{"id":244,"date":"2016-03-03T11:09:13","date_gmt":"2016-03-03T10:09:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/darko-keric.from.hr\/?p=244"},"modified":"2016-03-03T11:09:13","modified_gmt":"2016-03-03T10:09:13","slug":"backup-and-restore-all-outlook-data","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/darko-keric.from.hr\/?p=244","title":{"rendered":"Backup and Restore all Outlook data"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Introduction<\/h2>\n

With today\u2019s use of e-mail you almost can\u2019t afford to lose a single e-mail so let alone your entire mail archive, Calendar items and Contacts.
\nThis guide is all about backing up and restoring your Outlook Data. It describes various methods and explains which method is best to be used in which scenarios.
\n\u2022 Locating the pst-file
\n\u2022 Relocating the pst-file (optional)
\n\u2022 Backup pst-file
\n\u2022 Restore pst-file
\n\u2022 Export pst-file
\n\u2022 Import pst-file
\n\u2022 Backing up individual items
\n\u2022 Backing up an Exchange mailbox
\n\u2022 Restoring the Exchange mailbox
\n\u2022 Tools<\/p>\n

Locating the pst-file
\nBefore you can make a backup you\u2019ll need to know what to backup first. In the case of Outlook in a home environment, all data is generally stored in a single file with a pst-extension. The pst-file is also known as Personal Folders and is able to store several mail, contacts, journal, notes and calendar folders.
\nYou can locate your pst-file by using one of the following methods;
\n\u2022 Make sure you include hidden and system files and folders when searching for a pst-file.
\n\u2022 For Outlook 2007 and previous on Windows XP the default location is;
\nC:\\Documents and Settings\\%username%\\Local Settings\\Application Data\\Microsoft\\Outlook\\
\n\u2022 For Outlook 2007 and previous on Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8 the default location is;
\nC:\\Users\\%username%\\AppData\\Local\\Microsoft\\Outlook\\
\n\u2022 For Outlook 2010 on Windows XP the default location is;
\nC:\\Documents and Settings\\%username%\\My Documents\\Outlook Files\\
\n\u2022 For Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013 on Windows Vista, Windows 7 or Windows 8 the default location is;
\nC:\\Users\\%username%\\Documents\\Outlook Files\\
\n\u2022 You can also locate the file by using;
\nRight click the root folder (probably Outlook Today)-> Properties-> button Advanced-> field Filename
\n\u2022 If you have multiple pst-files you can get an overview via;
\no Outlook 2007 and previous
\nFile-> Data File Management\u2026
\no Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013
\nFile-> Account Settings-> Account Settings-> tab Data Files<\/p>\n

Tool Tip!
\nWhile making a copy of the pst-file will effectively backup your Outlook data, it will not include any mail account configuration settings (mail profile), templates or signatures. If you want to include this into your backups as well you can use the backup tool \u201cOutlook Backup\u201d from ABF Software. The backups can also be scheduled so you won\u2019t have to worry about it again.<\/p>\n

Relocating the pst-file (optional)
\nI assume lots of you have already relocated the \u201cMy Documents\u201d folder to a more convenient location by right clicking it on the Desktop-> Properties-> tab Target. I\u2019ve got mine set to D:\\My Documents so I won\u2019t have to rescue my data in the (worst) case that I have to reformat my C:\\ drive.
\nAs I see the pst-file to be data, just like a Word file, I like to have it where I keep all my important documents; in the \u201cMy Documents\u201d folder. In the \u201cMy Documents\u201d folder I have a folder called \u201cMy Outlook\u201d where I store the file in.<\/p>\n

Note:
\nIf you are using Outlook 2010 or Outlook 2013 you can skip the steps below as Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013 already place the pst-files in a subfolder of the My Documents folder called \u201cOutlook files\u201d.
\nTo configure Outlook with a new pst-file location do the following;
\n1. Make sure Outlook is closed.
\n2. Go to the location of your pst-file.
\n3. Copy it to the new location (D:\\My Documents\\My Outlook).
\n4. Rename the file in the old location to .old.
\n5. Start Outlook; after a warning message it will prompt you to locate the pst-file. Use the Browse button to direct it to the location you\u2019ve set in step 3.
\n6. You\u2019re done! If all is successful you can delete the renamed pst-file in the old location to get some space back on your C:\\-drive. You might need to recreate some \u201cmove to folder\u201d Wizard Rules to update the new location.<\/p>\n

