Summary: This post describes in detail the manual process of converting Outlook Express DBX file into Outlook PST format, which is free of cost.
Safe Solution: If you want a quick conversion process, then check out a free demo of DBX Converter
DBX is a file format that Outlook Express uses to store all its data items. Although advantageous in several ways, it is a discontinued email and news desktop email client and was available as a component of Microsoft Windows. As a discontinued product, many users do not get support for it from Microsoft. Therefore, they wish for a free method to convert DBX file to Windows Outlook PST. Outlook is one of the most extensively used and preferred desktop email client these days.
How to Convert DBX File into Windows Outlook PST?
There are two ways to convert DBX file to Windows Outlook PST. However, it depends on whether Outlook Express and Outlook email clients are installed on the same or different system.
Condition 1: Outlook Express & Outlook installed on the same Windows machine
Follow the steps below to execute:
- Click open the MS Outlook program
- Next, click on File, the first tab in the menu. With this, a number of options come up that includes Import and Export
- Then, select and click on the ‘Import and Export’ tab
- With this, the Import and Export Wizard window will open up on your system
- In the ‘Import and Export Wizard’, select the Import Internet Mail and address option and click on the Next
- Now, select Outlook Express to perform the action. With this, the Outlook Import Tool screen will come up
- In the Outlook Import Tool screen, select ‘Outlook Express 4.x, 5.x, 6.x or Windows Mail’ Check the Import-Mailbox, and click the Next tab
- Once the emails in Outlook Express are transferred to MS Outlook for Windows, a window with the message stating the completion of the conversion process prompts up on the screen
- The Outlook Express DBX file contents are now transferred to Microsoft Outlook PST file
On completion of the process, you can access your Outlook Express data in the Windows Outlook installed on your system.
Condition 2: Outlook Express & Outlook installed on two different Windows machine
This process can be classified into two phases:
- Import Outlook Express DBX file into Windows Live Mail
- Export from Windows Live Mail to Microsoft Outlook PST
Follow the steps below:
Note:
This process has the necessity of two programs that are Windows Live Mail and Office Outlook installed on your Windows system. Also, this method works if the DBX files contain a matching Folders.dbx file.
- Install Windows Live Mail (WLM) on your system if you do not have the program installed on your system. To do so, you will have to download Windows Essentials.
- Open WLM, click on the File tab present in the menu
Alternatively, you can press the Alt and F keys simultaneously to open the File menu
- Click on the Import Messages tab present in the File menu
- With this, Windows Live Mail Import screen comes up where you need to select a program and then browse.
- Select Microsoft Outlook Express and click on the Next tab
- Then, browse the folder that contains the DBX file and click on the Next tab
- Now, the DBX file of Outlook Express will be imported into Windows Live Mail
Once the DBX file is imported in WLM, it can be easily converted to Outlook PST format with the use of ‘Export Messages’ option present in Windows Live Mail.
- Again, select the File in WLM, go to Export email tab and click on Email messages tab
- With this, a dialogue box will appear wherein you will have to select the format you want to export the emails to, such as Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft Windows Live Mail, and then click on the Next tab
- Next, ‘Export Messages’ dialogue box is displayed, wherein you have to select the mail folders you want to export from Windows Live Mail. Two options are available here:
- All Folder – If this option is checked, all the folders that are present will be selected automatically
- Selected Folder – If this option is checked, a list of folders will appear such as Inbox, Outbox, Drafts, etc. for you to select one or more folders
Check any one of the two options and click on the OK tab:
- This is the last step to export all or selected folders from Windows Live Mail to Outlook PST. The conversion process will begin automatically after clicking OK. Finally, a message conveying that the emails have been successfully exported will pop up.
Manual DBX Conversion Process – Pros & Cons
Now that you have converted your DBX file into PST format manually let’s look at its pros and cons:
Pros
Cons
- Time-consuming
- Risk of email data loss
- The process requires technical expertise
- Does not guarantee accurate conversion
- Email headers may get lost thus harming the integrity of emails
- Photos, graphics, and other images in emails might break
The Final Word
Undoubtedly, the manual process works if the steps are carried out in the right order. However, it has several disadvantages as discussed above. Therefore, to avoid the glitches associated with manual DBX to Outlook PST some automatic conversion tools can be brought in use. Stellar Converter for DBX is a third-party software that excels in converting the Outlook Express DBX files into Outlook PST format. It is an automated tool that does not require any technical know-how of the conversion process. You simply need to run it by following the instructions in its enhanced and easy–to–use GUI.
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