OL97: Creating and Viewing Archive Items From a Custom Location

• Microsoft Outlook 97

SUMMARY

This article describes how you can customize Microsoft Outlook 97 to archive your items in a specific location and file on your hard drive. It also describes how you can later add the archive file to your profile so that you can retrieve the archived items.

MORE INFORMATION

By default the Outlook AutoArchive features is set to run every 14 days. Additionally, each folder contains an archive property, which determines when items in that folder are archived. Several Outlook folders are installed with AutoArchive turned on. These folders and their default aging periods are Calendar (6 months), Tasks (6 months), Journal (6 months), Sent Items (2 months), and Deleted Items (2 months). Inbox, Notes, and Contacts do not have AutoArchive activated automatically.

When you archive folders, you are moving the items from their existing folder into an archive type of Personal Folders or PST file. By default, Outlook saves archived items in the following location:

   c:\My Documents\Archive.pst

You can change the file name (Archive.pst) and location (C:\My Documents\) so that your Outlook items are archived in another location of your choosing.

Setting Outlook to Use A Custom Archive Location

Follow these steps to change the location and file name of your archived items:

1. On the Tools Menu, click Options and click the AutoArchive tab.

2. In the "Default archive file" box, type the path and file name for location you want items archived. Be sure to use the .pst extension on the file name.

3. Note the "AutoArchive every X days at startup" check box. This determines how often AutoArchive occurs.

4. Click OK to close the Options box.

Since the archive file is a PST file, you can view archived items either by importing them, using the "Export and Import Wizard", or by adding the archive Personal Folders file as a service in your profile.

If you choose to import the items, they move back to their original location. For more information on importing a PST file, please see the topic "Importing Personal Folder Data" in the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   Article ID: Q168644
   Title     : OL97: How to Back Up Outlook's Data

Adding an Archive File to Your Profile

To add an archive file to your profile so you can view the archived items, follow these steps:

NOTE: Keeping archived items in your profile defeats the purpose of using the archiving feature. You should use these steps to view or copy archived items and then remove the archive file from your profile.

1. On the Tools menu, click Services and on the Services tab, click Add.

2. In the Available information services list, click to select Personal Folders.

3. In "Create/Open Personal Folders File", navigate to and click to select the custom archive PST file you created in the "Setting Outlook to Use A Custom Archive Location" section of this article and then click Open.

4. In the Name box, type Archive and then click OK. This will add Archive to your list of profile services.

5. Click OK to close the Services box.

6. On the Outlook Standard Toolbar, click Folder List to turn on the folder list view. In your folder list, you should see an Archive folder with your archived items in their appropriate subfolder.

REFERENCES

For more information about retrieving archived items, search the Help Index for "retrieve archived items," or ask the Microsoft Office 97 Office Assistant.

For more information about controlling the archive location, search the Help Index for "Archive or delete old items" and then click the link for "Turn on AutoArchive," or ask the Microsoft Office 97 Office Assistant.

Keywords          : GnlFold
Version           : WINDOWS:97
Platform          : WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbhowto