Move email items from an Outlook Data File to your mailbox

When you use Microsoft Outlook, your email messages are saved on a mail server, on your computer, or both. Prior to moving to Office 365 in 2016, it was necessary for many faculty and staff to keep some of their messages in an Outlook Data File (also known as an "Personal Folder" or ".pst file") stored on their computer to avoid exceeding the small mailbox quotas of our previous email system. Now that mailbox quotas are 50GB with Office 365, it is no longer necessary to keep your emails in an Outlook Data File. This article walks you through moving your email items from a Outlook Data File back to your mailbox.

Move a select group of email items from an Outlook Data File to your mailbox

1. Open Microsoft Outlook and navigate to your Outlook Data File. Depending on the version of Outlook you're using, this might be called Personal Folder or Archive Folder.

Locate Outlook Data File

2. Select the emails you want to move. Press Ctrl+A to select all emails within a folder.

Tip! To select several sequential emails, click the first item, press and hold down the Shift key, and then click the last item. To select several non-sequential emails, click the first item, press and hold down the Control key while you click on the items that you want to select.

3. With the emails selected, click Move on the Home tab and select Other Folder.

Move

4. Choose the desired folder within your mailbox where you want to move the emails. Click OK.

Select Folder

Please Note: Repeat steps 1-4 to move other email items from your Outlook Data File to your mailbox.

Move an entire folder of email items from an Outlook Data File to your mailbox

1. Locate the folder in your Outlook Data File that you want to move. Right-click the folder and select Move Folder.

Move Folder

2. Choose the desired folder within your mailbox where you want to move the folder (e.g. Inbox). Click OK

Inbox

Please Note: Repeat steps 1-2 to move other folders from your Outlook Data File to your mailbox.