Backup pst-file
\nBacking up the pst-file is quite easy; you just copy the pst-file to your safe location when Outlook is closed. A safe location can be one of the following:
\n\u2022 another physical hard drive in your machine
\n\u2022 another physical hard drive in another machine
\n\u2022 an external hard drive
\n\u2022 a USB memory stick
\n\u2022 a Flash memory card
\n\u2022 a CD-R(W)
\n\u2022 a DVD+\/-R(W)
\n\u2022 a backup tape
\n\u2022 an online storage location such as Dropbox or SkyDrive.<\/p>\n

Restore pst-file
\nA backup is worthless if you can\u2019t restore it. So we first test the back-up. Testing the backup when knowing that the original still works is a lot less stressful then as well.
\nTo restore your pst-file, copy the file to the location where you want to work with it like:
\nD:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Temp<\/p>\n

Note:
\nIf you restored the file from CD\/DVD, make sure you uncheck the \u201cRead Only\u201d file attribute by right clicking the file and choosing Properties.
\nNow open Outlook and connect to the file by choosing; File-> Open-> Outlook Data File\u2026
\nYou can now check if the backup was successful and make sure you backed up the correct file.
\nIn the case of a real disaster, the original pst-file would be missing or will be beyond repair. When the pst-file is missing, Outlook would have prompted you for the pst-file location. You then need to close Outlook and restore the file from backup to D:\\My Documents\\My Outlook as described above. Then start Outlook again and if prompted browse to the location of the pst-file.
\nWhen the pst-file is beyond repair, Outlook will start with the message that it can\u2019t be opened and that you need to run the Inbox Repair Tool (scanpst.exe). If scanpst.exe can\u2019t fix the pst-file either, rename the corrupted pst-file to .old and you would now be in the situation that the pst-file went missing.<\/p>\n

Tip!
\nIf you want to restore a pst-file of a POP3 account on a new computer or after you\u2019ve recreated your mail profile see:<\/p>\n

Restoring a pst-file of a POP3 account on a new computer
\nI\u2019ve backed up my pst-file of my POP3 account from my old computer and now want to use it on my new computer.
\nI\u2019ve been told not to use the Import feature to restore my pst-file but to reuse it when setting up my account in Outlook. That way I should be able to keep my rules, view settings and various other personalization settings.
\nThat sounds great and I would prefer not to lose too many of my settings but how exactly do I need to restore my POP3 pst-file to keep all these things?
\nWhen setting up Outlook on your new computer or when you recreate your mail profile, it is indeed best to directly configure it with your original POP3 pst-file rather than connecting to it afterwards.
\nIf you created the backup of your pst-file as a direct copy of the original rather than using an Export, then you\u2019ll indeed find various customizations are still there after a proper restore.
\nWhile the instructions below will allow you to restore your pst-file with your rules intact, it never hurts to export your rules to a separate rwz-file just in case.
\nRestore your pst-file to a convenient location
\nBefore starting to configure Outlook, restore the pst-file to a location on your local hard disk which is convenient for you. For instance, place them in a folder called Outlook files in your (My) Documents folder.
\nDo NOT place it directly in the root of a drive such as directly under C:\\. This could lead to permissions issues. Placing it in a manually created subfolder such as C:\\MyData\\ isn\u2019t an issue. Even better would be to use a subfolder on a separate partition dedicated to your data such as D:\\MyData\\.
\nAlso verify that after restoring the pst-file the Read-only file attribute isn\u2019t set on for it. To check this, right click on the file and choose Properties.
\nOutlook 2010 and Outlook 2013
\nWhen adding your account, it is best to select the manual account configuration. This is because Auto Account Setup would otherwise configure your account as an IMAP account (if available for your account) or create a new empty pst-file when POP3 settings are found.
\nAfter specifying your account details, use the option \u201cDeliver new messages to: Existing Outlook Data File\u201d to direct it to your restored pst-file.
\nDirectly configure Outlook to re-use your original pst-file
\nwhen setting up your POP3 account.
\nIf you already have your account configured, you can use the Outlook 2007 instructions below as well but in Step 1 use;
\nFile-> Account Settings-> Account Settings\u2026
\nNote 1: Even though your rules are maintained this way, it is quite likely that you\u2019ll have to remap your \u201cMove to folder\u201d rules. This usually comes down to selecting the rule, clicking on the folder name in the bottom pane and confirming the folder.<\/p>\n

