How to open .dbx mail as .eml files on Vista/Conversion?

[Chad Harris]

I'm backing up manually after backing up several times via Acronis and
Vista's backup to my external HD and to DVD.

I have a failing HD, confirmed with a Dell ctrl+alt+d Code 4 at firmware
screen, and it's HD failure message at boot, and Event Biewer, and I was
able to recover both Vista boots using the bootrec.exe 3 commands from the
cmd prompt. I'm manually backing things up now on my borrowed time, with
two new HDs and a Raid Controller ready to roll. Vista works great, but LOL
for how long?

I have saved my XP OE mail onto my external HD (that is important to me) but
it won't open because it's .dbx.

I had a similar problem to this a few months ago, when Live Mail
reconfigured my .emls on Vista to .dbx somehow and Steve Cochran showed me
how to get out of that jam so they all opened as .emls (i.e. fine in Vista
again). But I don't know how similar this problem is.

I've saved my OE mail onto my external HD fine, but it's all .dbx having
coming from OE and it won't open on Vista. I right clicked the folder and
told it to "Open With" Win Mail but that doesn't help. All that does is
when I left click each message, they simply open up my Win Mail inbox with
my Win Mail messages on Vista. That of course doesn't relate to my .dbxs
all saved from XP.

There has to be a way to open these .dbxs and maybe it's similar to the way
Steve helped with before.

Any ideas out of this jam for these emails are much appreciated.

TIA,

CH

 

[mac]

I'm backing up manually after backing up several times via Acronis and
Vista's backup to my external HD and to DVD.

I have a failing HD, confirmed with a Dell ctrl+alt+d Code 4 at firmware
screen, and it's HD failure message at boot, and Event Biewer, and I was
able to recover both Vista boots using the bootrec.exe 3 commands from the
cmd prompt. I'm manually backing things up now on my borrowed time, with
two new HDs and a Raid Controller ready to roll. Vista works great, but
LOL for how long?

I have saved my XP OE mail onto my external HD (that is important to me)
but it won't open because it's .dbx.

I had a similar problem to this a few months ago, when Live Mail
reconfigured my .emls on Vista to .dbx somehow and Steve Cochran showed me
how to get out of that jam so they all opened as .emls (i.e. fine in Vista
again). But I don't know how similar this problem is.

I've saved my OE mail onto my external HD fine, but it's all .dbx having
coming from OE and it won't open on Vista. I right clicked the folder and
told it to "Open With" Win Mail but that doesn't help. All that does is
when I left click each message, they simply open up my Win Mail inbox with
my Win Mail messages on Vista. That of course doesn't relate to my .dbxs
all saved from XP.

There has to be a way to open these .dbxs and maybe it's similar to the
way Steve helped with before.

Any ideas out of this jam for these emails are much appreciated.

TIA,

CH

See the section titled 'Importing from Outlook Express'.
http://www.oehelp.com/backup.aspx

 

[James Matthews]

drag and drop

 

[Chad Harris]

Steve--

Thanks much for your response. It seems you've updated and added some
applications on your site which is one of the first ones I go to when I need
OE/Win Mail help or am trying to help someone else with a problem.

The problem with following the clear directions in your backup first section
with the regedits is that I don't think I can find the .wab from the Vista
boot. You can bet I'm going to try searching every way possible with Vista
and Google desktop.

***What file spells the "OE store? that I should have moved originally
according to many people?" Also I don't know why trying to untick the read
only attribute is supposed to help but doesn't help me. I don't know why I
can't run the Import Wizard from Vista--but possibly because XP is shot from
Vista now unless I do an XP repair install which destroys the Vista MBR and
BCD and then I have to make the choice of either fixing one or the other.
When the HD was working without the "failing" messages, I could have done a
repair install of the XP boot without impacting Vista. Now for whichever
reasons, that's not the case.

For some reason my search isn't working *to find things on my XP boot as
well as it usually does, possibly because of the corrupt HD. I have
recovered my Vista boots, but if I want to go to my XP boot where OE is
again, I have to do a repair install and I lose the ability to go to Vista
because I think the Repair Install of XP is overwriting the MBR and BCD of
my two Vista boots (it was a working triple boot). I can't tell you the
reason for this, but I also can't tell you why the bootrec.exe commands now
have my HD working and the two Vista boots for two weeks after my HD failed
and wouldn't let me boot to anywhere until I ran the bootrec.exe commands.
Startup Repair failed every time I ran it, telling me correctly the HD is in
bad shape.

