Windows 7: Importing Contacts from Vista to Windows Live Mail in Windows 7

I bought a new computer with Windows 7 and Windows Live Mail. I have copied my Contacts file from my old Vista computer and input the file to the new computer. The file is labeled Contacts in my Library. I can open it and see all my contacts there. But, when I got to Windows Live Mail, click on Contacts, then Inport, then on Address Book for current Windows User, and then OK, the contacts are not imported. I can't figure out how to get them into my contacts into my new Windows Live Mail. Help!

Welcome to the Seven Forums, GAN.

In WLM the contacts are located in C:\Users\User Name\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live\Contacts\Default\15.5 but the Folder may appear empty unless the Protected O.S Files are unhidden.

As you were using WLM on the old Vista Computer you should copy the contacts file in this folder and you shall have all your contacts in W 7 WLM.

Alternately if you have the old .wab file preserved somewhere then you can browse to it via the Import Tab by clicking on Windows Address Book and import your contact.

The third method is to export your existing contacts as a .csv file and then import it to WLM in a like manner.

Good luck.

On Vista, were you using WLM or the Windows Mail program that came with Vista? It sounds like you followed the correct procedure for importing from the Contacts folder (used by Windows Mail in Vista) under your username except I'm not sure whether you need to import from c:/<username>/Contacts instead of the Library folder. That contacts folder is the one referred to as "address book for current Windows User".

Thank both of you who replied to my plea for help. Roncerr, you hit the nail on the head. I had to re-copy my contacts from Windows Mail on my old Vista computer into c:/<username>/Contacts which was empty. Then, when I followed the import steps is worked just fine. All my contacts are now available in WLM. Thank you so much. You are the best!

Now I have two more file transfer questions:

1. In Windows Mail on the Vista computer, I have saved a bunch of emails in Local Folders which I had set up and appear down the left side of the Inbox page, above the gmail file listings. I can't figure out how to set up similar folders in WLM and copy these old email across.

2. In Internet Explorer on the old Vista computer, I have a lot of websites marked under the star as Favorites. How do I move these to Explorer in the new Windows 7 computer?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

1. I'm not sure what you mean by "above the gmail file listings" or whether you mean you have already imported them into WLM or you are describing where they are in WM on Vista. In any case, in Vista there is a message store folder (c:/users/<username>/appdata/local/Microsoft/Windows Mail). You move that folder over to Windows Explorer on Windows 7 to a convenient place where you can navigate to in during the "Import" process for WLM; during that process you would choose the "Windows Mail" format. After importing they will show up in the "Storage" area of WLM under "Imported...". Now you can either leave them in the Storage area or move them under any one of the POP3 accounts in WLM by drag and drop. (If you ever decide to delete the POP3 account don't forget to move all its associated messages some place else since the messages would be deleted with the account.)

2. In IE (for both 7 and Vista) Favorites are saved under c:/users/<username>/Favorites. So just move them over in Windows Explorer and don't even bother opening Internet Explorer to do that.

Thanks again to roncerr. My questions have been answered and my data in now transferred to my new Windows 7 computer. Thanks to everyone and thanks to Sevenforums.

Gary

I'm having the same issue since I don't regularly use WLM. A friend of mine bought a new computer because the mobo on his Vista machine died.

I removed his old HDD and connect it to the new computer externally. I can see all his Contacts files under C:\Users\xxx\Contacts from here do I just do a copy and paste of all his contacts to the Windows 7 Contacts folder?

Yes. That is the location that Vista's mail program used but you can move them to the same place in Windows 7. They won't work with WLM until you import them into the "contacts" pane of WLM. Use the WLM contacts import procedure. Choose to import "from current Windows user" so that they will be imported from the xxx/Contacts folder in Windows 7. Before doing it decide whether you want Microsoft to maintain and back-up the contacts list. If so, be sure to sign-in to WLM with the LiveID to be used at all times for that contact list.

Thank you! I knew I was missing a step after I copied over the Vista Contacts. I actually found a tutorial on this site here.