Note 2: If you restored a pst-file that was last used in Outlook 2007 or previous and had configured Outlook to leave a copy on the server, then your on-line emails will be redownloaded. For more info see the \u201cDealing with Duplicates\u201d section below.
\nOutlook 2007
\n1. After adding your POP3 account, choose Tools-> Account Settings\u2026
\n2. On the Data Files tab, press Add\u2026
\n3. Confirm the \u201cNew Outlook Data File\u201d dialog
\n4. Browse to the location of the restored pst-file.
\n5. Select and open it.
\n6. Confirm the \u201cPersonal Folders\u201d dialog or optionally change the Name field.
\n7. Verify that the pst-file you just added is selected.
\n8. Press the Set as Default button.
\n9. Confirm the warning that you get.
\n10. Restart Outlook.
\nChanging the default pst-file to your original pst-file.
\n(click on image to enlarge).
\nAfter restarting Outlook, you can remove the newly created empty pst-file via;
\nTools-> Account Settings\u2026-> tab Data Files-> select the pst-file-> Remove<\/p>\n

Note 1: It is important that you do not close the Account Settings dialog during this procedure and do not connect to the pst-file via File-> Open-> Outlook Data File\u2026
\nDoing so will result in the loss of various meta data (including rules!) of the restored pst-file.<\/p>\n

Note 2: Even though your rules are maintained this way, it is quite likely that you\u2019ll have to remap your \u201cMove to folder\u201d rules. This usually comes down to selecting the rule, clicking on the folder name in the bottom pane and confirming the folder.<\/p>\n

Note 3: If you previously had Outlook configured to leave a copy on the server, then your on-line emails will be redownloaded. For more info see the \u201cDealing with Duplicates\u201d section below.
\nOutlook 2003
\n1. After adding your POP3 account, choose Tools-> E-mail Accounts\u2026
\n2. Verify that \u201cView or change existing e-mail accounts\u201d is selected and press Next.
\n3. Press the \u201cNew Outlook Data File\u2026\u201d button.
\n4. Confirm the \u201cNew Outlook Data File\u201d dialog
\n5. Browse to the location of the restored pst-file.
\n6. Select and open it.
\n7. Confirm the \u201cPersonal Folders\u201d dialog or optionally change the name field.
\n8. Set the \u201cDeliver new e-mail to the following location:\u201d dropdown list to the pst-file you just added.
\n9. Press the Finish button.
\n10. Confirm the warning that you get.
\n11. Restart Outlook.
\nChanging the default delivery location back to your original pst-file.<\/p>\n

Note 1: It is important that you do not close the Account Settings dialog during this procedure and do not connect to the pst-file via File-> Open-> Outlook Data File\u2026
\nDoing so will result in the loss of various meta data (including rules!) of the restored pst-file.<\/p>\n

Note 2: Even though your rules are maintained this way, it is quite likely that you\u2019ll have to remap your \u201cMove to folder\u201d rules. This usually comes down to selecting the rule, clicking on the folder name in the bottom pane and confirming the folder.<\/p>\n

Note 3: If you previously had Outlook configured to leave a copy on the server, then your on-line emails will be redownloaded. For more info see the \u201cDealing with Duplicates\u201d section below.
\nDealing with duplicates
\nWhen you are restored a pst-file from Outlook 2007 or previous and had your POP3 account on your previous computer configured to leave a copy on the server, then the emails that are available in the Inbox folder of the mailbox on server will be redownloaded.
\nWhat\u2019s not included in the pst-file
\nWhile more and more settings of Outlook are stored within the pst-file, there are various files and settings which are not included that you want to take note of such as;
\n\u2022 Account settings
\n\u2022 Signatures (they can be copied from your Sent Items though)
\n\u2022 Custom Stationery
\n\u2022 Quick Parts
\n\u2022 AutoText
\nSome of these settings and files can be backed up and transferred manually or you could use an \u201cAll-in-One\u201d Outlook backup solution such as ABF Outlook Backup<\/p>\n

