Reinstall Skype while saving contacts Windows 7. How to reinstall Skype: better tips and tricks

We will continue to develop pressing topics. So, you decided to reinstall the system. Then you remembered that you have business/personal correspondence stored in Skype for the last two years (all the time that your Windows 7 was working successfully, it’s still damn resilient). Question: what to do? How to save important information? And again, Microsoft did not take care of the users and did not add a data import/export function for their product, although I think they could have done this. Fortunately, there is a way out: there are various programs on the Internet for saving and transferring data from Skype, but I do not recommend using them, as you can lose your account thanks to such experiments. There is an old and reliable method of copy-paste (how much easier and more reliable? :). So what do we need for this? Just your hands and a little attention.
1) Press the key combination WIN+R and enter the command:

%APPDATA%\Skype

Or the old fashioned way we go to the folder C:\Users\*username*\AppData\Roaming\Skype(you can also copy %APPDATA%\Skype in the address bar of Explorer).

2) Now, if you want to save absolutely all your Skype settings, then copy the entire contents of this folder. If you want to save only the chat history, then look for the folder with your Skype user name and copy it to another local drive or flash card.

3) Reinstall the system, install Skype and log in with your account. After this, you need to close Skype, to do this, right-click on the tray icon and select “ Signing out of Skype«.

...Skype contacts are not deleted

First, it's important to note that all of your Skype contacts are stored on servers on the Internet, not just on your computer.

This means that you can easily reinstall both the Skype program and the Windows operating system, and your contacts will remain safe and sound and will not be deleted from the servers.

Deleting and does not affect your contact list in any way! All contacts are saved in the same way as it happens, for example, in ICQ (in ICQ).

To put it simply, you can download your Skype contacts anywhere in the world as soon as you log into the Skype program under your account using your secret Password () and Login.

That is, from any other person’s computer or Android application – it doesn’t matter.

Why save Skype contacts

It is clear that all your contacts are stored on the Internet, and when the software is updated, they do not disappear anywhere. However, it can be useful to save your Skype contacts and make a Skype backup in case:

1. A software failure of the application will occur and this will affect the user’s profile posted on the Internet.

2. A software failure of the Skype application will occur and some new contacts simply will not be saved and synchronization will not have time to complete.

3. If you want to completely change your Skype profile, create a new account in the system, but keep a separate list of contacts.

4. If you suddenly lose access to Skype (forget your Login and Password), you will not be able to restore your old profile and will have to create a new account in the system.

5. If you need to transfer the list of your Skype contacts to someone else or transfer them to another profile.

6. If you need to create a special list of individual contacts, for example, for one of your relatives or loved ones.

7. If you want to protect yourself and take additional measures to protect your contacts. If you extremely value your existing contacts, which you collected with great difficulty.

In all of the above situations, you may need to save your Skype contacts in a backup copy.

This, so to speak, is an additional precaution that is guaranteed to protect your contact sheets from loss and deletion, from losing access to the Skype system, from any failures and problems.

How to save Skype contacts: step-by-step instructions

First of all, you will need to log into the program by entering your Login and Password. To complete all further steps, you must be logged in to Skype and have access to your contact list.

IMPORTANT: if you are unable to log into the system (program), you will have to first restore access, and only then will you be able to manage contacts.

1. in the Skype program on your or someone else’s computer, go to the menu item:

“Contacts” - “Advanced” - “Back up your contact list...”

2. In the next step, you need to specify a place to save the list of Skype contacts, come up with and enter a name for this file.

IMPORTANT - do not save your contact list:
on the system drive with Windows (usually drive “C”);
in the "My Documents" folder
on the "Desktop"!

It is better NOT to save the contacts file (with a Skype backup) in these three places, since when you reinstall Windows, all system drives, “My Documents” and “Desktop” are cleared. All data from these places on the logical disk can be permanently deleted when the system is formatted!

To save your contact list, it is better to select an independent local drive D, drive E, drive F, or an external one such as a flash drive.

Moreover, you can move the contacts file saved on your computer somewhere to cloud storage. Yandex.Disk, Mail Cloud or Google Cloud are perfect for this. We recommend searching for information on this issue on the Internet.

3. As soon as you choose a suitable location for saving the Skype backup, give the file a clear and memorable name, click “Save” and complete the procedure.

Now you can restore your Skype contacts from this backup file at any time, you can transfer your list to third parties, and you can protect yourself from unpleasant moments with restoring your Skype contacts list.

At least it will be useful for ensuring personal safety.

But do not forget to save the Skype contacts file in a place from which they cannot be deleted by accident, or when reinstalling the Windows operating system!

Useful facts

A Skype backup is a separate file with the extension “FILE_NAME.VCF” and any name that you give it when saving.

You can open a file with Skype contacts using the standard Windows Contacts application, as well as a regular text editor such as Notepad. True, in the notepad you will see a lot of illegible characters (encoding), among which contacts will clearly stand out.

