Backing Up User Settings

One of the most frustrating aspects of configuring Office is the lengthy set of customization options you have to go through when you first install the software. If you're particular about user preferences, such as those found in the Options dialog box for virtually all Office programs, installing Office on a new computer is particularly vexing. It can take days or weeks to reset all preferences so the programs work the way you want them to work. And some settings—such as custom dictionaries, AutoCorrect and AutoText entries, and macros—require painstaking backup and restore routines to transfer from one computer to another.

If you want to back up your preferences and settings once and for all so you can restore them on demand, use an Office tool called the Save My Settings Wizard. This wizard backs up your settings and saves them to a file or to secure, protected storage on Microsoft's Web site. As Figure A.9 shows, the wizard lets you save a file and restore it to a new or existing Office installation, enabling you to quickly transfer preferences on demand, without having to wade through dialog boxes.