Step by step instructions for backup and restoration of Windows Live Mail (WLM):
1. First confirm where your mail store is located by going within WLM to File|Options|Mail| and
then the Advanced tab|Maintenance|Store Folder.
2. Navigate to that Windows Live Mail folder, such as:.
C:\Users\User_name\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail.
3. Select the Windows Live Mail folder
4. Copy the selected Windows Live Mail folder by either right‐clicking to choose Copy, or by using
the CTRL‐C keyboard shortcut.
5. Go to your backup location and Paste the Windows Live Mail folder you just copied.
Restoring the Messages and Accounts merely uses this same method of changing the Store folder.
When you first reinstall Windows Live Mail, WLM will use that
C:\Users\User_name\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail site.
1. First reinstall Windows Live Mail
2. Copy and Paste your previously backed up folder into the restored My Documents folder.
3. Now again go to the Primary WLM drop‐down menu | Options | Mail | Advanced tab |
Maintenance button | Store folder button, then click Change and navigate to the My
Documents Windows Live Mail folder you just created (by pasting).
4. When you click OK, a dialog box will open telling you there is a mail store found and asking if
you want to start using that store. Say “Yes”, and WLM mail will start using all those messages
and accounts THE NEXT TIME YOU OPEN Windows Live Mail. Yes, you must first close WLM.
So to back up your contacts with categories:
1. Navigate to C:\Users\Jim\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live\Contacts\default\15.5
2. Select either the folder labeled “Default”, or the one labeled “15.5”.
3. Copy the selected folder.
4. Now Paste that folder into your backup location.
Restoring the contacts and categories is a bit more complicated:
First you must configure the computer to see the file you need for restoration.
1. Open a Windows Explorer window (for instance, open My Documents).
2. Click on Organize and choose Folders and Search Options.
3. Click on the View tab of the next window which opens.
4. Look down the Advanced list for “Show Hidden Files, folders, and drives”, and place the dot.
5. Now, in the same list, remove the check from “Hide protected operating system files”
6. When you do so, Windows will warn against this. Click Yes.
Now you are ready to restore the contacts.edb file.
1. Navigate to your backed up 15.4 folder and open it.
2. You will now see the DBStore folder. Open the folder.
3. Find the file labeled contacts.edb , select and copy it.
4. Similarly, navigate to
C:\Users\Jim\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live\Contacts\default\15.
5, right‐click and
choose Paste.
5. It will ask if you want to replace it. Again the answer is Yes.
Original document:
http://duprecomputers.com/learning/pdf/instructions/WLM_backup.pdf
