Saved an old Hotmail account
I had a Hotmail address from twenty years back that I barely use. Wanted a copy before it got deleted for being idle. Signed in through the Microsoft window, picked PST and it saved the lot without a hitch.
Core features
Outlook.com Backup, Step by Step
Five screens, in the order an Outlook.com backup runs from sign-in to the written file.
Connect
Sign In on the Microsoft Page
Pick Outlook.com from the list and the server details fill themselves in. A Microsoft sign-in window opens, you enter your address and password there, approve the two-step prompt if the account has one and the mailbox loads. Outlook.com Backup Tool never sees the password.
- Server address filled in automatically
- Two-step verification, also called MFA, works as normal
- No app password to generate, Microsoft removed those for personal mail
- Back up more than one account in a single pass, each signed in separately
Folder selection
Choose the Outlook.com Folders
The mailbox opens as a folder tree with a checkbox on every branch and a message count beside it. Twenty years of Hotmail can be saved whole, or a single old folder pulled out on its own. Junk and Deleted are left out with one click each.
- Every folder and subfolder has its own tick box
- Item counts appear beside each folder up front
- The nested folder layout is preserved on disk
- Blank folders can be tucked away in compact view
Message preview
Read Any Message First
Each message opens in a preview pane with four analysis views beside it. Anyone saving an old account before it is closed uses the preview to confirm the right mail is being kept.
- Content shows body, sender, recipient and subject
- Message header exposes routing and delivery hops
- Properties lists size, priority and attachments
- Hex and raw message give the full source
Selective backup
Narrow an Outlook.com Backup
Filters are applied before the run starts, so only the mail you asked for is written. A decade of newsletters can be left behind while the messages that matter are kept.
- A start date and an end date bracket the run
- Sender, recipient, subject or message content
- Restrict the run to mail that has an attachment
- A size threshold to skip the heaviest mail
- Skip junk or duplicate messages
Output options
Backup File or Second Mailbox
The target is the final step. Point the output at a folder, a plugged-in drive or a shared network path, or hand the mail to another mailbox instead of a file. Files in a document format are named to a pattern, so a large export stays easy to search.
- Mail formats: PST for Outlook, MBOX for Thunderbird or Apple Mail, EML, MSG
- Document formats: PDF, HTML, CSV, TXT
- Straight into Gmail, a Microsoft 365 account or any IMAP host with the email migration tool
- Attachments, email addresses and phone numbers pulled out on their own