DBX files are the database files of Outlook Express, an email software platform that is offered for free for computers with Windows operating systems.  Outlook Express is typically bundled with versions 4 to 6 of Internet Explorer, Windows’ very own internet browser.  Whenever messages are sent or received under Outlook Express, these messages are then stored to several database files or DBX files. These database files are referred to as “DBX” because they literally have DBX file extensions.

DBX files are typically found under the Outlook Express Store folder. This folder may be hidden or difficult to find especially for non-tech-savvy email users. To find the Store folder where the DBX files are saved, one just needs to locate the Tools Menu.  Under this menu, users should go to the Options and then Maintenance Tabs.  Under the Maintenance Tab, users will then be able to view where the email Store folder is located.  If one can’t find the store folder using these procedures, users may also try to search for this particular folder using the Search option field.

Under the Store folder of Outlook Express, various files with .DBX extensions are stored.  These files contain specific messages depending on how they are handled and classified by the email users.  Messages that are received and stored under the Inbox folder for example will have its own DBX file called Inbox.dbx.  Other email folders will also have their corresponding DBX file. Typical examples of stored DBX files include SentItems.dbx for all sent messages, Draft.dbx for draft messages, and Outbox.dbx if there are messages stored in the Outbox. For people who create special folders and subfolders on Outlook Express, each of these folders will also have their corresponding DBX files which are also saved on the Outlook Express Store folder. The best thing about DBX files is that they can be transferred and saved to another computer using the same email package.  This is especially useful for messages that are very important and need to be saved to another computer.