Whatever the reason the HD is working now is on a microscopic level, and
could be because of a whole array of reasons--recovered magnitism
temporarily, and a number of others.

If you google for exporting .dbx OE mail from XP to Vista, you get the same
consistent caveat on a million hits which seems to have two requirements
carved in stone:

1) Copying the master file "folders .dbx" or sometimes it's said to copy the
store folder--I don't think I did that.
2) Clear the Read only attribute. But there is more than one user profile
in the new and appropriately satarized by the Apple commercials with the Jon
Stewart commedian UAC and I have cleared the read-only attribute for every
profile but it doesn't help--probably because I didn't fulfill moving the
mail store.
Also see:

Importing Outlook Express DBX files into Windows Vista
http://blogs.technet.com/james/arch...ook-express-dbx-files-into-windows-vista.aspx

How to repair your outlook express mailbox files
http://www.nu2.nu/howto/outlookexpress/

You can throw up Win Mail in Vista and get a wizard going by clicking on
File>Import>OE from XP (the folder that all the .dbxs 1+GB sit in, and up
pops the message):

"No messages can be found in this folder or another application is running
that has the required files open (not at all in fact true since I'm doing
this on a Vista boot and not on an XP boot where OE is)--Please try
selecting another folder or closing any open folders." That's a worthless
Redmond message that does not apply here.

but File>Import>OE from XP does not allow me as I said.

From Jim Pickering a long time OE MVP and helper:

"If you copied the DBX files to your hard drive, then cleared the Read-Only
attribute from*ALL* of the DBX files, and included the master file,
"folders.dbx" the import will work using the RTM version."

From Jim Pickering, MVP/Windows Mail applications


The problem is compounded because my HD is failing. The situation is that I
can run my two Vista boots fine (recovered by the 3 bootrec.exe command
switches using the command prompt from the Recovery link on the DVD) but if
I want to go back to XP I have to do a repair install and it is overwriting
my Vista MBRs and destroying the Vista BCDs every time I do it, and I am not
seeing the 3 posssible boots on the screen--it's either fix XP and boot to
it and the vista boots are destroyed (but can be recovered as long as the HD
holds up--14 days now or fix the Vista boots with the bootrec.exe 3 switches
and lose XP) and I don't want to push my luck.

I've backed up manually, by Acronis, and via Vista to the external HD and
DVD successfully everything but I wanted the added "security" of doing this
manually.

The only thing I can't get to open up are these .dbxs on the external HD.
It is true that they may be Okay in the many backups I've done, but the
halls of google are full of failed Acronis and Vista backup recovery
chronicles so I just don't know.

Plus there is the feeling that this is definitely fixable *if I knew what I
was doing to fix it.

Thanks very much for your response. I'm also trying to locate the advise
you gave me a few months ago on the thread where an early version of Live
Mail took over my Win Mail and OE file associations both without telling me.
Some regedits you gave me fixed that--I know they aren't the same situation
but I'd like to find the message anyway and can't.

Sorry for the long response.

CH

 

[Chad Harris]

LOL--

James. I already dragged and dropped all of them onto my external USB 2
Hard Drive. They dragged as .dbx and they now sit their as .dbx. They
will not open. If I tell them to "open with" Winmail, my Vista Winmail
Inbox opens.