Export pst-file
\nIt\u2019s a general misconception that an export of your mail is a good backup. This misconception gets even bigger if you run the export and see that the default name of the file to export to is backup.pst.
\nThe reason that an export isn\u2019t a backup is because you will lose data during this export, even if you configure it to export all the folders and subfolders.
\nAmongst others, the following data gets lost during an export:
\n\u2022 Custom forms
\n\u2022 Custom views
\n\u2022 Message Rules
\n\u2022 Folder properties like AutoArchive settings
\n\u2022 Send\/Receive history for POP3 accounts in Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013
\n\u2022 and various other data and settings.
\nAn export of your pst-file to another pst-file can be seen as a selective backup since during the export you can choose which data you want to backup. This is handy if you see no need in backing up the entire pst-file like the \u201cSent Items\u201d folder or the \u201cFunny Forwards\u201d folder (who doesn\u2019t have one of those?) which can get quite big over time and you might consider them as not important enough to backup.
\nLet\u2019s say you only want to export your Inbox and your Contacts folder;
\n1. Open the Import and Export Wizard
\no Outlook 2007 and previous
\nFile-> Import and Export\u2026
\no Outlook 2010
\nFile-> Open-> Import
\n(unlike the name suggests, it also includes export options)
\no Outlook 2013
\nFile-> Open & Export-> Import\/Export
\n2. Choose Export to a file.
\n3. Choose Personal Folder File (.pst).
\n4. Select the Inbox and press Next (we do the Contacts folder later).
\n5. Set the file location to D:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Backup\\export.pst
\n6. Press Finish and you\u2019ll be prompted to set properties for the export.pst file.
\n7. In the Name field type a descriptive name like \u201cExport June 2004\u2033 (yeah, I wrote this guide a long time ago but don\u2019t worry; I still keep it up to date!).
\n8. Press OK to start the export.
\n9. To export the Contacts folder as well repeat step 1 to 4 and this time select the Contacts folder.
\n10. If the save location is not set to the path you\u2019ve set in step 5 browse to it.
\n11. Press Finish to export the Contact folder.
\n12. Close Outlook and copy the exported file to your safe location as described in Backup pst-file.<\/p>\n

Import pst-file
\nImporting a pst-file can only be done in a working Outlook situation, like when you\u2019ve reinstalled your machine, configured Outlook and now want to restore your Inbox and Contacts.
\nImporting a pst-file can be done in two different ways; automatically through a wizard or manually by dragging and dropping.
\nBefore importing, restore your pst-file:
\nCopy the file to the location where you want to work with it like; D:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Temp. If you restored from CD\/DVD, make sure you uncheck the \u201cRead Only\u201d file attribute by right clicking the file and choosing Properties.<\/p>\n

Restore through the Import and Export Wizard
\n1. Open the Import and Export Wizard
\no Outlook 2007 and previous
\nFile-> Import and Export\u2026
\no Outlook 2010
\nFile-> Open-> Import
\no Outlook 2013
\nFile-> Open & Export-> Import\/Export
\n2. Choose Import from another program or file.
\n3. Choose Personal Folder File (.pst).
\n4. Browse to the location where you\u2019ve restored the pst file. For instance:
\nD:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Temp
\n5. Set the options to \u201cInclude subfolders\u201d and \u201cImport items into the same folder in:\u201d and select the folder that is listed as your Outlook Today folder set in the dropdown list.
\n6. Press Finish to complete the import.
\n7. Restart Outlook and remove the export.pst file from the Temp directory if desired.<\/p>\n

Restore manually
\n1. Choose File-> Open-> Outlook Data File\u2026
\n2. Browse to the location where you\u2019ve restored the pst file. For instance:
\nD:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Temp
\n3. You\u2019ll now see an additional set of folders added to your folder list which you can expand. Expand the list and select the Inbox folder
\n4. In this folder select the messages you want to restore to the original Inbox folder
\n5. Drag & drop them to the default Inbox folder
\n6. Do the same for the Contacts folder. You might want to set your view to a list view so you can easily select and move the items.
\no Outlook 2007 and previous
\nView-> Current View-> Phone List
\no Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013
\ntab Home-> group Current View-> List
\n7. Now that the importing is complete, right click the pst-file in Outlook added in step 2 and choose Disconnect.
\n8. Restart Outlook and remove the export.pst file from the Temp directory if desired.<\/p>\n

Backing up individual items
\nSometimes it\u2019s more convenient to backup a single item. Think about account login information you\u2019ve received by e-mail. Backing up single items is very easy but depending on the format that you choose, you may not be able to import them back in Outlook anymore.
\nYou can choose File-> Save as\u2026 and then choose in which format you want to save the message. If you want to be able to open them on just about any system you can choose the txt or htm format. Choose the msg-format if you want to be able to open or import them in Outlook again.
\nTo easily save several messages in the Outlook format (msg), you can select those messages and drag & drop them out of Outlook into an Explorer window. When you save them in the msg-format, any attachments that might have been included in the message are saved within the msg-file as well.
\nTo quickly restore saved msg-files to Outlook, you can simply drag & drop them from an Explorer window back into Outlook.<\/p>\n

