Email can be a very tricky subject. When we talk about email we are referring to something very simple such as a text which appears on our screen, with some images and maybe attachments.
It all seems straight forward and from behind the scenes it really is.
But where it gets complicated is the type of email you are using, the different programs involved in accessing it and how each email host works your email depending on if it is a free account, paid or comes with your internet connection.
What is Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook is Microsoft’s flagship email client and probably still the most used email application in the world. Out of all the Windows email programs, I would say over half the computer I see with email use Microsoft eMail.
Microsoft Outlook is very easy to use and setup, is clean and updated every year or so and works with just about every system available for people wanting to use email.
What is a PST file
A PST (Post Storage Table) file is the format in which Microsoft Outlook saves your data, emails, contacts and the way is basically works.
It might appear that your Outlook email client is made up of many emails and different files, and it is. But the way Outlook saves all that is in one file called a PST file which can easily be moved between computers and accounts.
Moving the PST file is one thing and can be done but simply sending it across the network and saving it to a thumb or external hard drive, but importing it back into another computer or instance of Outlook can be and entirely different thing.
Importing your PST file
You can save your PST file anywhere on your hard drive or Windows computer. By default it is ctreated in your C:\Users\ Username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook directory or something to that effect.
I personally like to store them in my Documents in a file called Outlook. It just makes it a lot easier to find and backup with the rest of my documents when I need to.
Once you have stored your PST file onto your hard drive somewhere, the easiest way is to go into your Outlook App, click on File, then Open and Import, select the location where you stored your PST file and hit enter.
This will import all your emails and contacts beck into your new computer or instance of Outlook. You will most likely still need to add your email settings such as username, email address, password, mail server settings and ports which will be unique to your email account and mail server settings.
