The pst file is something to view other than outlook. How to open a PST file if you don't have Office Outlook. How to Export PST File Data

You"re here because you have a file that has a file extension ending in .pst. Files with the file extension .pst can only be launched by certain applications. It"s possible that .pst files are data files rather than documents or media , which means they"re not meant to be viewed at all.

what is a .pst file?

Files in the PST format are data files created by Microsoft Outlook, a personal information manager and a part of the Microsoft Office Suite. Outlook is most often used as an email application; it also features other elements such as the contact manager, task manager, note taking, a journal and a calendar. The program can also work with Microsoft’s Exchange Server where multiple users may share mailboxes and calendars, exchange files and schedule meetings. PRF files are user profile files which contain information on the user such as signatures and references to mail folders, and other user preferences like mail account settings. Using Microsoft's Office Resource Kit, PRF files can be created and the set out to multiple systems. PST files are used to hold personal information used by Microsoft Outlook and Exchange. This information may include contacts, addresses, email folders and other data. Such files have a 2GB limit and will slow down the program if files are close to the limit.

how to open a .pst file?

Launch a .pst file, or any other file on your PC, by double-clicking it. If your file associations are set up correctly, the application that"s meant to open your .pst file will open it. It"s possible you may need to download or purchase the correct application. It"s also possible that you have the correct application on your PC, but .pst files aren"t yet associated with it. In this case, when you try to open a .pst file, you can tell Windows which application is the correct one for that file. From then on, opening a .pst file will open the correct application.

applications that open a .pst file

Microsoft Outlook Express

Outlook Express is an email and news client that is integrated with Internet Explorer versions 4.0 through 6.0. It is also bundled with a number of versions of Microsoft Windows, from Windows 98 to Windows Server 2003, and is available for Windows 3.x, Windows NT 3.51, Windows 95 and Mac OS 9. In Windows Vista, Outlook Express was outdated by Windows Mail, then again by Windows Live Mail as separate software in Windows 7. Microsoft Entourage, sold as part of Microsoft Office for Macintosh, has changed the Macintosh version. Outlook Express is a diverse application from Microsoft Office Outlook. The two programs do not share a common codebase, but do share a common architectural philosophy. The similar names lead many people to incorrectly conclude that Outlook Express is a stripped-down version of Microsoft Office Outlook. Outlook Express utilizes the Windows Address Book to store contact information and incorporates tightly with it. On Windows XP, it also joins together with Windows Messenger.

Microsoft Office Outlook

Microsoft Outlook is available as a part of the Microsoft Office suite, and a personal information manager from Microsoft. The present version is Microsoft Office Outlook 2010 for Windows and Microsoft Office Outlook 2011 for Mac. Although frequently used primarily as an email application, it also includes a calendar, task manager, contact manager, note taking, a journal and Web browsing. It can be utilized as a stand-alone application, or can work with Microsoft Exchange Server and Microsoft SharePoint Server for many users in an organization, such as shared mailboxes and calendars, exchange public folders, SharePoint lists and meeting schedules. There are third-party add-on applications that integrate Outlook with electronic devices such as BlackBerry mobile phones and with other software like Office & Skype Internet communication. Developers can also make their own conventional software that works with Outlook and Office components using Microsoft Visual Studio. Moreover, Windows Mobile devices can synchronize almost all Outlook data to Outlook Mobile.

a word of warning

Be careful not to rename the extension on .pst files, or any other files. This will not change the file type. Only special conversion software can change a file from one file type to another.

In today's era, it is not necessary for MS Outlook environment to be present on all machines. Now consider the following general scenario:

Imagine being a computer user who does not have MS Outlook application on his machine. On the other hand, he wants to view and access the PST file that is provided to him by a second person. Now the question arises - how will he view this Outlook PST file without Outlook environment? "

To resolve this issue when viewing a PST file for storing Outlook data without its application environment, follow these steps, which give you guidance on how to view PST file without Outlook:

Measure 1: Convert Outlook PST email to TXT file

In this approach, follow the procedure below:

Choose an e-mail
Press fillet tab to display your menu
Choose Save as option and from Save as type field, select TXT Finally, click Save to save the file in TXT format

You can now open and view PST file emails. The main disadvantage of this approach is that it will do its conversion one by one, cannot get attachments embedded in emails, and is not relevant for large numbers of emails.

