Backup Outlook Express Settings (not data)

Hello All,

I may be answering my own question here, but how would one go about backing up Outlook Express account/configuration settings? I've got a user who's moved to a new (personal) machine, and would like to skip the setup. I've given him his .DBX files, and instructions on how to restore his mail, but I can't figure out how to restore his settings. (Unless they are IN his .DBX files, and he's sending me on a wild goose chase, which wouldn't surprise me) Can anyone comment?

TIA,

Milty

 

Tools->account->mail tab->there will be import and export buttons, you can use these to back up and restore the email account configuration settings. IIRC, you will probably need to re-enter the password, though.

Let me know if I am mis-interpreting what you need.

 

Alright, so I've discovered that you can enter Tools --> Accounts, and there is an option to export your accounts to an .IAF file, but sadly, I'm working with an image of this computer, and need to know where (if anywhere) in the directory structure the settings are held.

 

Ha! Beat me to the punch. This is EXACTLY what I need, but the darn system isn't live! I need somehow to be able to pull the data from the file system. Can't get to the OLEX GUI without pushing out this (virus riddled) image.

 

I am pretty sure the only place the account settings are stored is in the registry, I believe somewhere under the HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem key (I would check for sure, but I don't have an XP system infront of me). You might be able to load the hive, and export the relevant key out tot he desktop, then import. Just an idea!

 

A good thought, but as a test, I setup MY OLEX with a mail account, checked HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem, and there's nothing OBVIOUS there. It could be in a GUID that's in this key, but that's not directly human-readable.

 

According to http://www.iopus.com/guides/oe-backup.htm:

"Data about your mail and news accounts are stored in the registry key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Account Manager. To save this data, start RegEdit and select that key in the left-hand pane. Then from the menu select Registry | Export Registry File. Save the file to a name like "outlook.reg".

Restore (if necessary) To restore the account settings, right-click the .REG file and select Merge."

Still, I'm wondering whether this would work in your case. If you can't open outlook express on that hard drive and export, can you still access that registry?

 

Ah-ha! There's the keys/values I was looking for!

As for getting them out of my image, I've got a few registry tricks up my sleeve that I'll try out, and post back if it works.

Thank you, sir!