FAQ – Moving to Windows Live Calendar

 INTRODUCING THE MOVE

Q: What is happening?
A: Now that Windows Live Calendar has come out of beta, we’re helping customers move from the original (MSN) calendar to the Windows Live Calendar. As soon as everyone has moved over, the original (MSN) calendar will retire.

Q: When is this happening?
A: Your calendar data may be moved as early as March 1, 2009, after which you will no longer be able to access your original (MSN) calendar. The original (MSN) calendar is estimated to close on August 1, 2009, at which date we anticipate that all users will have moved to Windows Live Calendar.  NOTE: This date is subject to change.

May 2009 update:  For the past few months, the calendar team has been preparing for your move to Windows Live Calendar. Since moving millions of people’s data takes time, you may not have seen any changes yet. You can continue to check back to see  if we’ve moved your calendar. 

Q: What do I need to do?
A: We’ll do most of the moving for you; we’ll move over your appointments, meeting requests, tasks, and notes.

Q: What data will not be automatically moved over to my new calendar?
A: Deleted items (items you deleted from your original calendar and items older than 3 months which were automatically deleted from the original calendar) will not be moved over. Additionally, if you have added attachments (like presentations, documents, and spreadsheets) to your calendar through Microsoft Outlook Connector or the MSN® Premium desktop client, your attachments will not be moved to your new calendar.

THE MOVE PROCESS  

Q: Why is Microsoft switching from the original (MSN) Calendar to Windows Live Calendar?
A: We listened to feedback from customers like you to build the new Windows Live Calendar. Now that Windows Live Calendar is ready for our customers, we’re helping to move our original (MSN) Calendar customers over to the new service so we can focus our efforts on delivering an even better calendar to you. The new Windows Live Calendar comes equipped with a number of exciting features, many of which were not available in the original calendar, including charms, support for multiple calendars, and integration with http://events.live.com and Windows Live Hotmail.

Q: If I try the Windows Live Calendar before the move, will that affect my move?
A: No, it won’t affect your move.  Upcoming appointments, meeting requests, tasks, and notes from your original (MSN) calendar will still be moved over, even if you have added events to your new calendar. Any events added to your new calendar will be saved through the move.

Q: I don’t care about moving my data, I just want to use Windows Live Calendar.  How can I start using it?
A: You can go directly to calendar.live.com to start using Windows Live Calendar. If you don’t care about your old data, use this opportunity to delete any appointments, meeting requests, tasks, notes, and reminders so they are not moved to the Windows Live Calendar. In addition to deleted items, any attachment data that you have not saved to your computer, will not be moved to your new calendar (attachment data will also no longer be accessible via your calendar after March 1, 2009). After the move, if the data was moved into a calendar that doesn’t have any existing data, you can choose to delete the entire calendar.

Q: How do I delete old calendar data that I don’t want to keep or move over to the new calendar?
A: Before the move, you can delete appointments, meeting requests, notes, tasks, and reminders from your original (MSN) calendar so that they’re not moved over to your new calendar. Otherwise, after the move, you can delete unwanted items from your new calendar individually or delete the entire calendar if it doesn’t have existing data that you want to keep.

Q: How can I go back to my original (MSN) Calendar?
A: Before we help you move to Windows Live Calendar, you can access your original (MSN) calendar and your Windows Live Calendar through their respective links. Another way to return to your original calendar prior to the move is to visit your “Options” page in Windows Live Calendar and there is a return to your original calendar link. Once your calendar move is complete, you will no longer be able to access your original calendar.

Q: I haven’t been moved over to the new calendar, but my friend has. Why?
A: There’s a lot of data to move, and we can only move so many people at a time. Please sign in again soon to see if we’ve had a chance to move your calendar. 

Q: What if my move fails, when will I be moved over to Windows Live Calendar?
A: In the unlikely event that there are moves that are not successful, we will be actively and quickly working to address them , but it may take some time before we resolve the specific issue with your account.  Please be patient and continue to sign in again soon to see if we’ve fixed the issue and moved your calendar.  You can contact our support team to discuss your specific concern and determine a solution.

Q: If the original (MSN) calendar automatically deletes information older than 3 months, how can I keep this information?
A:  Most users look at recent and upcoming appointments on their calendar which will be moved over to the new Windows Live Calendar. However if you are interested in keeping information on past appointments, you can manually save the information (e.g. writing on paper, copy-paste into a text file, print to copier, print screen to file) or purchase Outlook Connector 12.0 to download MSN Calendar events to Outlook.

AFTER THE MOVE

Q: Where do I find the notes and tasks that were in my original (MSN) calendar?
A: Your tasks and notes will be combined into the new to-do list.  You can find this list through the “To-do list” tab in your Windows Live Calendar.

Q: I forgot to save my attachments prior to the move. What can I do to access my attachments?
A: To ensure that attachment data is not lost, please save your data prior to March 1, 2009; after this date attachment data may no longer be available to you. After your calendar has moved,  you may still be able to get your attachments by opening the original meeting request e-mail that has the attachment (if you haven’t deleted it).  If you’re using Microsoft Office Outlook Connector, you may also be able to download a copy of the attachment from the event in your Outlook calendar.

Q: How do I see a yearly view like I saw in my original (MSN) calendar?
A: The yearly view is not available in Windows Live Calendar.

Q: Where are my reminders?
A: Reminders are sent to your primary e-mail account. We can’t send reminders to an e-mail address that is different from the one you use to sign in. 

If you are still not receiving reminders in your primary e-mail account,  go to “Calendar Options”. Under “Set your reminder time,” click on “Change how you get reminders,” and then make sure that you have selected an option to send your reminders to.

Q: Where are my MSN Groups calendars?
A: Because the MSN Groups service closes on February 21, 2009, , MSN Groups’ calendars will not be moved to your Windows Live Calendar. To find more information about MSN Groups, please go to the MSN Groups Resource Closure Center web site.

Q: Where are the shared calendars that I viewed in my original (MSN) calendar?
A: Your family and friends will need to “re-share” their calendars with you once they’ve also moved to Windows Live Calendar; likewise you can re-share the calendars that you own with others once they have moved to Windows Live Calendar. To share, click on the “Share” drop down in the calendar menu and select the calendar which you would like to share. You will then be able to set up your sharing preferences.

Q: Not all my data has been moved from my original (MSN) calendar; where is my missing data?
A: The original (MSN) calendar automatically removes any events or data that is more than three months old.  Any data older than three months was not moved to your new Windows Live Calendar.

Q: The data that was migrated from my original (MSN) calendar is corrupt, how do I get my data fixed?
A: Please contact Customer support. The agent will help you take the next steps to provide our engineering team with the data or information needed for investigation of the issue.

Q: Where is my published calendar?

A: For your safety, we did not automatically publish your calendar with the data from your original (MSN) calendar.  To publish your calendar, click on the “Share” drop down in the calendar menu and select the calendar which you would like to publish.  Once you’ve selected the calendar to share,  select “Send friends a view-only link to your calendar” and/or “Make your calendar public” to publish your calendar.