Switching from Office 2013 to Office 2016 & want to keep settings

Victek · 14 May 2018

I'm planning to switch from Office 2013 to Office 2016 and I want to preserve my Outlook settings if possible. I have multiple email accounts and calendars setup and would like to avoid having to recreate all of that. TIA for your suggestions.

simrick · 15 May 2018

Hi.
I believe you want to backup your *.pst/*.ost file, then import it after the upgrade to O2016.
Export or backup email, contacts, and calendar to an Outlook .pst file - Office Support

There are some extra steps for calendars, etc. when using *.ost (IMAP).
Backup and Restore all Outlook data - HowTo-Outlook

HTH.

Victek · 16 May 2018

simrick said:

Hi.
I believe you want to backup your *.pst/*.ost file, then import it after the upgrade to O2016.
Export or backup email, contacts, and calendar to an Outlook .pst file - Office Support

There are some extra steps for calendars, etc. when using *.ost (IMAP).
Backup and Restore all Outlook data - HowTo-Outlook

.

Thanks for the reply. I installed Office 2016 yesterday. I tried first without removing Office 2013, but the 2016 install failed. 2016 installed fine after I uninstalled 2013 and I was pleasantly surprised that all of my Outlook email settings were intact.

simrick · 16 May 2018

Victek said:

.

Thanks for the reply. I installed Office 2016 yesterday. I tried first without removing Office 2013, but the 2016 install failed. 2016 installed fine after I uninstalled 2013 and I was pleasantly surprised that all of my Outlook email settings were intact.

Glad to hear it!

NeedUpgradeHelp · 02 Sep 2023

Victek said:

.

Thanks for the reply. I installed Office 2016 yesterday. I tried first without removing Office 2013, but the 2016 install failed. 2016 installed fine after I uninstalled 2013 and I was pleasantly surprised that all of my Outlook email settings were intact.

After you uninstalled Outlook 2013 and installed Outlook 2016, did you have to import your .pst files into Outlook 2016, or are you saying that when you installed Outlook 2016, that all your settings were already in place?

Victek · 03 Sep 2023

NeedUpgradeHelp said:

After you uninstalled Outlook 2013 and installed Outlook 2016, did you have to import your .pst files into Outlook 2016, or are you saying that when you installed Outlook 2016, that all your settings were already in place?

Well, my post was from five years ago, so I can't answer with certainty. I believe I made backups of the Outlook PST/OST files as a precaution and left the originals in place. Then, when I installed the new Office, Outlook automatically "found" the old PST/OST files. If you upgrade, let me know how it works out for you.