (Outlook 2002 and later)

.srs files X Roaming\Microso \Outlook

Macros and VBA programs VbaProject.otm Roaming\Microso \Outlook

Signatures .r , .htm, and .txt files X \Roaming\Microso \Signatures

Sta onery .htm files \Roaming\Microso \Sta onery

Templates .o files \Roaming\Microso \Templates

Dic onary .dic files \Roaming\Microso \Proof

Outlook 2007 Safe and Blocked senders lists

Stored in message store as a hidden message

Can export each list to a text file as backup. Tools, Op ons, Junk Email op ons. Export each list separately.

Personal Folders Files

If you are not connec ng to Microso Exchange Server, all your Microso Outlook data is stored in one or more Personal Folders (.pst) files.

Outlook 2010 creates new *.pst files in your My Documents folder, in a folder named Outlook Files. This will make it easier for you to backup your mail.

If you upgraded from an older version and did not make a new profile or pointed the new profile to the old *.pst files, check the proper es for Personal Folders in File tab | Account Se ngs | Data Files tab to determine the exact loca on on your system.

Some people like to export a folder, such as Contacts, to a separate backup .pst file. That's fine for the data, but it does not back up any folder customiza ons such as views and custom forms. If you want to back up those, too, copy the en re folder to a new .pst file instead of using the export feature.

Also see:

Why .pst Files Are Unsupported Over a LAN or WAN Link

Offline Folders File

If you use Microso Exchange Server, you may have an oﬄine or cache mode folders (.ost) file. You shouldn't need to back it up, since you can always refresh it by synchronizing with the server. However, be sure you understand the procedure for Convert an Exchange Oﬄine file (OST) to a Personal Folders file (PST). If something ever goes wrong with your Exchange Server mailbox, this technique can save me and informa on, but you must do it before you try to connect to the server again.

Ribbon and QAT

Beginning with Outlook 2010, the ribbon is customizable and it and the quick access toolbar (QAT) can be exported from the Outlook interface (File, Op ons, Customize Ribbon), either to share with other computers or users or as a backup.

The ribbon and QATcustomiza ons are stored in olk*.officeUI files at C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Microso \Office. Each Outlook item type that has a customized ribbon will have an office.UI file.

Personal Address Book

Most Outlook users no longer use a PAB because the Personal Address Book (.pab file) is depreciated. If you s ll have a PAB, the contents need be imported into your Contacts folder. The *.pab will not open in Outlook 2010.

To Import the *.pab, go to File Tab | Open | Import. Choose Import from another program or file, then scroll down and choose Personal Address Book.

Other Files

Outlprnt file contains your custom print se ngs. This does not need to be backed up.

Some other miscellaneous files, not necessarily worth backing up:

Extend.dat — Informa on about installed add‐ins. Will be recreated if you delete it.

(4)

Ou tems.log — Outlook items to be placed automa cally in the Journal Oﬃtems.log — Oﬃce items to be placed automa cally in the Journal

Frmcache.dat — Outlook forms cache file. See How the Microso Outlook forms cache works.

Accounts

Account informa on is held in the user's Windows registry, not in a file, at

While you could export this key, its not generally recommended because it contains absolute paths to files (in your user account folders) and informa on about installed add‐ins. If the path is not exact when you restore it the profile will be corrupt.

Using the Microsoft Personal Folders Backup Utility

In order to use the Microso Personal Folder Backup u lity with Outlook 2010, you need to add the following key to your Registry. This changes the shutdown behavior of Outlook 2010 back to the shutdown behavior of Outlook 2007 SP2.

Ready to use reg file: RequireShutdownNo fica on

How to enable Personal Folders Backup add‐in to work with Outlook 2010 (MSKB) Tools in the Spotlight

OutlookBackupPro Backup, restore and migrate your Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007 data and se ngs easily with OutlookBackupPro.

OutlookBackupPro is pre‐configured to save all important Outlook files and se ngs ‐ you do not have to go through a list of configura on steps with this so ware. Just backup ‐ restoring is as easy as crea ng a backup: select what to restore, and OutlookBackupPro does the rest.

Tools

ABF Outlook Backup

Backup and restore Outlook data files, interface op ons, and se ngs. Backup and restore opera ons can be run from the command line, with your favorite Windows scheduling program for una ended opera on. Supports Outlook 2010, 2007, 2003, 2002, and 2000.

BackRex Outlook Backup

BackRex Outlook Backup is a backup and restore tool for Microso Outlook. It allows you to backup address book, mail and other folders, mail accounts, message rules, signatures, sta onery, and all personal se ngs. Backup jobs can be scheduled to run on a regular basis. Supports Outlook 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2010.

