How to move messages from Thunderbird to Outlook

[Marcya]

Hi,, i need some urgent help from you all guys and hope you can help me out for sure.. Actually, previously i was using Thunderbird as my default mail client but now i switched to Outlook Express as i liked its interface. Now what i need is to transfer or export all my messages and contacts from Thunderbird to Outlook but i dint got any way to do the same on this forum. Also i don't have any idea to do the same because as per my knowledge Thunderbird stores messages in MBOX format while Outlook Express in DBX format. Could you guys please make know how can i move messages from Thunderbird to Outlook Express ? Thanks in advance.

[Sam.D]

Well, thats correct that moving messages from Outlook, or Windows Mail to Thunderbird is easy but doing opposite is really very complicated due to the change in file formats. Indeed, Thunderbird does not have tools to export its messages in a format compatible with Outlook, Outlook Express or Windows Mail.

You will therefore have to initially extract messages from the base of Thunderbird MBOX format to convert the EML format as Outlook Express recognizes the file format EML messages. You can use an application called as IMAPSize to easily import these messages into Outlook Express or Windows Mail.

[Glenny]

The free IMAPSize will allow you to extract messages from the base of Thunderbird MBOX format to save the EML format. Download and install ImapSize on your system and follow these steps:-

1. Start IMAPSize clicking its shortcut on the desktop. Click No to not create account.
2. Click on the Tools menu and then click mbox2eml.
3. Click the Select button mbox files to convert.
4. Pull down the Files of type list and select All files.
5. Then go to C: \ Documents & Settings \ [your username] [\ Application Data \ Thunderbird \ Profiles.
6. Open the folder with a name of the form xxxxxxxx.default.
7. Then go into the subfolder and finally Local Mail Folder.
8. All messages saved in Thunderbird are files without extension located in that folder. Select folder to export, INBOX (Incoming) for example. Click the Open button.
9. Add the same way other folders to export. Please INBOX.SDB open the folder that contains subfolders that you created in Thunderbird to sort your mail. Select the files without extension that correspond to folders in Thunderbird.
10. Click on the button ... then select a folder on your hard drive where to put all your mails. Feel free to create a temporary folder for the occasion, C: \ Transfer example. Click the Open button.
11. Finally, click on the Convert button to start the retrieval of messages in EML files.
12. Depending on the number of messages to retrieve, this can last long enough. A progress bar informs you of the progress of the extraction of each file.
13. Click the OK button and close finally IMAPSize.

Thats it..

[Eric B]

Now that your messages and your contacts in Outlook Express, you can easily retrieve them in Outlook. Here is the step by step process of doing the same:-

• Start Outlook and click the File menu and then click Import and Export.
• Select Import Internet Mail and Addresses and click the Next button.
• Select Outlook Express, check the boxes that Import Mail and Import Address Book are checked and click Next.
• Select the Do not import duplicates, and click the Finish button.
• The messages are then imported into Outlook in their original folders and your contacts. Finally, click on the OK button.

[Maq.H]

Once you are finished importing messages and contacts in Outlook, for more security and recover disk space, you can empty Thunderbird and temporary files that you used for the transfer. To do so launch Thunderbird and put yourself in the Incoming Mail folder and select all messages in it with the shortcut Ctrl + A. Press the Delete key, all messages are placed in the trash. Then click the right button mouse on the first folder where you have filed your email and select the Delete command.Confirm the operation by clicking OK.

Repeat for all other files. At the end, you have no record they are in the trash. Empty it by clicking with the right mouse button and select the Empty Trash command now. Click the Incoming Mail folder with the right mouse button and choose the command Compact. Deleted messages are then erased much of your hard drive. In Windows Explorer, then go to the temporary folder where you exported all the messages: C: \ transfer in our example. You can delete this folder and all it contains. Remember to empty the trash afterwards.

Finally, if you've retrieved your messages in Outlook after going through Outlook Express / Windows Mail, you must empty it. Delete all messages, folders and contacts.