Command-line switches for Microsoft Office Outlook 2007

The command that starts Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 is outlook.exe. A command-line switch is the addition of a forward slash followed by the command name and any parameters.

In this article

• What are commands and switches?
• Use a switch once by adding it to the command
• Make a switch available for reuse by creating a shortcut
• Available switches

What are commands and switches?

Each time you start the program, you run the outlook.exe command, although you do not usually type the command or even see it. You can change certain aspects of how the program starts by adding subcommands called switches to the outlook.exe command.
A switch appears as a space after the main command, followed by a forward slash and the name of the switch, which provide further information about how to execute the command.
For example, the following command instructs Office Outlook 2007 to start with the Reading Pane turned off.

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 The command outlook.exe starts Outlook.

 The switch /nopreview starts Outlook with the Reading Pane turned off.

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Use a switch once by adding it to the Run command

First, verify the location of the outlook.exe file on your computer. If you accepted the default folder locations when you installed Office Outlook 2007, the outlook.exe file is located at the following:
c:\program files\microsoft office\office12\outlook.exe
If you do not find the outlook.exe file at that location, search for the file and make a note of the full path.

1. Do one of the following:
• Windows Vista    
• Click the Windows Start button , point to All Programs, click Accessories, and then click Run.
• Microsoft Windows XP or Microsoft Windows Server 2003    
• Click the Windows Start button, and then click Run.
2. In the Run dialog box, type a quotation mark, enter the full path for the outlook.exe file, and then type another quotation mark. Alternatively, click Browse to locate and select the file. In this case, the quotation marks are supplied automatically.
3. After the closing quotation mark, type a space, and then type the switch. For example, you might type:

"c:\program files\microsoft office\office12\outlook.exe" /nopreview

The next time that you start Office Outlook 2007, the program opens normally. To make your customized startup available for repeated uses, see the next section.
 Notes 

• Switches are not case-sensitive. For example, /NOPREVIEW functions the same as /nopreview.
• Remember to include one blank space before the switch and one before each parameter.

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Make a switch available for reuse by creating a shortcut

First, verify the location of the outlook.exe file on your computer. If you accepted the default folder locations when you installed Office Outlook 2007, the outlook.exe file is probably located at the following:
c:\program files\microsoft office\office12\outlook.exe
If you do not find the outlook.exe file at that location, search for the file and make a note of the full path.

1. Right-click the Windows desktop, point to New, and then click Shortcut on the shortcut menu.
2. In the Create Shortcut Wizard, in the Type the location of the item box, type a quotation mark, enter the full path for the outlook.exe file, and then type another quotation mark. Alternatively, click Browse to locate and select the file. In this case, the quotation marks are supplied automatically.
3. After the closing quotation mark, type a space, and then type the switch and any parameters. For example, you might type:

"c:\program files\microsoft office\office12\outlook.exe" /nopreview

 Note   If the parameter is a path to a location on your computer, it also must be enclosed in double quotation marks.

4. Click Next.
5. In the Type a name for this shortcut box, type a name for the shortcut, and then click Finish.

The wizard creates the shortcut on the desktop.

6. Whenever you want to start Office Outlook 2007 in this particular customized way, double-click the shortcut.

 Tip   To add the desktop shortcut to the Windows Start menu, right-click the shortcut, and then click Pin to Start menu on the shortcut menu.

You can create a variety of shortcuts, each of which applies different switches and parameters to the program at startup.
 Notes 

• Switches are not case-sensitive. For example, /NOPREVIEW functions the same as /nopreview.
• Remember to include one blank space before the switch and one before each parameter.

