3 machines, 2 pst's, 1 problem

[Guest]

Anybody know how to configure this situation: I have two networked computers
(Comp1 and Comp2) at home; both have Outlook 2003/Windows XP and both access
the same pst file sitting on a Comp1 hard drive, so that there is full email
functionality from either machine [don't want my wife booting me off one
machine because she wants to check email!]. I have the (Comcast) POP3 email
set up on each machine to leave messages on the server for a few days, so
that I can pop home emails from my work machine (Comp3), too.

The problem is that when I do a send/receive on Comp1, and then later do it
on Comp2, Comp2 downloads the same mails that Comp1 downloaded (and left on
the server), even though they have already been downloaded to the same, open
pst file. Is there any way for Comp1 and Comp2 to only download emails that
have not been downloaded to the pst file before?

My interim workaround is to disable "receive" on Comp2, which obviously
compromises the idea of full functionality on both machines. I have also
tried forwarding email to my work address instead of popping it (so that I
don't need to leave messages on the server), but the Comcast spam filter
doesn't work on forwarded messages.

Somehow Outlook is checking a registry of serial numbers that it has
downloaded before to know which ones it still needs to download; where does
that sit and can two computers share it?

Any ideas?

 

[Diane Poremsky [MVP]]

1) Accessing a pst on a network is putting your data at risk. Accessing it
from two computers is also risky.
2) No. The file that outlook keeps to remind it what was already downloaded
is specific to a profile and computer.