Email Migration Guide
By Pegasus Mail keeps everything in one folder, normally C:\PMAIL. To move it, close Pegasus Mail, copy that whole folder to the new computer at the same path, run C:\PMAIL\PROGRAMS\winpm-32.exe -A to rebuild the registry entries, then run the installer to add shortcuts. The path must match the old PC or recent messages can go missing. If you do not want Pegasus on the new machine, convert the PMM and CNM files to Outlook or a cloud account.
A new PC arrives and twenty years of mail sit inside Pegasus Mail on the old one. The good news is that Pegasus Mail is one of the easiest email programs to carry across, because it does not scatter data around Windows. The bad news is that one wrong folder path is enough to hide your newest messages.
This guide gives both routes. First, the native way to move Pegasus Mail and keep using it, exactly as the PMAIL community advises. Second, the way to get the mail into Outlook, Office 365, Gmail or Thunderbird when the new computer will not run Pegasus at all.
Where Does Pegasus Mail Keep Its Files?
Pegasus Mail, the long-running Windows email client written by David Harris, stores its program and your mail in one tree. On a standard single-user install that tree is C:\PMAIL, with the program in C:\PMAIL\PROGRAMS and the mailboxes in C:\PMAIL\MAIL, one subfolder per user. Inside a mailbox each folder you see in Pegasus is a .PMM file with a matching .PMI index, and each new unread message arrives as its own .CNM file until you open it.
Because it all sits under one folder, moving it is mostly a copy job. Before you copy anything, open Help > About Pegasus Mail and press Info. That screen shows the real program and home mailbox paths on your PC, which may differ from the default if someone installed it elsewhere years ago.
How Do I Move Pegasus Mail and Keep Using It?
These are the five steps the PMAIL community recommends. The whole thing takes about twenty minutes plus copy time. The only rule that matters is that the new computer uses the same folder paths as the old one.
Find the exact Pegasus Mail paths on the old PC
Open Pegasus Mail on the old computer, go to Help > About Pegasus Mail and press the Info button. Write down the program folder and the home mailbox folder. On a standard single-user setup they are C:\PMAIL\PROGRAMS and C:\PMAIL\MAIL. The new PC must use these same paths, so this step matters more than any other.
Close Pegasus Mail and copy the whole PMAIL folder
Shut the program down fully, then copy the entire C:\PMAIL folder to a USB drive or network share. Take everything inside it, including PROGRAMS, MAIL and any files at the top level. Recent unread messages live as single .CNM files inside the mail folder, so a partial copy can leave them behind.
Put the folder on the new PC at the same path
On the new computer create C:\PMAIL and copy the folder in so the layout matches the old machine. If it was already installed there, uninstall it and delete its folder first so the copy is not mixed with a fresh install. Do not place it under Program Files, since the path has to match the old one.
Rebuild the registry entries with winpm-32.exe -A
Open a command prompt and run C:\PMAIL\PROGRAMS\winpm-32.exe -A. That switch writes the registry entries the program needs on the new machine. Then run the current Pegasus Mail installer over the same folder to set up shortcuts and file links. This is the method the PMAIL community recommends.
Open Pegasus Mail and check your folders
Start Pegasus Mail. Your folder tree, address books and settings should be exactly as they were. Check the newest messages and any unread mail, because those are the .CNM files most likely to go missing if a path was wrong. Keep the old PC untouched until you have seen everything on the new one.
What Goes Wrong When Moving Pegasus Mail?
The classic failure is a path mismatch. The program records where its home mailbox lives, so if the old PC used C:\PMAIL and the new one has the folder under Program Files or on a different drive letter, the program starts but cannot see your newest .CNM messages. One PMAIL community member lost 47 recent emails this way before the paths were fixed. Move the folder to the matching path and they come back.
Two smaller traps. Copying only the MAIL folder leaves out settings, filters and address books that live elsewhere in the tree, so always copy the whole thing. And a multi-user or network install has its mailboxes split from the program folder, so check the Info screen rather than assuming the single-user layout.
How Do I Move Pegasus Mail to Outlook, Office 365 or Gmail?
Many people moving to a new PC do not want Pegasus on it at all. The new machine already runs Outlook, or the company has moved to Office 365 or Gmail. In that case you skip the reinstall and convert the mail files instead. Univik Pegasus Converter is a Windows tool that reads the PMM, CNM and PMI files straight from a copied PMAIL folder without Pegasus installed.
- Copy the PMAIL folder from the old computer, exactly as in step 2 above. That copy is all the tool needs.
- Open the folder in Univik Pegasus Converter. Point it at the copied PMAIL folder and the mailbox loads with its folder tree intact. Configured IMAP and POP3 accounts inside Pegasus load from the Open menu too.
- Pick the destination. Choose Outlook PST for a local Outlook, or push it live into Office 365, Gmail, Thunderbird or another IMAP mailbox. MBOX, EML, PDF, HTML, TEXT and CSV are there for archives.
The folder layout carries over, and nothing is uploaded except the mail you send to your own cloud account. The trial handles only a handful of messages per file, enough to check the output before you buy. If you only need to read a folder, the online Pegasus Mail viewer opens PMM and CNM files in a browser with nothing installed.
The copy-the-folder method works and we still recommend it to anyone who wants to keep Pegasus. The people who write to us are the ones whose new PC already lives in Outlook or Office 365. They do not want Pegasus back, they want the mail out.
Which Pegasus Mail Route Should I Pick?
Both start with the same copy of the PMAIL folder. What differs is where the mail ends up.
| Question | Copy the folder | Convert the mail |
|---|---|---|
| You want to | Keep using Pegasus Mail | Move to Outlook, Office 365 or Gmail |
| What you copy | The whole C:\PMAIL folder | The whole C:\PMAIL folder |
| Needs Pegasus on the new PC | Yes, same version or newer | No |
| Path must match | Yes, this is the main trap | No, any folder works |
| Keeps folder layout | Yes | Yes |
| Cost | Free | Free trial, then a licence |
| Time | About 20 minutes | About 10 minutes plus upload |
| Best for | A user who likes Pegasus and wants it as it was | A new PC that already runs Outlook or a cloud mailbox |
Univik Pegasus Converter reads the PMM, CNM and PMI files from your copied PMAIL folder and moves the whole mailbox to Outlook PST, Office 365, Gmail, Thunderbird or MBOX, folders and all. No Pegasus needed.
Windows 7 to 11 · reads files offline · trial converts a few emails per file
The short version
- Pegasus Mail keeps its program and mail under one folder, normally C:\PMAIL.
- To keep using it, copy that whole folder to the same path on the new PC, run winpm-32.exe -A, then run the installer.
- A path that does not match the old PC is the main reason recent messages vanish.
- Check Help > About Pegasus Mail > Info on both machines to confirm the paths.
- To move to Outlook, Office 365, Gmail or Thunderbird instead, convert the PMM and CNM files from the copied folder with Univik Pegasus Converter.
Try Univik Pegasus Converter free
Pegasus Mail Migration Questions
About This GuideWritten by Leena Taylor Paul and maintained by the Univik team, a Windows software developer since 2013. The folder paths and the winpm-32.exe -A step were checked against the PMAIL community's own migration advice and against a real Pegasus Mail install at C:\PMAIL. Leena tested the converter route with IMAP and POP3 accounts configured in Pegasus, and every account loaded and converted cleanly. Last verified 22 September 2026. Stuck on a move? The support team is one click away below.
Sources checked: PMAIL community · Pegasus Mail official site · Univik Pegasus Converter