Transferring windows mail file to laptop

[Bruce]

I have just got a Vista Home Premium DT and a Vista Home Premium laptop. I
imported my old OE files to both from my old XP. The file setup in the two
machines is rather different. I should like, before going away, to transfer
the mail files from DT to laptop (and back again on my return). Is it safe to
over-write the files in the laptop windows mail folder with that in the DT
(and back again on my return)?

 

[Guest]

I have just got a Vista Home Premium DT and a Vista Home Premium laptop. I
imported my old OE files to both from my old XP. The file setup in the two
machines is rather different. I should like, before going away, to
transfer
the mail files from DT to laptop (and back again on my return). Is it safe
to
over-write the files in the laptop windows mail folder with that in the DT
(and back again on my return)?

Just copying all the files is likely to lose any messages stored only on the
machine you are copying to. It's a better idea to put them in a separate
directory, then tell Windows Mail on the machine you are moving them to
that it should import them. This is likely to give an extra copy of each
message already on both machines, though.

 

[Dave]

I wouldn't advise it. As you say, Vista uses a different file setup. The
messages are stored as individual .eml files, and there is an index, called
the message store, that keeps track of where the messages are located,
deleted, etc.
Copying files would disrupt the association.
You could import messages from one computer to the other, but you could end
up with duplicates...

The way that most users "sync" 2 computers is to set them both to leave
email on the server for a few days, until both get a chance to download
them. This doesn't sync sent messages, tho.