Backup Your Outlook Express
A Backup Article Contributed by Melissa Larose
Backup Your Outlook Express
Did you know that Outlook Express can be used to backup its own files and folders? There is no other software to purchase in order to achieve the backup, really. The freebie can be found in XP software and is called the file and settings transfer wizard. The link into this great tool is found by going to All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>File and Setting Transfer Wizard. Follow along with the graphical interface to backup your Outlook Express files and folders.
Need to restore those files and folders. Use the same tool and respond to the interface questions in order to restore. When you restore the backup will override any existing Outlook Express settings.
Why Backup Outlook Express?
Data is lost every day in numerous ways. A simple power outage can damage the files on your computer or corrupt them to the point they can't be restored. It is always a wise move to backup your data to a separate location and not within the computer you are backing up.
Email programs are no exception to this primary rule of backup. If you store critical information in an email program such as Outlook Express, you will want to protect it by creating a backup plan and following it in a routine manner. Emails, address books, and identities are critical to running a business and should be treated as critical data.
Outlook Express Backup Could Have Limitations
Just because you have backup of your emails and address book does not mean you have conquered the crash of your computer or the loss of data. Your backup is only as good as the last time you performed the backup. If you perform a backup once a month and the files are lost three weeks out from that loss, or worse the day before the next backup, you are still missing the data in between. When you know you have just entered or completed a stack of critical data, backup before you lose it.
Backup and save have similar connotations. Saving a file as you are working on it and making a habit of constantly saving as you work is necessary to protect your work. Without saving there would be no backup worth making.
Alternative to Xp's Outlook Express Backup
A freebie is always nice to come across especially in an operating system like XP. Since XP appears to override settings when it restores the backup it makes, there are other alternatives to Outlook Express backup that you may want to consider.
Outlook Express backup comes in a variety of software packages. Make a quick search of the Internet and you will come across many of these products. Yes you have to pay for these products but they also offer an advantage. Most of them will append and not override your Outlook Express backup files. You can safely backup and recover files and folders without being concerned with losing data. And that is the whole point of backup, not losing your data.
