Microsoft Outlook, with a POP3 account, stores mailbox items, like emails, attachments, contacts, and tasks in an Outlook Data File (.pst), also known as a Personal Storage Table file. This file is also used for backup purposes and for exporting mailbox data to another Outlook profile or account. However, PST sometimes gets corrupted due to various internal and external factors. When the PST file gets corrupted, you can face different errors and issues, such as:
In this article, we will discuss the major causes behind Outlook data file (.pst) corruption and see how to repair the corrupted file.
Causes of Corruption in Outlook Data (.pst) File
Some commonreasons for PST file corruptionare:
Methods to Repair Corrupted Outlook Data File (.pst)
If your PST is corrupted, damaged, or unreadable, then follow the below methods to repair the file.
Method 1: Use ScanPST or the Inbox Repair Tool
Microsoft provides a built-in tool, calledScanPST or Inbox repair tool, in Outlook to help users detect and fix corruption issues in PST files. It can easily fix minor corruption-related issues in Outlook data files (.pst). This tool is usually located in the installation directory of your Outlook. However,the location of Inbox Repair toolmay vary depending on the version of Outlook and Windows you are using. To repair the PST file using this tool, follow the below steps:
The Inbox Repair tool can repair PST files but it has some downsides. Some of them are:
Method 2: Use a Professional Outlook Data File Repair Tool
If the SCANPST tool fails to repair the PST file due to its limitation or any other reasons, then you can try aPST repair tool, such as Stellar Repair for Outlook. It is an advanced tool that can help you repair PST file, irrespective of the level of corruption or file size. The tool can recover all the mailbox items, including calendars, contacts, emails, and even deleted items, from the corrupt PST file while maintaining the integrity. It saves the recovered mail items in a new PST file or other formats, like EML, HTML, RTF, and PDF. The tool can easily handle large-sized files up to 50 GB. Also, it has an auto-split option that allows you to split large PST files automatically.
Conclusion
You can face different errors and issues while accessing a corrupt PST file in Outlook. To resolve such PST corruption-related errors, you can use the Inbox Repair tool or SCANPST to repair the corrupt file. However, the tool can only resolve minor corrupted-based issues. If the tool stops responding while trying to repair the PST file, then you can use an advanced Outlook repair tool, like Stellar Repair for Outlook. It can easily repair extremely corrupted PST file and saves all its mailbox items in a new PST file with complete integrity.