A backup copy of Skype contacts can be transferred to third parties, sent by E-mail, attached to a message on a social network, or saved on a cloud drive on the Internet.

A contact sheet backup stores data at a specific point in time. To update this file, you will have to repeat the saving procedure.

In order to quickly find a saved list of Skype contacts on your computer, you need to use a search by mask: “ *.vcf"Found files with these extensions will be contact sheets that can be used to restore lost connections with friends, loved ones, and relatives.

Each separate Skype profile (separate account, separate user) will have its own individual list of contacts.

Hello friends! When you have problems using Skype, the first thing you do is look for a solution. Let's say you've tried all possible tips, but problems with sound, video and connection have not gone away. All you have to do is and reinstall Skype so that it works faster and better.

, Vista and XP

• Close the Skype application and make sure it is not running.
• Save copies of your personal data and files, such as voice messages, chat history, screenshots and calls recorded through SuperTintin, to a safe place.
• On Windows 7 and Vista, click " Start", enter " Execute" and press the Enter key. On Windows XP, click " Start", and then " Execute».
• Copy the folder Pictures and a folder with your Skype name on your desktop.
• To remove Skype, in Windows 7 and Vista, click " Start", enter " Execute" and press Enter. On Windows XP, click " Start", and then " Execute».
• Enter appwiz.cpl and click " OK».
• Find Skype in the list of applications and right-click on it. Select "Delete/Change".
• To delete the Skype folder, in Windows 7 and Vista, click Start, type Run, and press Enter. In Windows XP, click Start and then Run.
• Enter %appdata%\skype and click OK.

• Delete the Skype folder.
• Verify that Skype has been uninstalled by opening the C:\Program Files directory. Delete the Skype and SkypePM folders from there.
• Remove all Skype-related registry entries. In Windows 7 and Vista, click Start, type Run, and press Enter. In Windows XP, click Start and then Run.
• Type regedit and click OK.
• In the "Edit" menu item, click "Find" and run a search using the keyword Skype. Delete all found entries.

There are special applications that can help you remove Skype, for example, Revo Uninstaller Pro. These advanced programs remove all the garbage that remains after uninstalling applications in the usual way.

To reinstall Skype:

• Recover your personal data. In Windows 7 and Vista, click Start, type Run, and press Enter. In Windows XP, click Start and then Run.
• Enter %appdata%\skype and click OK.
• Copy the Skype and SkypePM folders to the Skype directory.

Uninstalling and reinstalling Skype should solve all the problems you are facing.

PS: Don't forget to record important video calls and conferences. To do this, you can use a special application called SuperTintin. Thanks to it, you can save important conversations and listen to them at any time. Good luck to you and enjoy your communication with friends and family.

What will you learn to do after watching this video?

In this lesson, you will learn how to completely uninstall and reinstall Skype, and also learn how to use the portable version of the program.

Video description:

In the previous lesson you learned. This review will focus on reinstalling Skype.

The first stage is to remove Skype. Go to Control Panel, Programs and Features (for Win 7) or Add or Remove Programs (for Windows XP). Find Skype in the list of programs and remove it.

The second step is to delete folders and files. Go to My Computer, open drive C (the system drive). Enter the word Skype into the search and you will see how many folders and files related to Skype remain on your computer after uninstalling the program. Your task is to remove them. If something will not be deleted, click the Skip button.

The third stage is cleaning the registry. To open the Registry Editor, click the Windows (Start) button and select Run. In the command line, type regedit and press Enter. In the Registry Editor window, go to Edit and select the Find command (you can use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+F). Write Skype in the search bar. A file will appear on the right side of the window confirming that after uninstalling the program there is still some data left. All these files need to be deleted (using the Del button). Next, press the F3 key to delete other Skype files one by one. Once all entries have been deleted, you will see a notification that the registry search is complete.

At this point, the Skype removal process is completely completed, and you can proceed to installing a new version of the program.

Go to the official website www.skype.com, hover your mouse over the Download Skype button and select the device where you will install the program (most likely it will be a computer with the Windows operating system). Then click the Download button and specify the path to save the installation file. When the download is complete, run the downloaded file. The Skype installation window will pop up, select the desired language. If you click the Settings button, you can change the program installation directory, configure the launch of Skype, and make other changes. Next, click the I agree – install button.

Once the installation is complete, Skype should start automatically. Click the Login button, enter your username and password and you are back in touch with your friends!

If you need to carry Skype with you on a flash drive, you can download Portable Skype. Go to the website skypeclub.ru and download the desired version (the author recommends version 5.1). If the program loads as an archive, be sure to extract the files. Then transfer the folder with files to a flash drive or any other medium and launch Skype on any device. The interface of the portable version of the program is no different from the regular one, so you can easily use Skype fully.