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Available switches

Switch	Description
/a	Creates an item with the specified file as an attachment. Example: "c:\program files\microsoft office\office12\outlook.exe" /a "c:\my documents\labels.doc" If no item type is specified, IPM.Note is assumed. Cannot be used with message classes that are not based on Outlook.
/altvba otmfilename	Opens the VBA program specified in otmfilename, rather than %appdata%\microsoft\outlook\vbaproject.otm.
/c messageclass	Creates a new item of the specified message class (Outlook forms or any other valid MAPI form). Examples: /c ipm.activity creates a Journal entry /c ipm.appointment creates an appointment /c ipm.contact creates a contact /c ipm.note creates an e-mail message /c ipm.stickynote creates a note /c ipm.task creates a task
/checkclient	Prompts for the default manager of e-mail, news, and contacts.
/cleancategories	Deletes any custom category names that you have created. Restores categories to the default names.
/cleanclientrules	Starts Outlook and deletes client-based rules.
/cleandmrecords	Deletes the logging records saved when a manager or a delegate declines a meeting.
/cleanfinders	Resets all Search Folders in the Microsoft Exchange mailbox for only the first profile opened.
/cleanfreebusy	Clears and regenerates free/busy information. This switch can be used only when you are able to connect to the server running Exchange.
/cleanprofile	Removes invalid profile keys and re-creates default registry keys where applicable.
/cleanreminders	Clears and regenerates reminders.
/cleanroamedprefs	All previous roamed preferences are deleted and copied again from the local settings on the computer where this switch is used. This includes the roaming settings for reminders, free/busy grid, working hours, calendar publishing, and RSS rules.
/cleanrules	Starts Outlook and deletes client-based and server-based rules.
/cleanserverrules	Starts Outlook and deletes server-based rules.
/cleansharing	Removes all RSS, Internet Calendar, and SharePoint subscriptions from Account Settings, but leaves all the previously downloaded content on your computer. This is useful if you are unable to delete one of these subscriptions within Office Outlook 2007.
/cleansniff	Overrides the programmatic lockout that determines which of your computers (when running Outlook simultaneously) processes meeting items. The lockout process helps prevent duplicate reminder messages. This switch clears the lockout on the computer it is used, enabling Outlook to process meeting items.
/cleansubscriptions	Deletes the subscription messages and properties for subscription features.
/cleanviews	Restores default views. All custom views that you created are lost.
/embedding	Used without command-line parameters for standard OLE co-create.
/f msgfilename	Opens the specified message file (.msg) or Microsoft Office saved search (.oss).
/finder	Opens the Advanced Find dialog box.
/firstrun	Starts Outlook as if it were run for the first time.
/hol holfilename	Opens the specified .hol file.
/ical icsfilename	Opens the specified .ics file.
/importprf prffilename	Starts Outlook and opens/imports the defined MAPI profile (*.prf). If Outlook is already open, queues the profile to be imported on the next clean start.
/launchtraininghelp assetid	Opens a Help window with the Help topic specified in assetid displayed.
/m emailname	Provides a way for the user to add an e-mail name to the item. Only works in conjunction with the /c command-line parameter. Example: Outlook.exe /c ipm.note /m emailname
/nocustomize	Starts Outlook without loading outcmd.dat (customized toolbars).
/noextensions	Starts Outlook with extensions turned off, but listed in the Add-In Manager.
/nopreview	Starts Outlook with the Reading Pane off.
/p msgfilename	Prints the specified message (.msg).
/profile profilename	Loads the specified profile. If your profile name contains a space, enclose the profile name in quotation marks (" ").
/profiles	Opens the Choose Profile dialog box regardless of the Options setting on the Tools menu.
/recycle	Starts Outlook by using an existing Outlook window, if one exists. Used in combination with /explorer or /folder.
/remigratecategories	Starts Outlook and and initiates the following commands on the default mailbox: Upgrades colored For Follow Up flags to Office Outlook 2007 color categories. Upgrades calendar labels to Office Outlook 2007 color categories. Adds all categories used on non-mail items into the Master Category List.  Note   This is the same command as Upgrade to Color Categories in each Outlook mailbox properties dialog box.
/resetfolders	Restores missing folders at the default delivery location.
/resetfoldernames	Resets default folder names (such as Inbox or Sent Items) to default names in the current Office user interface language. For example, if you first connect to your mailbox in Outlook by using a Russian user interface, the Russian default folder names cannot be renamed. To change the default folder names to another language, such as Japanese or English, you can use this switch to reset the default folder names after you change the user interface language or install a different language version of Outlook.
/resetformregions	Empties the form regions cache and reloads the form region definitions from the Windows registry.
/resetnavpane	Clears and regenerates the Navigation Pane for the current profile.
/resetsearchcriteria	Resets all Instant Search criteria so that the default set of criteria is shown in each module.
/resetsharedfolders	Removes all shared folders from the Navigation Pane.
/resettodobar	Clears and regenerates the To-Do Bar task list for the current profile. The To-Do Bar search folder is deleted and re-created.
/rpcdiag	Opens Outlook and displays the remote procedure call (RPC) connection status dialog box.
/safe	Starts Outlook without Microsoft Exchange Client Extensions (ECE), the Reading Pane, or toolbar customizations. Component Object Model (COM) add-ins are turned off.
/safe:1	Starts Outlook with the Reading Pane off.
/safe:3	Starts Outlook with Microsoft Exchange Client Extensions (ECE) turned off, but listed in the Add-In Manager. Component Object Model (COM) add-ins are turned off.
/safe:4	Starts Outlook without loading outcmd.dat (customized toolbars).
/select foldername	Starts Outlook and opens the specified folder in a new window. For example, to open Outlook and display the default calendar, use: "c:\program files\microsoft office\office12\outlook.exe" /select outlook:calendar.
/share feed://URL/filename /share stssync://URL /share web://URL/filename	Specifies a sharing URL to connect to Outlook. For example, use stssync://URL to connect a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 list to Outlook.
/sniff	Starts Outlook, forces a detection of new meeting requests in the Inbox, and then adds them to the calendar.
/t oftfilename	Opens the specified .oft file.
/v vcffilename	Opens the specified .vcf file.
/vcal vcsfilename	Opens the specified .vcs file.
/x xnkfilename	Opens the specified .xnk file.

Count the Total Number of Messages Received Today

Several users wanted to know how to count the number of messages received within a period of time, usually Today.  Counting the messages by hand is not a good solution as there are too many emails to manually count, plus its too slow.
There is a simple way to do this in Outlook: Search folders.