Backing up an Exchange mailbox
\nBacking up an Exchange mailbox is the task of the Exchange administrator. Since this is managed on the Exchange server, it\u2019s beyond the scope of this article.
\nHowever in some cases it\u2019s good to have a backup for yourself as well. This is especially true if you are a mobile user and you synchronize with the Exchange server so you\u2019ll have your messages available when you are not connected to the Exchange server.
\nIf you are not able to connect to the Exchange server for a long time but you\u2019ll have to make sure you can always reach your e-mail, you might want to export your messages as well. This way you\u2019ll have a backup of the mailbox in case something happens to the cached off-line mailbox. See the Export section for more info on how you can export certain folders.<\/p>\n

Restoring the Exchange mailbox
\nRestoring the Exchange mailbox is also a task of the Exchange administrator. Here I\u2019ll describe how you can use the exported pst-file when the off-line mailbox gets lost or scanost.exe can\u2019t repair it and you won\u2019t be able to connect to the Exchange server for a while.<\/p>\n

Outlook 2007, Outlook 2010 and Outlook 2013
\n1. Go to Control Panel-> Mail-> button Data Files\u2026
\n2. Press the Add\u2026 button.
\n3. Outlook 2007 only;
\nSelect whether it\u2019s an Outlook 97-2002 or Office Outlook pst-file (in the example we\u2019ve created an Office Outlook file but it doesn\u2019t matter which one you choose when you add an existing pst-file).
\n4. Browse to the location where you\u2019ve restored the pst file. For instance:
\nD:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Temp
\n5. You\u2019ll get a details overview; press OK
\n6. Set the file as the default delivery location by selecting it and pressing the button \u201cSet as Default\u201d.
\n7. Start Outlook and see that it adds the other default Outlook folders in case you haven\u2019t exported these.
\n8. Cancel all security prompts you might be getting from the Exchange account.<\/p>\n

For Outlook 2002\/2003
\n1. Go to Control Panel-> Mail-> button E-mail Accounts-> button Next.
\n2. Cancel all password prompts you might be getting from the Exchange Account.
\n3. Now press the button New Outlook Data File\u2026
\n4. Outlook 2003 only;
\nSelect whether it\u2019s an Outlook 97-2002 or Outlook 2003 pst-file (in the example we\u2019ve created an Outlook 2003 file but it doesn\u2019t matter which one you choose when you add an existing pst-file).
\n5. Browse to the location where you\u2019ve restored the pst file. For instance:
\nD:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Temp
\n6. You\u2019ll get a details overview; press OK
\n7. Now set the default delivery location to the pst-file you\u2019ve just added by using the dropdown list.
\n8. Start Outlook and see that it adds the other default Outlook folders in case you haven\u2019t exported these.
\n9. Cancel all security prompts you might be getting from the Exchange account.<\/p>\n

For Outlook 2000
\n1. Go to Control Panel-> Mail
\n2. Press Add\u2026
\n3. Browse to the location where you\u2019ve restored the pst file. For instance:
\nD:\\My Documents\\My Outlook\\Temp
\n4. You\u2019ll get a details overview; press OK
\n5. Cancel all password prompts you might be getting from the Exchange Account (Work Offline).
\n6. Press the Delivery tab.
\n7. Now set the default delivery location to the pst-file you\u2019ve just added by using the dropdown list.
\n8. Start Outlook and see that it adds the other default Outlook folders in case you haven\u2019t exported these.
\n9. Cancel all security prompts you might be getting from the Exchange account (Work Offline).<\/p>\n

Tools
\nOutlook Add-in: Personal Folders Backup
\nThe Personal Folders Backup download creates backup copies of your .PST files at regular intervals, making it easy to keep all of your Outlook folders safely backed up. Although the download site states that it works for Outlook 2002 or later, it actually still works for Outlook 2000 as well.
\nBackup script(http:\/\/www.howto-outlook.com\/files\/Backup_Outlook_Script.zip)
\nA Guru created this batch in order to be able to schedule Outlook pst-file backups by using Scheduled tasks in Windows. Since I always have my Outlook open a simple copy to backup isn\u2019t possible without an \u201copen file backup\u201d service.
\nOutlook Backup (tip!)
\nABF Outlook Backup is a backup and synchronization tool for MS Outlook. It allows you to backup and restore your messages, address book, settings, accounts, message rules, junk email lists, signatures, and even your Internet favorites. It also works great for migrating your Outlook data, settings and accounts from one machine to another; the version of Windows and Outlook don\u2019t even have to be the same. This tool is compatible with Windows 8 as well!
\nIf you decide to order use ABF-HT2GL to get a discount.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

References<\/h2>\n