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Outlook - Export or Transfer Email Messages

If you're leaving the university and want to save your CU Boulder email messages, contacts or calendar items for future reference, this page outlines the most popular methods for backing up, copying or archiving that information.

Important

  • OIT cannot provide direct assistance with transferring your CU Boulder email data.
  • Email migration is voluntary, and OIT, CU Boulder and Microsoft are not responsible for any data loss or corruption that may occur during the process.

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Before You Begin

To determine the most appropriate method for preserving your CU Boulder email data, ask yourself two questions:

What do I need to save?

How often will I reference it?

Based on your answers, you can better weigh the benefits of each export or transfer method.

  • Export your email data into a PST or OLM file – Use the Microsoft Outlook desktop app to export your CU Boulder emails, contacts and calendar items into a single portable file. In the future, that data can be imported into an external email account or previewed using a third-party PST viewer tool.
     
  • Manually copy emails or folders to another email account – Add both your CU Boulder email account and an external email account to a multi-account email manager (e.g., Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, Apple Mail), then manually copy individual items or folders into the external account.
     
  • Forward individual items to your external email account – If you only need to save a small amount of data and you're not currently using a multi-account email manager, you can simply forward the emails you want to keep to your external email account.
 

How to Export Your Data

If your goal is to export a single file that contains all of your CU Boulder emails, contacts and calendar, then your best option is to use the Microsoft Outlook desktop app to export a PST (Windows) or OLM (Mac) file.

Note: The "new Outlook" version of the Outlook desktop app doesn't currently support data exports. Until that happens, users must use "classic Outlook" instead. For details, see Steps 1 and 2 below.

Step 1: Install the Microsoft Outlook Desktop App
Active Students, Faculty & Staff Members

Eligible CU Boulder students, faculty and staff can download the Microsoft Outlook desktop app at no cost. To do so, click the button below and log in with your IdentiKeyUsername@colorado.edu and IdentiKey password.

Download the Outlook Desktop App

Alumni, Retirees & Former Students, Faculty & Staff

After you leave CU Boulder, your university-provided Microsoft license will be either downgraded or removed depending on your former role, when you left and whether you graduated or retired from CU Boulder. Learn about OIT's account eligibility change processes.

If you can still log in, your next step is to determine whether you have access to the Outlook desktop app through an existing personal or business plan. If not, click the button below to explore Microsoft 365 subscription plans.

Note: Classic Outlook is included with Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscriptions, non-subscription versions of Office (e.g., Office Home & Business) or as a standalone purchase.

View Microsoft's Subscription Plans

Step 2: Prepare Your Account

Before you start the export process, complete these steps:

  1. Open the Outlook desktop app and turn off "new Outlook."
    • Windows: Click the New Outlook toggle in the top-right corner to turn off new Outlook and launch classic Outlook.
    • Mac: Click on the Help menu and select Revert to Legacy Outlook.
       
  2. Use Outlook's Mailbox Cleanup tool to identify ways to speed up the export process and reduce the size of the PST or OLM file (see Microsoft's "Manage my mailbox size in Outlook" tutorial).
     
  3. Adjust your Outlook data file settings to ensure your export includes emails older than one year:
    1. At the top of the ribbon in classic Outlook, choose File.
    2. On the Account Information page, confirm that the account you want to export is selected at the top of the page. If it isn't, click the drop-down to select the correct account.
    3. Select Account Settings > Account Name and Sync Settings.
    4. Under Download email for the past:, move the slider from 1 year (default) to All.
Step 3 (Windows Only): Export a PST File

Follow these steps to export a PST file using Outlook for Windows. To view screenshots and a how-to video, see Microsoft's "Export emails, contacts, and calendar items to Outlook using a .pst file" tutorial.

