Convert Eudora to Outlook

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The definitive guide to converting Eudora mail to Outlook

REVISED 10/2011

It’s really better to just install Thunderbird in IMAP mode and import the messages and addresses. Then the user can use Thunderbird and manually move local folders up to the server where they will never have this problem again.

The Hard Way

Commonly if you just do an import of Eudora mail using Outlook you end up with two problems:

  • The Send and Receive dates on the local folders get converted to the moment you did the import.
  • The format of the email messages will contain odd html tags. You can still read it but its ugly.

There is a solution, but it takes some time. Use Thunderbird to convert the Eudora mail, put the mail files back in Eudora, then do the import from Outlook.

  1. Download and install Thunderbird from www.mozilla.com
  2. Run the import from the tools menu (only do mail, not the settings or the address book)
  3. After it completes, quit Thunderbird. Now locate the converted mail files. They should be in: “c:Documents and SettingsyouraccountApplication DataThunderbirdProfilessomething.defaultMailLocal Folders” Obviously.
  4. Ignore the .msf files. The files without extensions are your mail files.

Unfortunately Outlook can’t import from Thunderbird so you have to rename and put these mail files back into Eudora. Not only that, but you have to run Eudora once to then register the files as mailboxes.

  1. Locate your Eudora data folder.
  2. Sort the files by type and move out all the .mbx and .toc files (mailboxes and table of content files) – don’t delete them yet.
  3. In the Thunderbird folder, add (rename) .mbx to the mail files (so In becomes In.mbx).
  4. Move these mail files into the Eudora data folder.
  5. Run Eudora. Don’t check mail or anything. Quit.
  6. Now run Outlook and do an import of Eudora including the address book. You should be all set.