ARCHIVED: In Microsoft Outlook, what are personal folder files, and how do I create them?
In Outlook, a personal folder file is a file with a
.pst
extension that is located on your computer's hard
disk instead of the server. Personal folder files contain messages,
forms, files, and other personal folders. You work with a personal
folder file as you would with any other file. You can save, copy, and
move a .pst
file to another location on your computer or a
server. These files allow you to view your read messages when you are
not connected to the server.
Setting up personal folders
- In Outlook 2010, click the
In earlier versions, from the
menu, select (2007) or (2003). tab, and then from the drop-down menu, choose .
- Select the tab, and then click . In Outlook 2003, , click , and then click .
- If you only use Outlook to view personal folder files, select . If you want your personal folder files to be compatible with previous versions of Outlook, select . Click .
- The
Create or Open Outlook Data File
window will open. From the drop-down menu next to "Save In:", select a location to store the personal folder file. - In the "Filename:" field, enter a filename for the folder file
(e.g.,
Becky's Personal Folder File
). A.pst
extension will be added automatically.Note: This is the name for the
.pst
file only. You will need to name the folder separately (see next step). - Click
Create Microsoft Personal Folders
window. The name that you supply here will appear among your mail folders in Outlook; use a name that is related to the contents of the folder. For example, if you named the.pst
fileBecky's Personal Folder File
, then you may want to name this folderBecky's Personal Folder
. . You will now see the
You can also password-protect your personal folder. If you do not
password-protect the folder, any Outlook user profile can access the
.pst
file at any time.
Warning: If you forget your folder password, there is no
way to recover the information in the .pst
file.
Using personal folders
You can use personal folder files to save copies of your email, calendar, and contacts, or to move email off the Exchange server. To move mail to a personal folder file, right-click the message you wish to move. From the menu that appears, select
. From the list that appears, select a folder and click .Note: Any messages you move to a personal folder
will be removed from the Exchange server and will be available only on
the computer or disk on which you created the .pst
file.
You can also move messages by clicking and dragging them to the appropriate folder. If you wish to copy messages (i.e., leave a copy in the original folder), drag and drop the messages into the personal folder. A menu will appear, allowing you to choose
or .To repair your personal file folders, search the
Microsoft Help and Support web site on the terms outlook .pst
repair
.
This is document aesn in the Knowledge Base.
Last modified on 2021-09-07 17:15:12.