Instructions
  1. At the top of the ribbon in classic Outlook, choose File.
  2. In the left-hand menu, select Open & Export.
  3. Select Import/Export.
  4. In the Import and Export Wizard, choose Export to a file, then click Next.
  5. Select Outlook Data File (.pst), then click Next.
  6. Complete the following steps:
    1. Select the highest folder level to export data from.
      • To export every email, contact and calendar item in your account, select your account name at the top of the folder list (e.g., ralphie.buffalo@colorado.edu).
      • To export a single folder, select that folder.
    2. Tick the Include subfolders checkbox to ensure everything in your selected folder is exported.
    3. If you'd like to limit your export to specific items, click Filter and identify your export criteria (e.g., items with a specific word or phrase in the subject line, calendar items in a specific category).
    4. Click Next.
  7. Click Browse, then identify your preferred save location, enter a file name for your export file, and click OK.
  8. If this export will be used to update an existing export, use the radio buttons under Options to specify how to handle duplicate items.
  9. Click Finish.
  10. Your next steps will vary depending on whether you're creating a new export or updating an existing one:
    • If this is a new export, a Create Outlook Data File dialog box will appear. To password-protect your Outlook data file (optional), enter a password in the Password and Verify Password fields, then click OK. Next, an Outlook Data File Password dialog box will appear. Enter the password, then click OK.
    • If you're updating an existing file that's not password protected, the export will begin immediately.
    • If you're updating an existing file that's password protected, an Outlook Data File Password dialog box will appear. Enter your previously established password, then click OK.
  11. Depending on how much email data is being exported, the process could take several hours to complete. Please be patient.
Step 3 (Mac Only): Export an OLM File

Follow these steps to export an OLM file using Outlook for Mac. To view screenshots, see Microsoft's "Export items to an archive file in Outlook for Mac" tutorial.

Instructions
  1. On the Tools tab, click Export.
  2. In the Export to Archive File (.olm) box, check the items you want to export, then click Continue.
  3. In the Save archive file as box, select Where or choose the Downloads folder from under Favorites, then click Save.
  4. Once your data has been exported, you'll get a notification. Click Finish.
Step 4: How to Use Your Outlook Data File

Once you've exported your Outlook data file, you can either import the data into an external Microsoft account or save the file on a personal drive for now.

 

How to Copy Your Data

If you want to easily access your CU Boulder email data in the future, then your best option may be to copy it to an external email account.

The easiest way to move files and folders between email accounts is using a multi-account email manager—an email client that allows you to combine emails from different providers into a single app or interface. We've outlined the process for three of the most common ones below.

Microsoft Outlook​Thunderbird​Apple Mail

Microsoft Outlook

CU Boulder email accounts are provisioned through Microsoft Outlook, so many students, faculty and staff will already have the Microsoft Outlook desktop app installed on their devices.

Step 1: Install the Microsoft Outlook Desktop App
Active Students, Faculty & Staff Members

Eligible CU Boulder students, faculty and staff can download the Microsoft Outlook desktop app at no cost. To do so, click the button below and log in with your IdentiKeyUsername@colorado.edu and IdentiKey password.

Download the Outlook Desktop App

Alumni, Retirees & Former Students, Faculty & Staff

After you leave CU Boulder, your university-provided Microsoft license will be either downgraded or removed depending on your former role, when you left and whether you graduated or retired from CU Boulder. Learn about OIT's account eligibility change processes.

If you can still log in, your next step is to determine whether you have access to the Outlook desktop app through an existing personal or business plan. If not, click the button below to explore Microsoft 365 subscription plans.

Note: Classic Outlook is included with Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscriptions, non-subscription versions of Office (e.g., Office Home & Business) or as a standalone purchase.

View Microsoft's Subscription Plans

Step 2: Add Your External Email Account

If you haven't already, open the Outlook desktop app and turn off "new Outlook."

  • Windows: Click the New Outlook toggle in the top-right corner to turn off new Outlook and launch classic Outlook.
  • Mac: Click on the Help menu and select Revert to Legacy Outlook.

Follow these steps to allow Microsoft Outlook to access your external email account:

Allow the account to fully sync with Microsoft Outlook before continuing to step 3. Depending on the size of your account, this could take several hours.

Step 3: Copy Your CU Boulder Emails to Your External Account

Follow these steps to copy your CU Boulder emails to your external account:

  1. Create a new folder in your external account to save your CU Boulder emails in.
    1. In the Folder pane, locate your external email account. If only the account name is showing, click the arrow to the left of the name to expand the folder structure.
    2. Determine where you want your CU Boulder data to appear, then right-click on the parent folder (e.g., Inbox) and select New Folder.
    3. Give the new folder an intuitive name (e.g., CU Boulder).
       
