Article ID: 826809 - Last Review: January 11, 2006 - Revision: 1.7

Description and use of the Save My Settings Wizard

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SUMMARY

In Office 2003 when you run the Save My Settings Wizard to save your profiles or restore previously saved profiles, your only option is to save them to a file locally or on your network. Beginning with Office 2003 there is no option to save your profiles to the Internet.

When you run the Save My Settings Wizard, you can save or restore your configuration settings for Office 2003 programs. These settings are saved in a profile settings file (.ops file). This file is a snapshot of registry settings and related files for your Office configuration.

If you save your Office settings to an .ops file, your settings are not written to the file until you click Finish. Similarly, if you restore your settings from an .ops file, the computer is not updated until you click Finish.
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MORE INFORMATION

You can use the Save My Settings Wizard to do the following two things:
  • Save Office program settings to a profile settings file (.ops file).

    -or-
  • Restore previously saved settings from an .ops file.
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Install the Save My Settings Wizard

The Save My Settings Wizard is typically installed with Office. To determine if the Save My Settings Wizard is installed, follow these steps:
  1. Click Start, and then point to All Programs.
  2. Point to Microsoft Office Tools.
If the Save My Settings Wizard does not appear on the Microsoft Office Tools menu, the wizard is not installed.

If you do not have the Save My Settings Wizard installed, follow these steps:
  1. Quit all Office programs.
  2. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
  3. Click Add or Remove Programs.
  4. Click Change or Remove Programs.
  5. In the Currently installed programs list, click Microsoft Office 2003, and then click Change.
  6. In the Microsoft Office 2003 Setup dialog box, click Add or Remove Features, and then click Next.
  7. In the Features to install tree, expand Office Tools.
  8. Click Save My Settings Wizard, and then click Run all from My Computer.
  9. Click Update.
  10. Click OK when Setup has completed successfully.
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Save or Restore Settings

You can either save your Office settings from your computer, or you can restore your settings to your computer or to a different computer.
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Save Settings

The Save the settings from this machine option instructs the wizard to capture your Office configuration settings from the Office programs that you have installed.

To save your settings, follow these steps:
  1. Quit all Office programs.
  2. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Microsoft Office, and then point to Microsoft Office Tools.
  3. Click Microsoft Office 2003 Save My Settings Wizard.
  4. In the Save My Settings Wizard, click Next.
  5. Click Save the settings from this machine, and then click Next.
  6. Type the location where you want to save the file, and then click Finish.
Note If you want to save the settings to a location other than the default location (for example, a network share), click Browse.

Note The Save My Settings Wizard saves only user options that have been changed from their default values. For example, if you set the Microsoft Word Allow fast saves option, but you do not change the Always create backup copy option, the Save My Settings Wizard saves only the Allow fast saves setting to the .ops file.

Important The Save My Settings Wizard does not create or write to the .ops file until you click Finish.
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Restore Your Previously Saved Settings

The Restore Your Previously Saved Settings option instructs the wizard to restore your Office configuration settings from the .ops file that you specify.

To restore your settings, follow these steps:
  1. Quit all Office programs.
  2. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Microsoft Office Tools, and then click Save My Settings Wizard.
  3. In the Save My Settings Wizard, click Next.
  4. Click Restore previously saved settings to this machine, and then click Next.
  5. In the File to Restore Settings From box, type the path of the location of your .ops file, and then click Finish.
Important The Save My Settings Wizard does not import the settings from the .ops file until you click Finish.
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Files and Folders That the Save My Settings Wizard Saves

The Save My Settings Wizard saves only files and subfolders stored in the following folder locations:
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<AppData>\Microsoft\AddIns
<AppData>\Microsoft\ClipGallery
<AppData>\Microsoft\Excel
<AppData>\Microsoft\FrontPage
<AppData>\Microsoft\Graph
<AppData>\Microsoft\Office
<AppData>\Microsoft\Outlook
<AppData>\Microsoft\PowerPoint
<AppData>\Microsoft\Proof
<AppData>\Microsoft\Queries
<AppData>\Microsoft\Signatures
<AppData>\Microsoft\Stationery
<AppData>\Microsoft\Templates
<AppData>\Microsoft\Themes
<AppData>\Microsoft\InfoPath
<AppData>\Microsoft\OneNote
<AppData>\Microsoft\InterConnect
<AppData>\Microsoft\Word

