Managing Outlook Data

     

Outlook has become an integral part of users' daily job responsibilities. It is the leading source of communication in the workforce. Many users rely on the information contained within Outlook to be able to complete their daily responsibilities at work.

You will find that users who rely heavily on Outlook will require their problems be resolved quickly.

Make sure you are familiar with the different ways to manage Outlook data.

Using Data File Management

You use the Data File Management dialog box to determine where your PST files are located. You can open this dialog box from the File menu. The data files currently configured in your Outlook application are listed here. Select a data file in the list; then click Settings for more details or click Open Folder to display the folder that contains the data file.

To move or copy PST files, you must shut down Outlook first.

As good as Outlook is, it lacks any viable system for backing up your valuable Outlook information. Here's what you need to know about backup for Outlook: Outlook stores information in a data file called a personal folder file with a .pst extension.

The easiest way to back up all your Outlook information is to copy your PST file ”in most cases, Outlook.pst ”to a network drive or to your local hard drive.

Outlook enables you to archive your data to a file called Archive.pst ; when you do, your oldest data is placed into that file. From Outlook, point to Tools, select Options, click the Other tab, and then click the AutoArchive button. Now you can set your Outlook program to automate the archive process so that the process runs every few days.

If your PST files are not stored on a network drive that has a good backup strategy, you should implement your own backup plan. Copy all PST files to a CD or network drive on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. You need to determine which scenario is a good fit for your environment.

Follow these steps to archive all items that are older than a specified date:

1. Open Outlook.
   
   
2. Select the Archive option from the File menu to open the Archive dialog box, as shown in Figure 5.20.
   
   

   Figure 5.20. The Archive dialog box.

   

   
   
3. Select the Archive This Folder and All Subfolders option. Expand the Personal Folders item if necessary.
   
   
4. Enter an appropriate date in the Archive Items Older Than text box.
   
   
5. Check the Include Items with "Do Not AutoArchive" Checked option. This option backs up all items to your Archive.pst file.
   
   
6. Click the Browse button and navigate to the location where you want to store the Archive.pst file.
   
   
7. Click OK. The status bar displays the items being moved to the Archive.pst file. This process may take a few minutes, depending on the number of items being archived.
   
   

Importing and Exporting Data

You can use Outlook's Import / Export feature to back up your data, as well as add new data to your existing Outlook PST file.

The Export feature copies the specified data intact to a file, whereas the Archive feature (described in the preceding section) copies only old data to the archive file.

To export, open Outlook, click File, and then select Import and Export. The Import and Export Wizard starts. Select Export to a File and click Next. Then select Personal Folder File (.pst) and click Next. Select Personal Folders at the top of the dialog box to back up all your Outlook data. Make sure that the Include Subfolders check box is checked and click Next. Select a destination for the folder. Outlook labels the backup file backup.pst , and you can set the destination by placing the drive letter before the destination filename. For example, if your Zip drive is drive E:, you just type E:\backup.pst . It's a good idea to select Do Not Export Duplicate Items in the Options box. Finally, click Finish, and your Outlook data is exported.

The advantage of using the Export feature is that you can choose to export any of the individual Outlook folders. This way, you can effectively back up individual items such as your Calendar folder or your entire contents within the Outlook.pst file.

To restore a PST file into your current Outlook data, you can use the same utility that exported the data. Open the Import and Export Wizard and use the same option to import the data into Outlook. Select the File menu and choose the Import and Export option. To import the contents of an existing Personal Folder File (.pst), select Personal Folder File (.pst) and click Next. Enter the location of the PST file in the File to Import text box and click Next. At this stage, you can select to import all folders such as Inbox, Contacts, Deleted Items, or Sent Items. If you want to import all data, be sure to place a check mark by the Include Subfolders option. To complete the Import and Export Wizard, click Finish.

Repairing Corrupted Data

To fix corrupted PST files, you can use the Inbox Repair Tool . However, the tool isn't always able to repair every PST file. It works by repairing the PST file's header and then deleting anything in the file that it doesn't understand. So if a PST file's header is damaged, as may be the case for corruption that occurs during a version upgrade, the tool should have no trouble making the repair. But if the data within the file is corrupt, the Inbox Repair Tool will likely destroy what's left of the file. That's why it's always a good idea to make a backup of the PST file before running the Inbox Repair Tool.

The Inbox Repair Tool, named Scanpst.exe , is located in the drive :\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMapi\1033\ directory of any system that is running Windows XP. Other versions of Windows also include the Inbox Repair Tool, but the tool's location varies among earlier versions.