  2. Follow Microsoft's instructions to copy your CU Boulder email content into the new folder in your external account:
  3. Confirm that your CU Boulder emails are available in your external email account.
    1. Open a browser and log in to the webmail site for your external email account (e.g., mail.google.com).
    2. Confirm that your CU Boulder emails were copied successfully.

Mozilla Thunderbird

Mozilla Thunderbird is a free, open-source email and calendar client that's available as a desktop application for Windows, macOS and Linux.

Thunderbird isn't an email provider itself. Instead, it supports sending, receiving and organizing messages from multiple email accounts and providers (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail) in a centralized desktop app.

OIT can only provide limited best-effort support to Thunderbird clients. For vendor resources, see Mozilla's Thunderbird Support.

Step 1: Install Thunderbird & Add Your External Email Account
  1. If you haven't already, install Thunderbird on your computer:
  2. Follow Thunderbird's account configuration instructions to set up the existing email account that you'll be transferring your CU Boulder emails to.

Allow the account to fully sync with Thunderbird before continuing to step 2. Depending on the size of your account, this could take several hours.

Step 2: Add Your CU Boulder Email Account

First, if you've already been using Thunderbird, check whether you have any files stored locally. If so, Thunderbird highly recommends backing them up before beginning this process.

Follow these steps to allow Thunderbird to access your CU Boulder email account.

  1. Launch Thunderbird, then navigate to Menu > New Account > Existing Email.
     
  2. In the Account Setup window, enter the following information:
    • Your full name: Your name as you'd like it to appear.
    • Email address: Your IdentiKeyUsername@colorado.edu
    • Password: Leave this field blank.
       
  3. Click Continue.
     
  4. Thunderbird should automatically select IMAP as the appropriate configuration. The server settings should be:
    • Incoming: outlook.office365.com
    • Outgoing: smtp.office365.com
    • Username: Your IdentiKeyUsername@colorado.edu
       
  5. Click Done.
     
  6. Complete multi-factor authentication.
     
  7. A window will pop up with a Permissions Request. Click Accept.
     
  8. Click Finish.

Allow the account to fully sync with Thunderbird before continuing to step 3. Depending on the size of your account, this could take several hours.

Troubleshooting

If you experience issues after the above configuration attempt, verify that your server settings match those below.

  1. Navigate to Account Settings > Server Settings > Security Settings > Authentication Method and select OAuth2 from the Authentication Method dropdown.
     
  2. Navigate to Outgoing Server on the bottom of the left-hand panel of the account settings screen.
     
  3. Select the University of Colorado M365 SMTP server and click edit on the righthand side.
     
  4. Change the Authentication method to OAuth2, confirm the following settings, then click OK:
    • Description: University of Colorado M365
    • Server Name: smtp.office365.com
    • Port: 587 (default)
    • User Name: IdentiKeyUsername@colorado.edu
    • Authentication Method: OAuth2
    • Connection Security: STARTTLS
       
  5. Now, when you attempt to view your inbox, instead of being prompted for your password by Thunderbird, you will be redirected to authenticate through Authenticator.
     
  6. After authenticating in step 5, the setup is complete. Email data will take some time to sync. Please be patient.

You can get to the configuration settings by:

  1. Click Tools on the top menu bar (or the key combination ALT+T).
  2. Click Account Settings.
Step 3: Copy Your CU Boulder Emails to Your External Account

Although your CU Boulder email data is now visible in Thunderbird, you'll still lose access to it when your CU Boulder email account is deleted. 

To preserve that data, follow these steps to copy it into your external email account:

  1. Create new subfolder within your external email account.
    1. In Thunderbird, select your external email account.
    2. Right-click on Inbox.
    3. Select New Folder.
    4. Give the folder an intuitive name (e.g., CU Boulder).
       
  2. Copy your CU Boulder email content into the new subfolder.
     
    1. To copy an individual email:
      1. Right-click on the email.
      2. Select Copy To.
      3. Select the folder to copy it to.
         