Note <<AppData>> refers to the following folders on your hard disk.
In Microsoft Windows XP and Microsoft Windows 2000:
C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data
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Files That the Save My Settings Wizard Excludes

The Save My Settings Wizard excludes (does not save) the following files:
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*.ost
*.pab
*.pst
*.tmp
<AppData>\Microsoft\Word\*.ASD
<AppData>\Microsoft\Word\*.WBK

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Files That Are Deleted Before Data Is Restored from the .ops File

The Save My Settings Wizard removes the following folders before writing data from the .ops file:
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<AppData>\Microsoft\Office\Shortcut Bar
<AppData>\Microsoft\FrontPage

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Files That Are Not Removed

The following files are not removed before settings are restored from the .ops file:
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*.pab
*.pst
*.dic
*.ost

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Registry Settings That Are Saved

The Save My Settings Wizard saves registry settings that are stored in the following registry keys. All values and subkeys in the specified tree are included:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Access
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Access
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Graph
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\MS Project
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\NetFolder
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Osa
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Shortcut Bar
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Web Server
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Publisher
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\ClipGallery
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\InfoPath
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\OneNote
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Interconnect
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Visio
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\MSProject
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Visio
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Access
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Common
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Excel
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Outlook
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\PowerPoint
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Word
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\FrontPage
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Shared Tools\Font Mapping
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\SharedTools\Proofing Tools
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\SharedTools\Outlook\Journaling
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VBA\Office
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ControlPanel\International\NumShape
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ControlPanel\International\Calendars\TwoDigitYearMax
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps\Office97
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Common\MailSettings\MarkCommentsWith
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows MessagingSubsystem\Profiles\Outlook
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles\Outlook
The Save My Settings Wizard also saves the registry settings for the following individual registry keys. Only values under these keys are imported and no subkeys are imported:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Exchange\Client\Options
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\LanguageResources
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VBA\Trusted
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\UserInfo
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Common\Mailsettings\MarkCommentsWith
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Common\Mailsettings\MarkComments
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\Preferences
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Registry Settings That Are Not Saved

The Save My Settings Wizard does not import the following registry keys into your profile. All values and subkeys in the specified tree are excluded:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\Migration
The Save My Settings Wizard does not import the following registry keys into your profile. The Save My Settings Wizard excludes only the specific named values and not the subkeys.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Access\Settings\Prefs Migrated

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Access\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\General\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Options\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\Setup\First-Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\office\11.0\Outlook\Journal\Item Log File
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\First Run\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Options\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Publisher\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\InfoPath\FirstBoot
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\OneNote\FirstBoot
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\InterConnect\General\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\InterConnect\Bizcard\OfficeBizcardDesign
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\InterConnect\Bizcard\HomeBizcardDesign
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Bizcard\UtilityBizcardDesign
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\InterConnect\Bizcard\FakeBizcardDesign
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\InterConnect\Bizcard\ActiveDigitalSignature

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Registry Settings That Are Reset When You Restore Your Settings

The Save My Settings Wizard removes the following keys before writing custom values from the .ops file:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Access
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Common
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Excel
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Outlook
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\PowerPoint
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\Word
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\FrontPage
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Visio
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Shared Tools\Proofing Tools
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VBA\Office
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\VBA\Trusted
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles\Outlook
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Messaging Subsystem\Profiles
The Save My Settings Wizard resets the following keys to their default values before writing custom values from the .ops file:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Access\Settings\Prefs Migrated
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Access\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\UserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\WebDriveUserData
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Common\General\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Excel\Options\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\Setup\First-Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\office\11.0\Outlook\Journal\Item Log File
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\PowerPoint\First Run\FirstRun
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Options\FirstRun
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APPLIES TO
  • Microsoft Office Outlook 2003
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Keywords: 
kbinfo kbbug KB826809
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