OneNote, Export Notebooks

Export OneNote Notebooks:

• Open the OneNote application and navigate to the notebook you would like to export. 
  • Click File located on the top left-hand corner 
• On the left side column, click export. 
  • You can export a Page, section or the entire notebook
    • For this explanation, we'll export the entire notebook, but the process should be the same for everything
  • Click "Notebook" and then "OneNote Package", then click "Export"
    • Find a safe directory to export the notebook to.
    • If OneNote stops responding, that is okay, that program is still exporting, it takes about 5 - 20 minutes to export a notebook depending on the size. 
      • You can open up task manager to see the program working
• Once the program is done exporting, make sure to find it in the directory you placed it in
  • If exporting a notebook, please be mindful that you have to "un-zip" the package, which will take some time
• After "un-zipping" the notebook, you should have an offline version of your notes. 
  • Please make sure to have a copy of your notes someplace safe 
    • More information on the "3-2-1 method": What is the 3-2-1 Backup Strategy? - 2025 Guide by Acronis
• PDF exports do not take a significant amount of time. I would export both PDF and the .onepkg files as a precaution.

Import OneNote Notebooks:

In order to import notebooks, you must have an non-university affiliated Microsoft account and be subscribed to Microsoft 365 as you will lose access to your Illinois Account once you graduate. 

• Open the OneNote application and navigate to the File tab on the top left-hand corner
• Click "Open"
  • Click "Browse" and navigate to where you saved your notebook files.
    
    • If you do not see your files, make sure you click "all files" on the file explorer
      • 
  • Find the file you want to open and click "Open" on the File Explorer pop-up
• Once you open the .onepkg file, another pop up will appear asking where you would like to store the physical copy of your notebook
  • click "Browse" and place it in a folder you would like to store your notebook in
    • Example places you can store the notebook
      • Documents\OneNote Notebooks
      • C:\OneNote Notebooks
      • an External Drive
      • OneDrive
    • Please keep in mind you might have to make a folder in order to save the notebooks
      • 
  • Once you have a place to save the notebooks too, you can click "Create"
    • This process could take some time. If OneNote stops responding, OneNote is still creating the notebook.
      • Once the notebook is created it should appear in your OneNote application 
• Once the file is created, you now have access to the notebook on a personal Microsoft account.

How to Sync to OneDrive

If you created a notebook on your hard drive physically, you may want to save a copy to OneDrive as a backup, this goes over to save an already created notebook to OneDrive

• Open the OneNote app and click "File" on the top left-hand corner. 
• Click "Save a Copy" 
  • Click "Browse" and save it in a OneDrive Folder
    • Examples include
      • OneDrive\OneNote Notebooks
      • OneDrive\OneNote
      • OneDrive\Notebooks
        • You may have to create folders in order to save them 
  • Once you found a folder you want to save a copy too, click "Save" on the File Explorer pop-up
  • Wait for the file to save. This could take some time depending on how big your notebook is.
• Once the file is saved to OneDrive, you want to make sure the file is synced to OneDrive
• Go back to the notebook and right-click the notebook you want to sync. 
  • Click "Sync this Notebook Now"
    • Wait
  • If you want to see the sync status:
    • Click "Notebook Sync Status" 
      • Wait for the Notebook to sync
• You can sync more than one notebook at a time, but it could take longer depending on the size of the notebook. 
• Once the notebooks are synced you can now access your notebooks via OneDrive.

Additional Info:

If you want to export your notes to a different note taking app, you can export the notebooks. You must be using a personal Microsoft account as University accounts are prohibited from exporting notebooks to a different app due to University Security Guidelines. 

Popular note taking apps:

• EverNote: Best Note Taking App - Organize Your Notes with Evernote 
• Obsidian: Obsidian - Sharpen your thinking 
• Joplin: Joplin 
  • Please keep in mind that the exporting notebooks from OneNote to any of these applications are not within IT@VetMed's purview.