Dimension 2: Convert Outlook PST File to MSG File

Another approach is to convert the Outlook store file to a very common file format, i.e. MSG file. To do this, you just need to drag the mail to your desktop or any other path. Now you just need the Edit Plus application to open this drag and drop file and hence you will be able to view the MSG file.

The limitation of this measure is that with this technique you will have to do the conversion one by one and also it does not matter when a large number of emails have to be viewed from the PST file.

Dimension 3: Using HTML File Format to View PST Emails

To view PST file email, the next approach is to save the mail in HTML file format. To do this, follow this procedure:

Choose an e-mail(one by one) which you want to view
Press fillet tabs to display its option
Choose Save as option and from Save as type field, select HTML (*.htm, *.html) Finally, click Save to save the file as an HTML file

In the absence of Outlook, you will now be able to see PST file emails. However, this approach also has the same disadvantages/limitations discussed in the above measures.

Dimension 4: Import PST file into G-mail for viewing

This is the last manual approach to view your Outlook PST file without Outlook. This process is a bit of a technical method compared to the 3 procedures above.

THE NOTE: All the above mentioned approaches have some limitations with them and users may encounter one or the other interruption while working with these approaches.

Measure 5: Third party utility without any limitation

The best way to view and analyze Outlook data without any hassle is to use a third-party utility that is easily available in the web market. One such is Outlook PST Viewer, which allows clients to open and read PST files without Outlook as a supporting application. Apart from emails, it allows you to view other Outlook data items such as contacts, calendar, journals, etc. So, a complete personal storage file can be viewed by this product.

Finally

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Outlook is part of your daily routine. Used to send email messages, set up calendar events, and create tasks and other items. But is it possible to find out how and where all the elements are stored? For Office 365, Exchange, and Outlook.com accounts, all information is stored on the server, but an offline copy is also stored on your local computer in an Outlook offline data file (OST).

For POP and IMAP accounts, you can save Outlook items to an Outlook data (.pst) file. If you need to open or close an Outlook data file (.pst), you can do so in a few simple steps.

note A: If your organization has a policy in place where email messages are automatically archived, old email messages, calendar events, and tasks can be archived in an Outlook data file (.pst). Even if your account uses an Outlook Offline Data File (OST) for all of its day-to-day data, you could still have an archive.pst file containing old data.

It is very important to remember your password because it will not be possible to recover it through Microsoft. All recorded passwords should be kept in a secure place away from the information they are intended to protect.

Important: Neither Microsoft, your ISP, nor your email administrator has access to your password and will not be able to help you recover the contents of your PST file if you forget it.

Press the button three times OK .

When you click the account folder, you will be prompted to enter a password. Once you gain access, you will not have to enter your password again during that session. If you close and restart Outlook, you will be prompted for a password when you select a folder.

Important: The PST file password is not designed to protect against hackers. It simply prevents other people you share the computer with, such as family members, from viewing the file. To better protect data on a computer shared by multiple people, you should create a password-protected Windows account for each user.

Archive of sent mail for December 2007

Removing a PST file from the navigation pane

You may want to remove unnecessary folders from the navigation pane since you don't need to access the PST file often. You can hide an Outlook data file from the Navigation Pane without deleting it from your computer.

Right-click the Personal Folders file you want to remove from the Navigation Pane and click Close personal folders.

If Close personal folders option is not available, you are most likely trying to delete the PST file that Outlook uses to save new messages. If you delete this data file, new messages will not be sent anywhere.

Advice: Are you afraid of deleting a file and losing data? Closing a PST file does not delete the file itself or the items it contains; the file simply stops being displayed in the navigation area. You can display the PST file again at any time:

On the menu file select item Open and select Outlook Data File.

Click the PST file you want to open and click OK.