If you google for exporting .dbx OE mail from XP to Vista, you get the same
consistent caveat on a million hits which seems to have two requirements
carved in stone:

1) Copying the master file "folders .dbx" or sometimes it's said to copy the
store folder--I don't think I did that.
2) Clear the Read only attribute. But there is more than one user profile
in the new and appropriately satarized by the Apple commercials with the Jon
Stewart commedian UAC and I have cleared the read-only attribute for every
profile but it doesn't help--probably because I didn't fulfill moving the
mail store.
Also see:

Importing Outlook Express DBX files into Windows Vista
http://blogs.technet.com/james/arch...ook-express-dbx-files-into-windows-vista.aspx

How to repair your outlook express mailbox files
http://www.nu2.nu/howto/outlookexpress/

You can throw up Win Mail in Vista and get a wizard going by clicking on
File>Import>OE from XP (the folder that all the .dbxs 1+GB sit in, and up
pops the message):

"No messages can be found in this folder or another application is running
that has the required files open (not at all in fact true since I'm doing
this on a Vista boot and not on an XP boot where OE is)--Please try
selecting another folder or closing any open folders." That's a worthless
Redmond message that does not apply here.

but File>Import>OE from XP does not allow me as I said.

From Jim Pickering a long time OE MVP and helper:

"If you copied the DBX files to your hard drive, then cleared the Read-Only
attribute from*ALL* of the DBX files, and included the master file,
"folders.dbx" the import will work using the RTM version."

From Jim Pickering, MVP/Windows Mail applications


The problem is compounded because my HD is failing. The situation is that I
can run my two Vista boots fine (recovered by the 3 bootrec.exe command
switches using the command prompt from the Recovery link on the DVD) but if
I want to go back to XP I have to do a repair install and it is overwriting
my Vista MBRs and destroying the Vista BCDs every time I do it, and I am not
seeing the 3 posssible boots on the screen--it's either fix XP and boot to
it and the vista boots are destroyed (but can be recovered as long as the HD
holds up--14 days now or fix the Vista boots with the bootrec.exe 3 switches
and lose XP) and I don't want to push my luck.

I've backed up manually, by Acronis, and via Vista to the external HD and
DVD successfully everything but I wanted the added "security" of doing this
manually.

The only thing I can't get to open up are these .dbxs on the external HD.
It is true that they may be Okay in the many backups I've done, but the
halls of google are full of failed Acronis and Vista backup recovery
chronicles so I just don't know.

Plus there is the feeling that this is definitely fixable *if I knew what I
was doing to fix it.

I also know that even when I do a repair install (that I've never seen fail
with a working HD), it does not setup XP with all its files intact possibly
due to some HD blocks destroyed. I don't want to push my luck although I'm
tempted to go back and try to recopy all those .dbxs in some better way.

I'm trying to find--I know I saved it somewhere some regedits that Steve
Cochran gave me on this group that allowed me to open WinMail files to see
if they will help me here.

I have to admit it's not the same issue. Before my problem was that early
Live Mail (maybe a Beta --I can't remember)took over file associations for
the WinMail .eml files and I think the .dbx files on my XP boot.

Thanks lol for the "drag and drop advise". I do believe I've heard the
exotic term somewhere before and even have attempted the manuever a few
million times.

Sorry for the long response.

CH

 

[Chad Harris]

From Steve:

There has to be a way to get these .dbxs open. I still get an "open with
dialogue". The directions below must need to be done from OE on XP. But on
XP, the OE messages open. It's when copied to the external HD that the
problem arises.

From

http://www.oehelp.com/backup.aspx

How do I back up my files and settings?
Outlook Express
To backup and restore OE5 and 6 messages, make a copy of all the files in
the folder that contains the dbx files. Do a search for *.wab and back that
up as well (address book). Also export these 4 registry keys:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Identities\{GUID}\Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express
Where GUID represents your Identity number.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Account Manager

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\WAB\WAB4\Wab File Name


To restore the messages on a reformatted machine, or to move them to a new
machine, copy all the backed-up files to the exact directory where they were
located in their previous life. Then, before opening OE, import the 4 keys
into the registry. If OE has already been run on the computer to which you
are restoring, then delete those 4 keys from the registry (back it up first)
before importing the 4 saved ones.

This has to be meant to be done on ***OE on XP apparently. I don't have
access to XP unless I destry the Vista MBR and BCD--and I don't really want
to push my luck there but I just might. That would mean repair installing
XP and destroying the Vista boots only to revive them later if I can with
the bcedit.exe switches which has worked twice.

On Vista, the only reg key present in the directions is

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\WAB\WAB4\Wab File Name

I exported it, and I copied every .wab file that turned up in a Search to
the folder with the .dbxs in it on the external HD. It doesn't change
anything and my understanding is that this has to be done from OE on XP or
another "proper" way to export OE to Vista has to be done from OE.

