How to fix Outlook PST file when it gets corrupted

Microsoft Outlook is a premium business email application and consists of enormous features to make your communication tasks easy. But sadly at time when you start facing error in Outlook, the most basic question arises in your mind is what has gone wrong with your Outlook and what is the real cause of problem behind it. Usually, the most possible reason behind the unusual behavior of Outlook is corruption in PST (Personal Folder file) file.

Outlook PST file keeps all elements or objects of Outlook which includes emails, tasks, notes, calendars, journal entries, contacts, appointments etc. locally on your computer. Outlook PST file is used with POP3, IMAP and other web based mail accounts.

For smooth working of Outlook it is necessary to ensure that .pst file remains corruption free. But Outlook .pst file has its size limitation that is when its size increases more than 2 GB the possibilities of its corruption gets increases. Corruption in PST file is a major issue and it is necessary to understand the exact cause of the problem and its solution.

Reasons of corruption in Outlook .pst file:

PST file can get corrupted due to various reasons including mentioned below:

• PST file corruption due to malicious software or virus attack
• Improper or sudden shut down of computer system
• Outlook program closed improperly
• The size of .pst file exceeds to its 2 GB limit
• PST file accessed on a network share

Solution :

These are some of the reasons which cause error in Outlook and are responsible for .pst file corruption. However, it is not an impossible task to handle the PST file corruption. It can be fixed with an ease. You can start checking with Inbox repair tool (Scanpst.exe), an inbuilt utility in Outlook which is located in your computer system and the exact location may vary depending upon your operating system and Outlook version. By default it is located at : C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\1033. Now, double click scanpst.exe and browse the corrupted .pst file. Again the location of .pst file could be different depending on your system configuration.

Scan corrupted .pst file with scanpst.exe. Once scanning process is completed, scanpst.exe may or may not show you errors in .pst file. If it shows you some errors found in .pst file then repair the file with this utility. But remember to take the backup before you click on 'Repair' button of scanpst.exe by selecting ‘checkbox’ for backup. You will be lucky enough if you get the file repaired in first attempt as sometimes it may require 3-4 attempts to scan & repair the file. Scanpst.exe might also show you the message that the file has been repaired successfully but sometimes actually it doesn't.

For successful management of Outlook .pst file it is better to follow prevention methods but most of the times it becomes unavoidable to save .pst file from corruption. Also there are limited free utilities to repair damaged PST and they have their own limitations. For efficient Outlook PST repair and recovery it is required to have software which could fix any type of .pst file corruption. Stellar Outlook PST Repair Tool is enriched with enhanced recovery features like deleted email recovery, selective folder recovery, recovering .pst files exceeding 2 GB size and many more. It works safely with Outlook 2010, 2007, 2003, 2002, 2000 in a secure manner.