Last updated on January 31st, 2022 at 11:10 am
Summary: The Outlook OST file can become corrupt for a variety of reasons at any time. In this blog, we have discussed some methods for repairing the OST file in Outlook 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, and 2007 versions. In addition, we have mentioned a specialized OST Recovery tool that can assist you in recovering data if your OST file becomes inaccessible or orphaned, as previously mentioned.
A Microsoft Outlook data file, also known as an OST file, is created when you configure your Outlook with IMAP, Outlook.com, Exchange, Office 365, or other accounts. A synchronized copy of your mailbox data is stored on your local system by this program. Even if you do not have access to the Internet or the server, you can still perform various actions such as reading emails, deleting emails, and composing new emails. When a connection to the server is re-established, Outlook synchronizes all changes made offline in the OST file with the server and saves them to the server’s local storage.
Restore OST file in MS Outlook
However, you may occasionally encounter a situation in which the OST file becomes corrupted. In addition to bad sectors on the hard drive, incompatible Outlook add-ins, and an oversized OST file, various other factors can cause OST corruption. For example, error messages during OST file synchronization, missing items from the OST file, and so on are all signs of OST corruption.
How to Restore a Corrupt OST File in Microsoft Outlook
Using Outlook’s built-in tools and features, you can repair OST file that has been damaged. These are the ones to look out for:
Solution 1: Make changes to the folder
If there is a problem with a specific folder, you can manually update the folder in Outlook if the problem persists. It is necessary to delete any offline items from the affected folder and then update the folder by connecting to the Exchange server to complete the process. Follow the steps outlined below:
- Open Outlook and right-click the folder that needs to be updated.
- Select Properties from the drop-down menu.
- There will be a dialogue box that appears. Click the Clear Offline Items button at the bottom of this dialogue box.
- Select the OK button.
- Select the Send/Receive tab and then the Update Folder button.
Solution 2: Repair the OST file with the help of ScanPST.exe
It is possible to repair both PST and OST files using the ScanPST.exe or Inbox Repair Tool, a built-in utility in Outlook that can be used to repair both. It is possible to use this Outlook repair tool to locate and correct errors in your OST file. By default, the ScanPST.exe program is located in the Outlook installation directory. On the other hand, the exact location may differ depending on the version of Outlook that you are using. To find out where ScanPST.exe is located in Outlook 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, and 2007, refer to How to Find ScanPST.exe Location in Outlook 2019.
Once you have located the ScanPST.exe file on your computer, you should proceed as follows:
- Run the ScanPST.exe program.
- Select Browse option in the Microsoft Outlook Inbox Repair Tool window that appears, then navigate to the location of the OST file that needs to be repaired.
- Select Start to begin scanning the file
- Once the scanning process is complete, double-check that you have selected the backup option before clicking Repair to repair the file.
- The appearance of an alert window will indicate that the repair has been completed successfully. To proceed, click OK.
- If ScanPST cannot repair the OST file, it will prompt you to create a new copy of the file. It is simply a matter of creating a new OST file in Outlook in this case.
What can be done if none of those mentioned above methods works?
In some cases, the solutions listed above will not work. For example, if the OST file contains certain offline items that are no longer available on the server, recreating the OST file (which would necessitate the deletion of the file) is not an option. It is necessary for this situation to extract and export the OST data to an Outlook-compatible PST format. A third-party tool such as OST Recovery is the most effective and time-saving method to recover the data from an inaccessible or orphaned OST file.
Why Use OST Recovery Software?
For those who need to repair OST files, OST Recovery tool is the ideal solution. It has many distinguishing characteristics, including a user-friendly interface, simple and rapid processing. Many Microsoft MVPs and IT professionals have also expressed their support for the software. Some of the features that distinguish it as a superior tool for OST Recovery include the following:
In almost all cases, this dedicated recovery tool will work for you and will assist you in repairing & recovering corrupted OST files.
- Risk-free recovery process.
- Support for encrypted file recovery.
- Free file preview before recovery facility; and more.
- The ability to recover up to 30 emails per folder is supported, significantly improving the previous version.
- User-friendly interface for easy recovery of files.
- Compatible with Microsoft Office 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, 2003, 2002 (XP), 2000, and XP Professional.
- Allows for the saving of recovered emails in various formats (PST, MBOX, EML, MSG, RTF, PDF or HTML, etc.)