Where are my windows live mail contacts stored
A blast from the past!
Windows Live Mail (WLM) was a popular email client, but it's no longer supported by Microsoft. However, I can help you find the location of your contacts.
Before we begin:
- Make sure you have backed up your WLM data, as we'll be accessing the files manually.
- If you're using a newer version of Windows, you might not find the exact same location as described below.
Contact storage locations:
WLM stores contacts in a few different locations, depending on the version and configuration. Here are the most common locations:
Windows Live Mail 2011 and earlier:
- Contacts folder:
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail\Contacts.wab
%USERPROFILE%
is usuallyC:\Users\<YourUsername>\
- Windows Address Book (WAB) file:
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Mail\Windows Address Book.wab
Windows Live Mail 2012 and later:
- Contacts folder:
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsLiveMail_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalState\Contacts.wab
- Windows Address Book (WAB) file:
%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsLiveMail_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalState\Windows Address Book.wab
Note: If you're using a 64-bit version of Windows, the AppData folder might be located in %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming
instead of %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local
.
Accessing the contacts:
- Open File Explorer (Windows Explorer) and navigate to the specified location.
- Look for the
Contacts.wab
orWindows Address Book.wab
file. - Double-click the file to open it in the Windows Address Book (WAB) viewer.
- You can then export your contacts to a CSV file or import them into another email client or contact manager.
Remember to be cautious when accessing and modifying files in the AppData folder, as it's a sensitive area of your system.