Quick Parts not saved after restarting computer

After adding some Quick Parts, I find that they do not save when I restart my computer. They do seem to save when I restart Outlook.

How can I make the Quick Parts save even after a computer reboot?

Quick Parts buttonQuick Parts are saved when you close Outlook. It appears that Outlook is either not closing correctly for you, or the NormalEmail.dotm file holds a corruption.

You can troubleshoot this issue by looking at the location where NormailEmail.dotm is being stored and monitoring the outlook.exe process.

Location of NormalEmail.dotm

File Explorer buttonYou can find the NormalEmail.dotm file in the following location;

  • C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Templates

Since it is located in a hidden folder, you can access it in one of the following ways;

  • Copy and paste the above path in the Address Bar of File Explorer
  • File Explorer-> View-> section: Show/hide-> Hidden items
  • File Explorer-> File-> Change folder and search options-> tab: View-> select: Show hidden files, folders, or drives

Note: To find out more about the files and folder locations of Outlook see the guide: Files and Settings guide for Outlook

See if outlook.exe is running

Task Manager buttonTo see if the outlook.exe process is running, press CTRL+SHIFT+ESC on your keyboard. This will bring up the Task Manager. Select the Processes tab and look for outlook.exe.

If you currently have Outlook open, the outlook.exe process should show. When you close all opened Outlook windows, Outlook should close completely and the outlook.exe should disappear within a few seconds as well.

Depending on the amount and type of add-ins that you have installed, it could sometimes take up to a minute.

Fixing the issue

How? buttonNow that you know how to monitor the Templates folder and the outlook.exe process, you can determine how to fix the issue for your situation;

  • outlook.exe keeps running
    If the outlook.exe process keeps running even after you have closed Outlook completely, your Quick Parts saving issue is being caused by something that prevents Outlook from shutting down normally.
    To troubleshoot this issue see: Outlook doesn’t close or outlook.exe process keeps running.
    Once you’ve solved the shutdown issue, you probably have solved the Quick Parts saving issue as well.
  • NormalEmail.dotm is damaged
    If Outlook shuts down correctly but the Quick Parts are still not saved, then the issue is most likely caused by a damaged NormalEmail.dotm file.
    In this case, rename the file to NormalEmail.old when Outlook is closed. Starting Outlook and then closing it again (give Outlook some time to start completely first) should automatically recreate the NormalEmail.dotm file again.
    You should now be able to create your Quick Parts again and they should stay after a computer reboot as well.
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