In this article we will look at how to save and secure Outlook data by archiving or creating a backup copy, as well as ways to restore Outlook data files (.pst or .ost) from a backup or archive.

After all, whether you use Outlook to create and send emails, import contacts from Gmail into your email client's address book, or use its address book, create tasks or calendar items in it, this means that your email client stores a lot of valuable data. In this regard, it is useful for every Outlook user to know how to secure and save their data to avoid losing it in the future.

Content:

Mail control panel

First, let's look at the Outlook control panel and mail settings, with which you can configure your email client in Windows. To open it, go to the Control Panel of your computer and select the section Mail.

In the window that opens Mail setup Three sections are available: Accounts, Data files, Configurations.

Selecting the first two items opens the same window Email account settings, only with different bookmarks, in which you can add an account, see where the data of each mail account is stored, restore or make changes to it.

To add an account in Outlook, click the button Accounts, and in the bookmark Email click Create.

If you need to perform certain actions with the data of a specific mail account, then to do this, go to the tab Data files in which you can do the following:

Add or remove a data file.
Install Data File Options.
In this menu, in addition to other functions, there is a function to reduce the size of the data file, which will be useful if such a file "will increase" to large sizes and will take up a lot of space on your computer’s hard drive. To do this, click on the menu Parameters button Compress.
Set the default data file to be the main one.
Open the location of the file (data file) by clicking the corresponding button.

Outlook data files (.pst and .ost)

Most often, the user does not need to know where the Outlook email client stores its data. But if you need to create a backup copy of your mail client data or transfer it to another drive in order to save or free up free space on your computer’s hard drive, you need to know its location.

Outlook stores email messages from each email account in .pst or .ost file, but the location of such a file depends on the version of the mail client used. In this article, we will show where Outlook data files are located, and how you can change their location if necessary.

If you've been using Outlook for a while, you've probably heard of PST files. Each email box in Outlook has its own data storage in the form of a PST file, in which all letters and correspondence, calendar marks and reminders are saved. PST file data may or may not be compressed and encrypted, depending on the settings made.

You may have noticed that the larger the amount of data stored in a PST file, the slower the email client begins to work. From time to time, Outlook offers to archive older messages to reduce this issue by downloading less data to the email client when it starts.

You may also have seen a file with the .ost extension in the Outlook data folder. OST files have a similar function to PST files, but are used as temporary offline email storage. The point is that the user can use messages from the OST file while the email server is disconnected (no Internet connection), and after the connection is restored, Outlook synchronizes everything.

That is, a PST file is created by Outlook in case of saving all email and correspondence on the local computer, and an OST file is created when working with email hosts that save all email data on a remote server (for example, Gmail or Outlook.com). In this case, the OST file simply contains a local copy of your email data.

Where are Outlook data files stored?

The location where Outlook data files are stored depends on the version of the program. Outlook 2007 and 2010 saves by default PST And OST files to folder AppData:

C:\Users\ Username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook

Starting with Outlook 2013, the location of PST files has changed and they are now stored in the Documents folder. So, Outlook 2013 and 2016 saves PST files in the following folder:

C:\Users\ Username\Documents\Outlook Files

See storage folder PST or OST a specific account file can also be done using Outlook itself. To do this, go to the menu File / Setting up accounts.

In the window Account settings in the Data Files tab, select the account you want to view (if there are several) and click "Open file location"

Outlook will open an Explorer window and show the folder in which it is stored. PST file (or OST file, if this account uses one).

Archiving Outlook Data

The main data file that Outlook works with is the file with the account name. You can also create an archive or backup copy from this file. This can be done by setting up automatic data archiving or manually archiving data.

Automatic data archiving

To set up automatic archiving of Outlook data, open the application and go to the File tab. Select the required account from the pop-up menu (if there are several).

After that, click Cleaning Tools and select the menu item.

After clicking the button, Outlook will archive the installed mailbox folders. To change the autoarchive settings, just right-click on one of the folders in your Outlook mailbox and select Properties / / .

By clicking the button Default archive settings, you can set archiving of folder items with default settings.

