Export and Import Signatures in Microsoft Outlook

Many of us have drafted extensive signatures blocks to use as substitute templates in Microsoft Outlook 2007.

These signatures go way beyond the normal name, position, phone and fax number. They negate the need to author lengthy messages every time when a standard format may be used. As such, they need to be accessed quickly when handling large volumes of email. However, if one were to switch computers, even those that are networked do not carryover signature blocks when using MS Outlook 2007. In other words, they must be drafted from scratch or exported and imported from a computer containing this signatures. This process was not as easy I as first thought, hence the following article on how to export and import MS Outlook signature files form one computer to another.

  • 1

    Open up Windows Explorer from the computer that has the MS Outlook signatures that you wish to export. From the "Tools" drop down menu, select "Folder Options" and click on the "View" tab.

  • 2

    Selecting show hidden folders

    In the Folder Options pop-up screen, select "Show hidden files and folders" and click Apply and then OK. This will enable us to navigate to the folder containing the signatures used by MS Outlook.

  • 3

    Back in Windows Explorer, navigate to the local hard drive (usually C:), open the "Documents and Settings" folder, open the folder containing a variation of the person whose signatures you wish to transfer (last name, initials, etc.), open the "Application Data" folder, and finally open the "Microsoft" folder. The address string should look similar to: C:\Documents and Settings\USER_NAME\Application Data\Microsoft\

  • 4

    Copy the "Signatures" folder and either paste it into the user’s personal network drive, or on a removable media device, such as a thumb drive. If using the network save, remember to be careful if saving to a shared network drive as those are not private.

  • 5

    Open up Windows Explorer from the computer that has the MS Outlook that you wish to import the signatures to. Follow steps 2 and 3 above, arriving at the C:\Documents and Settings\USER_NAME\Application Data\Microsoft\ address string.

  • 6

    Copy the "Signatures" file from the network drive, or removable media device from which it is stored, and past it into the Microsoft folder of the computer. Select "Yes" when the system asks if you if it can overwrite the "Signatures" folder contained within. Open MS Outlook and verify that you can access all of the signatures that were exported and imported.

http://www.ehow.com/how_5490183_export-import-signatures-microsoft-outlook.html

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