Computer Security News

Microsoft Outlook is a great  program  and most of us use it. But when things go wrong , it can be one of the worst  programs to deal with .  Let’s take a   look at how Outlook PST files work, and then how you can take  measures   to  fix   them.

In  Microsoft Outlook  , all data is stored in Personal Storage Table files. PST is a  file extension    linked   with Personal Folders files used with certain  Microsoft products . Personal Folders (.pst) files are used to store local copies of messages, calendar events, and other items within Microsoft Microsoft Exchange Client, Windows Messaging, Microsoft Outlook, and Microsoft Outlook Express.

It is very likely   that errors can occur within your .pst files, there are many .pst error codes that are associated with these problems. Here is an example of some of the .pst errors you might have experienced :

• OL2000: Unable to Open a Shared .pst File Without a Password
• OL2000: Unable to Use Your Personal Folder File if it Exceeds the 2 GB Size Limit
• OL2000: Error Opening a Shortcut to an Item in a PST

Steps to Fix  Outlook PST

With any error code, always  close   and then re-open Outlook. If problems still persist , reboot your computer. If this fails,  more drastic action is required .

In Windows, there is a built-in repair tool, called scanpst.exe. You can try running  this over your PST file. In  many    instances , it should  repair   the  trouble   and allow you to open  Outlook again.

Steps  to use Scanpst.exe

• On the Start menu, click Run
• In the Open box, type: drive:\Program Files\Common Files\System\Mapi\LocaleID\scanpst.exe
• Click OK
• In the Enter the name of the file you want to scan box, type the path and file name given in the error message above
• Click Start
• Click Repair

If Scanpst.exe was successful it will alert you with a message, but if that fails, you will need a more  sophisticated   third party repair  program . There are only a few PST repair tools  on the market  , probably the best is Stellar PST Recovery. This is powerful software that can fix PST errors, split oversize files, recover passwords and  plenty   more. Luckily  you can recover PST data in almost every situation with Stellar PST Recovery.

Your Outlook data is vital , so be careful when trying to repair PST files. Always  create   a backup of your PST before taking any action.