OST files are used when an Outlook account is configured with Microsoft Exchange Server by enabling MAPI protocol. It allows user to work in offline mode where any changes made are synchronized with server when there is connection. As OST files are very prone of being corrupted, there are many issues associated with it. The inbuilt utility can be used to repair the files, but it is not so effective. That is why users are advised that they don’t repair OST file with scanpst.exe utility.
Issue in Inbuilt Repair Utility
Before MS Outlook 2010 version, Outlook comes with an inbuilt utility named scanost.exe to repair damaged OST files. However, it has been replaced by scanpst.exe, which can be used to repair both OST & PST files. In many scenarios, users could not fix the issues in OST files using this utility. Though it may work for minor error, it is not advisable to use with highly damaged OST files.
Rebuild OST file
Since the OST files contains only the cached data, it is better to create a new cache again instead of trying to fix the issue in OST file. The solution for the same problem is to rename the old OST file after closing the MS Outlook application and making the MS Outlook re-build the OST file from the Server again.
The default location of the OST files is listed below:
Windows Vista/7/8 and 10 - C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook\
Windows XP - C:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\ Outlook\
Go the destination location in the system where the OST files are present and open the folder location.
Repair OST file
The rebuild option may not be possible if the user has large-sized mailbox and there is slow internet connection. OST repair can be done by using scanpst.exe utility. User needs to locate the scanpst.exe for the Outlook version first. Then, run the repair process by locating the OST file and if there are minor problem, it will be repaired using scanpst.exe utility.
Using Third Party Tool
If user has a damaged or corrupt OST file and scanpst.exe cannot resolve the issues, the only reliable option is to use a third party tool such as OST Recovery. This efficient tool has the capability to convert corrupt OST files and its data items to a healthy PST file format without the presence of MS Outlook. It does not effect the original formatting of all items in OST intact after converting them to PST. The users can apply Mail Filter option to migrate only the desired emails.
Conclusion
In the blog, we have discussed that the OST files that are highly damaged cannot be recovered using the manual procedure of inbuilt repair utility. However, OST Recovery software can be used to deal with any OST file and recover the data in PST file format to make the contents accessible in MS Outlook.
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