Issue with .pst

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Guest

(BackStory)

We had a motherboard go bad on a computer and while it's being fixed, we
needed to get some of the data off for the user. We put the HD in a HD
enclosure and connected it up to an extra computer via usb.

The only two .pst files on the HD where archive.pst (563 MB) and the
Backup.pst (1.2GB) When I open outlook and open data files, both of these
files only have one folder (Deleted Items). I then restored both files from
backup and they were the same size and had only the one folder each (deleted
Items). Could all the saved emails, contacts and calendars events be stored
in another file?

Thx
Brian
 
What version of Outlook? Describe the exact process by which you backed up
the files and by which you opened them in Outlook.
 
The version of Outlook is 2003 running on Windows XP Pro. This computer runs
just normal windows backup once a week (Full Backup).

I was also able to put the broken computer hard drive in a hard drive
enclosure and connect it to the users laptop (E Drive) which is also ruuning
windows XP Pro and Outlook 2003.

I first copied over the two .pst file to the users laptop and tried to
import them. During the import process I only saw the one folder in each
(Deleted Items).

I also tried the File | Open | Open Data File and had the same results. I
then restored the two .pst from backup and had the exact same issues.

Thx
Brian
 
Sabatogz said:
The version of Outlook is 2003 running on Windows XP Pro. This
computer runs just normal windows backup once a week (Full Backup).

I was also able to put the broken computer hard drive in a hard drive
enclosure and connect it to the users laptop (E Drive) which is also
ruuning windows XP Pro and Outlook 2003.

I first copied over the two .pst file to the users laptop and tried to
import them. During the import process I only saw the one folder in
each (Deleted Items).

I also tried the File | Open | Open Data File and had the same
results. I then restored the two .pst from backup and had the exact
same issues.
Click to expand...

Have you made sure that those are the only two PSTs on the drive? Enable
hidden files and folders when you look.
 
Importing is totally unnecessary since you can just open the files in Outlook
the way you did afterward, but seeing as you tried again with the original
files, it's not like importing did any damage in this case.

Try running the Inbox Repair Tool against each to see if it finds any
errors. Search your drive for a file called scanpst.exe and run it. Allow
the program to make a backup of each file before it makes any changes (can't
hurt even though you still have the backups from the original Windows backup).

One more thing: Don't overwrite one .PST with another when copying. .PST
files can reside anywhere that the user can access in his or her Windows
profile, and copying one over another can cause problems, although in your
case it doesn't sound like one of the usual problems of that scenario.
 
Sabatogz said:
Yes I have..
Click to expand...

Then, given the symptoms you describe, I'd say your PSTs are toast. If the
information was imortant, consider purchasing a PST recovery program.
Google will find them readily.
 
Brian,

Since everything was working fine before the computer crashed and it was a
motherboard issues. I'm also going to try two things.

Setup a Virtual OS that closely matches the down computer and mount the hard
drive from the crashed computer and mount it to the virtual OS, hopefully it
will boot and outlook will load. I will then export the conic, email and
calendar.

Option 2 - Put the HD in a similar computer, boot and try to export above
items.

Hopefully between the two something works.

Thx - Brian
 
Sabatogz said:
Since everything was working fine before the computer crashed and it
was a motherboard issues. I'm also going to try two things.

Setup a Virtual OS that closely matches the down computer and mount
the hard drive from the crashed computer and mount it to the virtual
OS, hopefully it will boot and outlook will load. I will then export
the conic, email and calendar.

Option 2 - Put the HD in a similar computer, boot and try to export
above items.
Click to expand...

Good luck, then. If you open a PST and it contains nothing, it will contain
nothing no matter what you do, unless a recovery program can fix it.
 
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