I would like to save collections of emails that are organized in folder trees as separate files (documents?) outside of Outlook so that they are (a) individually accessible and (b) not susceptible to Outlook’s archiving mechanism.

Ideally, the saved file would preserve the folder structure so that I can open it with some application and be able to navigate the folders just like I do in Outlook.


I tried using the Outlook export facility:

• File | Import and export.
• I selected “Export to a file” and clicked “Next”.
• On the next options box, I selected Personal Folder File (.pst) and clicked Next. That was the only option that seemed like it would preserve the folder structure that I want.
• I selected the folder to export, checked Include subfolders, and clicked Next.
• The next option box asked me about replacing duplicates. This is a little puzzling, but I selected “Allow duplicate items to be created”, and clicked Finish.
• I then got an option box asking where to save it and what to name it. I guess the “Name” is an internal name that is independent of the filename. I did not select a password and clicked OK,

I now have a .pst file. If I double-click it, I get a warning that this is a “system” file and opening it could damage my system. If I proceed, Windows says it doesn’t have a program for reading it and do I want to select one from a list. If I say I do, Outlook is not on the list.

So I have a couple of questions:

1. Is this the right (or best) procedure for creating an email archive that I can browse later?
2. If so, how to I browse it? I would like it to be read only.

I am using Outlook 2007 on Win XP.

I tried using the Acrobat add-in to save them as PDF files, but it does not preserve the folder structure.