Manually back up Outlook data

If there is no need to set up automatic mail archiving, then this can be done manually. To do this, go to the menu File / Cleaning products / Archive.

In the menu that opens, set the necessary parameters and click Ok.

As a result of both described methods of archiving Outlook data, the mail client will create a file with a data archive that can be imported back if necessary.

Backup and restore your Outlook data file

Also, to ensure the safety of your email client data, you can create a backup copy of the Outlook data file. Just copy it .pst or .ost your account file to another drive or cloud storage. To do this, open the location of the desired file PST and copy it.

To restore the data file copied in this way, open Outlook and go to File / Open and export / Open Outlook data file, and select the required data file.

As a rule, the email client immediately opens the folder with data files.

After this, Outlook will display all the data from the selected file PST, and you will be able to use mail as usual. If there is no longer a need to use this backup copy of the data file, this data can be deleted from the mail client.

Note. As you can see in the Outlook Data, Files and Settings Import and Export Wizard, data can only be imported from a file PST. That is, if your mail account uses an OST data file, it will not be able to import it in this form. To do this, you will need to convert the OST file to PST format. Such conversion is not possible using the built-in tools in Outlook; for this, use third-party software.

How to change the default Outlook data file storage folder (.pst or .ost)

If you need to move your Outlook files from drive C or simply to a more convenient location, then this can also be done. You just can’t simply copy this file by holding the left mouse button. If you do this, Outlook will create a new file in the default folder for PST file and as a result, some of the mailbox information will be lost. To move a data file, you must change the default storage location for Outlook files using the registry before moving the file.

Attention. The registry editor is a tool that, if done incorrectly, can damage the operating system, after which its operation will become unstable. Therefore, be careful when performing any actions with the Registry Editor, or better yet, create a backup copy of it before making any changes.

Close Outlook and open Registry Editor.

On the left side Registry Editor go to the following path:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Outlook\

where 16.0 is the version of your Outlook.

Next, create a new unit in this folder. To do this, right-click in the right window and select Create / Expandable string parameter. Name the new unit "ForcePSTPath".

You are here because you have a file that has a file extension ending in .pst. Files with the .pst extension can only be launched by certain programs. It is possible that .pst are data files and not documents or media, which means they are not intended to be viewed at all.

what is a .pst file?

Files in PST format are data files created using Microsoft Outlook, a personal information manager and part of the Microsoft Office Suite. Forecast is most commonly used as an email application; it also has other elements such as contact manager, task manager, notes manager, journal and calendar. The program can also work with Microsoft Exchange Server, where multiple users can share mailboxes and calendars, exchange files and schedules. PRF user profile files are files that contain information about the user, such as signatures and links to mail folders and other user preferences, like email account settings. Using the Microsoft Office Resource Kit, PRF files can be created and presented on multiple systems. PST files are used to store personal information used by Microsoft Outlook and stock exchanges. This information may include contacts, addresses, mail folders and other data. Such files have a 2GB limit and will slow down the program if the files are close to the limit.

how to open a .pst file?

Launch the .pst file or any other file on your computer by double-clicking it. If your file associations are configured correctly, the application that is intended to open your .pst file will open it. You may need to download or purchase the correct application. It is also possible that you have the correct application on your computer, but the .pst files are not yet associated with it. In this case, when you try to open a .pst file, you can tell Windows which application is the correct one for this file. From then on, opening the .pst file will open the correct application.

applications that open .pst file

Microsoft Outlook Express

Microsoft Office Outlook

a word of warning

Be careful not to rename the extension on .pst files or any other files. This will not change the file type. Only a special conversion program can change a file from one file type to another.

what is the file extension?

A file extension is the set of three or four characters at the end of a file name, in this case, .pst. File extensions tell you what type of file it is, and tell Windows what programs it can open. Windows often associates a default program for each file extension, so that when you double-click a file, the program launches automatically. Even though a program is no longer on your computer, you may sometimes receive an error message when you try to open the file in question.

To correct errors.pst FILE ASSOCIATION ERRORS

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