Thanks,

CH

Steve--

Thanks much for your response. It seems you've updated and added some
applications on your site which is one of the first ones I go to when I
need OE/Win Mail help or am trying to help someone else with a problem.

The problem with following the clear directions in your backup first
section with the regedits is that I don't think I can find the .wab from
the Vista boot. You can bet I'm going to try searching every way possible
with Vista and Google desktop.

***What file spells the "OE store? that I should have moved originally
according to many people?" Also I don't know why trying to untick the
read only attribute is supposed to help but doesn't help me. I don't know
why I can't run the Import Wizard from Vista--but possibly because XP is
shot from Vista now unless I do an XP repair install which destroys the
Vista MBR and BCD and then I have to make the choice of either fixing one
or the other. When the HD was working without the "failing" messages, I
could have done a repair install of the XP boot without impacting Vista.
Now for whichever reasons, that's not the case.

For some reason my search isn't working *to find things on my XP boot as
well as it usually does, possibly because of the corrupt HD. I have
recovered my Vista boots, but if I want to go to my XP boot where OE is
again, I have to do a repair install and I lose the ability to go to Vista
because I think the Repair Install of XP is overwriting the MBR and BCD of
my two Vista boots (it was a working triple boot). I can't tell you the
reason for this, but I also can't tell you why the bootrec.exe commands
now have my HD working and the two Vista boots for two weeks after my HD
failed and wouldn't let me boot to anywhere until I ran the bootrec.exe
commands. Startup Repair failed every time I ran it, telling me correctly
the HD is in bad shape.

Whatever the reason the HD is working now is on a microscopic level, and
could be because of a whole array of reasons--recovered magnitism
temporarily, and a number of others.

If you google for exporting .dbx OE mail from XP to Vista, you get the
same consistent caveat on a million hits which seems to have two
requirements carved in stone:

1) Copying the master file "folders .dbx" or sometimes it's said to copy
the store folder--I don't think I did that.
2) Clear the Read only attribute. But there is more than one user profile
in the new and appropriately satarized by the Apple commercials with the
Jon Stewart commedian UAC and I have cleared the read-only attribute for
every profile but it doesn't help--probably because I didn't fulfill
moving the mail store.
Also see:

Importing Outlook Express DBX files into Windows Vista
http://blogs.technet.com/james/arch...ook-express-dbx-files-into-windows-vista.aspx

How to repair your outlook express mailbox files
http://www.nu2.nu/howto/outlookexpress/

You can throw up Win Mail in Vista and get a wizard going by clicking on
File>Import>OE from XP (the folder that all the .dbxs 1+GB sit in, and up
pops the message):

"No messages can be found in this folder or another application is running
that has the required files open (not at all in fact true since I'm doing
this on a Vista boot and not on an XP boot where OE is)--Please try
selecting another folder or closing any open folders." That's a worthless
Redmond message that does not apply here.

but File>Import>OE from XP does not allow me as I said.

From Jim Pickering a long time OE MVP and helper:

"If you copied the DBX files to your hard drive, then cleared the
Read-Only attribute from*ALL* of the DBX files, and included the master
file, "folders.dbx" the import will work using the RTM version."

From Jim Pickering, MVP/Windows Mail applications


The problem is compounded because my HD is failing. The situation is that
I can run my two Vista boots fine (recovered by the 3 bootrec.exe command
switches using the command prompt from the Recovery link on the DVD) but
if I want to go back to XP I have to do a repair install and it is
overwriting my Vista MBRs and destroying the Vista BCDs every time I do
it, and I am not seeing the 3 posssible boots on the screen--it's either
fix XP and boot to it and the vista boots are destroyed (but can be
recovered as long as the HD holds up--14 days now or fix the Vista boots
with the bootrec.exe 3 switches and lose XP) and I don't want to push my
luck.

I've backed up manually, by Acronis, and via Vista to the external HD and
DVD successfully everything but I wanted the added "security" of doing
this manually.

The only thing I can't get to open up are these .dbxs on the external HD.
It is true that they may be Okay in the many backups I've done, but the
halls of google are full of failed Acronis and Vista backup recovery
chronicles so I just don't know.