    2. To copy an entire folder (not applicable to primary folders):
      1. Right-click on the folder.
      2. Select Copy To.
      3. Select the folder you created in step 1.
         
    3. To copy all emails from a primary folder (e.g., Inbox, Sent Items, Deleted Items, Junk Mail):
      1. Use the "Select All" keyboard shortcut (CTRL+A).
      2. Right-click and select Copy To.
      3. Select the folder to copy it to.
         
  3. Confirm that your CU Boulder emails are available in your external email account.
    1. Open a browser and log in to the webmail site for your external email account (e.g., mail.google.com).
    2. Confirm that your CU Boulder emails were copied successfully.

If you encounter any issues, visit Thunderbird's Support Page.

Step 4: Configure Your Folder Settings

If desired, adjust your Thunderbird settings to use your CU Boulder email account's Deleted Items, Sent Items and Drafts folders.

To see these folders in Thunderbird:

  1. Right-click on your Microsoft 365 account and select Subscribe...
  2. Tick the box next to three folders: Deleted Items, Drafts, Sent Items.
  3. Click Subscribe.
  4. Click OK.

To use these folders:

  1. Right-click on your Microsoft 365 account and select Settings...
     
  2. Under your Microsoft 365 account, set up your deleted items, sent items and drafts folders.
     
    1. Deleted Items:
      1. Select Server Settings.
      2. Under When I delete a message, select Move it to this folder and click the drop-down to select Deleted Items.
         
    2. Sent Items:
      1. Select Copies & Folders.
      2. Under When sending messages, automatically, select Place a copy in and click the drop-down to select Other.
      3. Use the drop-down next to Other to select your Microsoft 365 account's Sent Items folder.
         
    3. Drafts:
      1. Select Drafts and Templates.
      2. Make sure your Microsoft 365 account's Drafts folder is selected.
         
    4. Click OK.
       
  3. Restart Thunderbird.
Step 5: Disable Adaptive Junk Mail Controls

Microsoft 365 server side junk/spam filtering is already enabled for all Microsoft 365 accounts.

  1. Right-click on the email address you just configured in the left-hand pane.
  2. Click on Settings.
  3. Click Junk Settings from the left-hand option pane.
  4. Uncheck the box for Enable adaptive junk mail controls for this account.
  5. Click the OK button.

Apple Mail

Apple Mail is the native email client for Apple products, including Macs and iPhones.

Like Thunderbird, Apple Mail isn't an email provider itself. Instead, it supports sending, receiving and organizing messages from multiple email accounts and providers (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail) in a centralized desktop app.

OIT can only provide limited best-effort support to Apple Mail clients. For vendor resources, see Apple's Mail Support.

Step 1: Add Your External Email Account

If you haven't already, follow Apple's guide to add email accounts in Mail to set up the existing email account that you'll be transferring your CU Boulder emails to.

Allow the account to fully sync with Apple Mail before continuing to step 2. Depending on the size of your account, this could take several hours.

Step 2: Add Your CU Boulder Email Account

Follow these steps to allow Apple Mail to access your CU Boulder email account:

Allow the account to fully sync with Apple Mail before continuing to step 3. Depending on the size of your account, this could take several hours.

Step 3: Copy Your CU Boulder Emails to Your External Account

Although your CU Boulder email data is now visible in Apple Mail, you'll still lose access to it when your CU Boulder email account is deleted.

To preserve that data, follow these steps to copy it to your external email account:

  1. Create a new mailbox within your external email account.
    1. Go to your Mail app.
    2. Choose Mailbox > New Mailbox...
    3. Click the Location drop-down, then select your external email account. This will create a new mailbox within that mailbox—like a subfolder.
    4. Give the mailbox an intuitive name (e.g., CU Boulder).
       
  2. Follow Apple's instructions to copy your CU Boulder email content into the new mailbox:
  3. Confirm that your CU Boulder emails are available in your external email account.
    1. Open a browser and log in to the webmail site for your external email account (e.g., mail.google.com).
    2. Confirm that your CU Boulder emails were copied successfully.