• Outlook - Archiving E-Mail

     
    Archiving email is a method to save older emails while reducing the amount of space used to store email. Archived email is stored in the form of a archive.pst file. If you archive, it will be important to remember where you store your archive.pst file before you image your computer, so this file can be backed up along with your other documents. When you archive your email into a archive.pst file, all the email you choose to archive is removed from your mailbox and moved into the archive file and is no longer available in you main mailbox. You can open your archive file and find all the email you selected to move into the archived file. The directions below will show you how to setup your email to Auto Archive and how to open your archive file to locate your email.
    • Open your Outlook E-Mail from the desktop client
                                       Icon  

       
    • To begin archiving your email, click the "File" tab in the upper left hand corner
         File Tab   
    • Make sure the Info option is highlighted
          Info Option  
    • Click on Options
    • Click Advanced
    • Click the AutoArchive Settings button
         Advanced
      		 
    • In this window you will set how often you want to run the archive. The default is set to run every 14 days. You might want to change that to 60 or 90 days.
    • You will also be able to select or deselect the following items:
      • Prompt before Auto Archive Runs
      • Delete expired items (e-mail folders only)
      • Archive or delete old items
      • Show archive folder in folder list
      • Set how many months out to remove old items
      • You can change the default location that it will save your backup.pst file (If you change your default save location to an external drive that drive will have to be connected to your computer to be able to access the Archive File)
      • Permanently delete old items
    • Once you have made your selections you can click the button to Apply these settings to all folders now
    • Click OK
    • If you did not select to have the archive show in the folder list you can open the file by following these directions:
      • In Outlook click the File tab
      • Select Open & Export
            Open Data File  
      • Select Open Outlook Data File
      • If you changed the default save location browse to the location that you set and double click on your archive.pst file
            Archive  
    • Look at the bottom of the Navigation Pane for Archives. You will need to click the arrowhead pointer to expand the file.



    		  Navigation Pane Archives  
     
    • After you expand the file it will look something like this:
       (You may see other folders in the list that you will need to expand by clicking the arrowhead pointer to the left of the folder)
          Expand Folders  
    • You can choose to leave the Archive folder open in your e-mail but it will only work on the computer that you saved the Archive file on. If you put the file on an external drive you would need to have that external drive connected to the computer that you wanted to view the file on.
    • You can close the Archive file by Right clicking over Archives and selecting Close "Archives"
          Close File