Plus there is the feeling that this is definitely fixable *if I knew what
I was doing to fix it.

Thanks very much for your response. I'm also trying to locate the advise
you gave me a few months ago on the thread where an early version of Live
Mail took over my Win Mail and OE file associations both without telling
me. Some regedits you gave me fixed that--I know they aren't the same
situation but I'd like to find the message anyway and can't.

Sorry for the long response.

CH

 

[Frank Saunders MS-MVP IE,OE/WM]

I'm backing up manually after backing up several times via Acronis and
Vista's backup to my external HD and to DVD.

I have a failing HD, confirmed with a Dell ctrl+alt+d Code 4 at firmware
screen, and it's HD failure message at boot, and Event Biewer, and I was
able to recover both Vista boots using the bootrec.exe 3 commands from the
cmd prompt. I'm manually backing things up now on my borrowed time, with
two new HDs and a Raid Controller ready to roll. Vista works great, but
LOL for how long?

I have saved my XP OE mail onto my external HD (that is important to me)
but it won't open because it's .dbx.

I had a similar problem to this a few months ago, when Live Mail
reconfigured my .emls on Vista to .dbx somehow and Steve Cochran showed me
how to get out of that jam so they all opened as .emls (i.e. fine in Vista
again). But I don't know how similar this problem is.

I've saved my OE mail onto my external HD fine, but it's all .dbx having
coming from OE and it won't open on Vista. I right clicked the folder and
told it to "Open With" Win Mail but that doesn't help. All that does is
when I left click each message, they simply open up my Win Mail inbox with
my Win Mail messages on Vista. That of course doesn't relate to my .dbxs
all saved from XP.

There has to be a way to open these .dbxs and maybe it's similar to the
way Steve helped with before.

Create a new folder in your Documents folder.
Copy all of the DBX files to that new folder, including Folders.dbx.
Make sure that none of the DBX files are Read Only.
Use WinMail's File | Import | Messages.

Note the warnings about the path here:
http://www.oehelp.com/backup.aspx#oe2wm

 

[Sue333]

I'm backing up manually after backing up several times via Acronis andVista'sbackup to my external HD and to DVD.

I have a failing HD, confirmed with a Dell ctrl+alt+d Code 4 at firmware
screen, and it's HD failure message at boot, and Event Biewer, and I was
able to recover bothVistaboots using the bootrec.exe 3 commands from the
cmd prompt. I'm manually backing things up now on my borrowed time, with
two new HDs and a Raid Controller ready to roll. Vistaworks great, but LOL
for how long?

I have saved my XP OEmailonto my external HD (that is important to me) but
it won't open because it's .dbx.

I had a similar problem to this a few months ago, when LiveMail
reconfigured my .emls onVistato .dbx somehow and Steve Cochran showed me
how to get out of that jam so they all opened as .emls (i.e. fine inVista
again). But I don't know how similar this problem is.

I've saved my OEmailonto my external HD fine, but it's all .dbx having
coming from OE and it won't open onVista. I right clicked the folder and
told it to "Open With" WinMailbut that doesn't help. All that does is
when I left click each message, they simply open up my WinMailinbox with
my WinMailmessages onVista. That of course doesn't relate to my .dbxs
all saved from XP.

There has to be a way to open these .dbxs and maybe it's similar to the way
Steve helped with before.

Any ideas out of this jam for these emails are much appreciated.

TIA,

CH

I don't know if this will help or if you have already solved your
problem but I had the same problem of saving my .dbx files and not
knowing what to do with them because I was forced to go to Vista on my
new computer. I took the easy for me method and used an old program I
had named Dbxtract (http://www.oehelp.com/DBXtract/Default.aspx) It
now costs $7 but easily recognizes the dbx files and puts them in any
folder you choose. It will do every folder that was saved and save it
with the headings. I really panicked and this old program did work.
It has been a little bit of a challenged that was unexpected and not
needed at this time of the year to redo my computer. I was pleasantly
surprised that some of my old programs went well into Vista. Good
luck and I feel your frustration.

 

[Chad Harris]

Thanks for the suggestions Sue and Frank and the rest. I'll give them a
try.

CH