Backup Outlook Save all your Outlook se ngs including Emails, Contacts, Tasks, your Calendar, Notes, Journal entries, Email accounts, Outlook rules, Signatures and many more

Backup Outlook Data Files using a Batch (.bat)

How to use a Windows batch file to backup your Outlook data files.

BackupMyFolder! With BackupMyFolder! For Outlook, you will be enable to configure in one click the folders you want to backup, configure when to do the job and get a full history of previous backup runs. BackupMyFolder! for Outlook 200x and 2007 is FREE

MessageExport for Outlook

MessageExport for Outlook is an add‐in that helps you get your email out of Outlook in par cular way. MessageExport lets you save selected or new email messages to diﬀerent formats, including PDF, EML, MSG, GIF, TIF, HTML, MHT, CSV, txt, and others.

MessageExport can convert, name and save Outlook email in a single opera on. Includes a mer func on, so MessageExport can run every xx minutes to process new emails in a specific Outlook folder and save it in text format, on a network folder.

OutBack Plus Backup your Outlook Personal Folders (.pst files) in a compressed, zip compa ble, archive for a smaller and more easily managed file. All of your cri cal Outlook control files are included in the backup ‐ Signatures, Sta onery, Wizard Rules, etc are preserved for easy recovery. OutBack Plus allows you to restore the backup data to the same or another machine. Automa c reminder to backup a er a set number of days ‐ according to your needs. Also backs up Documents and Desktop folders, Internet Explorer Favorites, Cookies, oﬄine folders and Firefox Browser data. Works with all versions of Outlook, including Outlook 2010 32‐ and

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Outlook\Addins\Microsoft.OutlookBackup.1 DWORD: RequireShutdownNotification

Value: 1

(5)

64‐bit.

Outlook Backup Email

Outlook Backup Emails is a handy tool to backup and restore Microso Outlook .pst files . The backup can be done manual or automa c at specified me intervals. It also work with Outlook Express and other email clients, and can be a good tool to move between pcs the Microso Outlook email by unexperienced users.

Safe PST Backup Free Outlook backup tool. Back up Email archive, Contacts, Calendar and other folders automa cally. A fast incremental backup will be done regardless if Microso Outlook is running or not. Schedule Outlook backups or back up PST files manually. Use the Enterprise Edi on to create fully customizable Microso Outlook and Exchange backups on your corporate network. The Safe PST Backup 2.10 version brings new features and improvements, such as backup reten on op ons and backup history which allow to keep copies of previous backup files.

Stellar Phoenix Mail Backup

An efficient mail back up u lity which allows to backup all the objects like emails, contacts, notes, calendars etc. in Microso Outlook, Outlook Express and Windows Mail in most safe manner. The mail backup u lity provides op on to take incremental, differen al and full backup and allows you to save backup at any loca on. Some of the other main features of backup so ware are : schedule backup process, preview of emails which could be recovered, feature to restore complete as well as selected emails etc.. Moreover backup so ware works with Windows mail and different versions of Outlook and Outlook express like 2010 (32 bit), 2007, 2003, 2002.

Systools Split PST File

Use Split PST file to split Outlook pst files into smaller files. This is useful for backing up large pst file on media or in the cloud.

Notes

If your network is set up so that you can use Outlook at any machine ("roaming profiles"), your Outlook files may be in a diﬀerent loca on. Try using Start | Find to locate each type of file. If you don't see any .pst files a er you search, you may need to adjust the se ngs in Windows Explorer to show hidden and system files. Choose Tools | Folder Op ons, then switch to the View tab, and select Show hidden files and folders.

Personal Folders .pst files are among the files that are normally not included in a Windows 2000 (or later) oﬄine files synchroniza on. However, you can edit the system policy that controls the file types so that .pst files can be included. See Error Message Files of This Type Cannot Be Made Available Oﬄine.

More Information

Reconnect your old Outlook data file

The .PST File Has a Diﬀerent Format and Folder Size Limit in Outlook 2003

Synchronizing Outlook on two machines — including links to web‐based services that can store your Outlook data online Housekeeping and Message Management Tools for Outlook

Outlook and Exchange/Windows Messaging Backup and Dual‐Boot Moving Outlook to a New Computer

How to create a new profile (Video Tutorial)

Related Posts:

Microsoft Outlook 2010:

Although mostly

For Microsoft Outlook 2007, see Microsof

How to use a batch file to backup Micros