1. Right click on the Search folder and choose New Search folder.
2. Choose Custom search folder from the bottom of the list.
3. Click the Choose button.
4. Click the Browse button if you want to limit the search to specific folders.
5. Enter a name and click the Criteria button.
6. On the General tab, select Received as the field and Today as the Condition.
7. If you need to search other periods, create the filter on the Advanced tab.

Return to Outlook.
To get the message count you can either look at the status bar or set the folder properties to show the total count.


What if you don't use a version of Outlook that supports search folder? Create a custom view to show only today's mail in the Inbox and check the count in the status bar. While a custom view works in any version of Outlook, if you use rules to move mail to other folders search folders can check all folders in the data file.

Change the appearance of your calendar

Change the time scale

By default, the calendar grid shows a time interval of 30 minutes. You can increase or decrease this interval.

1. In Calendar, right-click a blank area in the calendar grid.
2. Click Other Settings.
3. Under Day, in the Time scale list, click the grid interval that you want to show in the calendar.

Change the background color

1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click Calendar Options.
2. Under Calendar options, in the Background color list, click the color that you want.

 NOTES 

• The color that you choose is applied to the Day and Work Week views. The Week and Month views use system background colors, which are gray and white, by default.
• The color that you choose is applied to weekday hours. A darker shade of the background color is applied to night and weekend hours.

Change the font

1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Other tab.
2. Click Advanced Options.
3. Under Appearance Options, click Font.
4. Select the font and any other options that you want.

Show week numbers

You can show week numbers only in the Month view.

1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
2. Click Calendar Options.
3. Select the Show week numbers in the Date Navigator check box.

 Week 38 is displayed.

 Week 39 is displayed.

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Turn bolded dates on or off

1. In Calendar, on the View menu, point to Current View, and then click Customize Current View.
2. Click Other Settings.
3. Under General settings, clear or select the Bolded dates in Date Navigator represent days containing items check box.

Set work week options

1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
2. Click Calendar Options.

3. Do any of the following:
• To select the days of your work week, select the check boxes next to the days of the week that you want.
• To set the first day of the week, in the First day of week box, click the day that you want.
• To set the first week of the year, in the First week of year box, click the option that you want.
• To set the first and last hours of your work day, enter times in the Start time box and the End time box.

Change the displayed time range

• In Calendar, click any of the following:
• Day 
• Week 
• Month 

Add or remove a second time zone

You can display a second time zone in your calendar by selecting the Show an additional time zone check box in the Time Zone dialog box. The second time zone is used only to show a second time bar in Calendar view, and does not affect the way in which calendar items are stored or displayed.

 NOTE   The additional time zone is not affected by the current time zone settings; it is completely separate.

1. On the Tools menu, click Options.
2. Click Calendar Options.
3. Click Time Zone.
4. Do one of the following:
• Add a second time zone    
1. Select the Show an additional time zone check box.
2. In the Label box, type a name for the second time zone.
3. In the Time zone box, click the time zone that you want to add.
4. If you want your computer clock to automatically adjust for daylight saving time changes, select the Adjust for daylight saving time check box.

This option is available only in time zones that use daylight saving time (DST).

• Remove a second time zone    

• Clear the Show an additional time zone check box.

 TIP   You can quickly switch your current time zone to the second time zone by clicking Swap Time Zones. This affects all times displayed in Outlook as well as times displayed in other Microsoft Windows-based applications.

How to Turn Off the Outlook 2007 Sync Log

Microsoft Outlook 2007 maintains a set of logs that help when troubleshooting in the case of errors or emergencies. This is unnecessary for the average user, and it consumes memory and disk space. You can disable all types of logs from within Outlook 2007.

Instructions

1. • 1
     Open Microsoft Outlook 2007.
   • 2
     Click "Tools" and "Options."
   • 3
     Click the "Other" tab, and then "Advanced Options."
   • 4
     Uncheck the "Enable logging (troubleshooting)" box.
   • 5
     Click "OK" and then "OK" again. Close Outlook. When you next open it, logging will be disabled.

View e-mail message headers

E-mail message headers provide a list of technical details about the message, such as who sent it, the software used to compose it, and the e-mail servers that it passed through on its way to the recipient.

View message headers

1. Open a message.
2. On the Message tab, in the Options group, click the Dialog Box Laucher .

In the Message Options dialog box, the headers appear in the Internet headers box.

How to Merge Outlook 2007 Contacts

Instructions

1. • 1
     Open your Microsoft Outlook 2007 software and allow the program to fully load and check for new messages. Once the program has fully loaded, drag all the items in Outlook that contain relevant contact information and place them all into the folder marked "Contacts," on the left-hand side of the screen.
   • 2
     Allow the program's automatic duplicate detection system to determine if you have any duplicate contacts in your "Contacts" folder. If a message comes on screen asking if you would like to merge contact information from two pieces of data with the same information, click "Yes" and it will consolidate the contacts into one folder. Repeat this process until all your duplicate contacts are merged into one folder.
   • 3
     Select the option marked "Table View" to see your contacts in descending order according to the last time they were edited. Select all the contacts that were just modified in the previous step, right click the mouse and choose the option marked "Category." Add a category name that fits with the contacts that are present in this folder and click "OK." Your folder is now complete and your contacts are merged into one list.