Help! I've lost my emails folders

[Guest]

I have just uploaded Microsoft Office Professional 2003 and when I have gone
into my email account I don't have any of my previous emails.
I am unsure if I clicked 'no to upgrade' and now do not know how to restore
my folders.
Please help!

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

I assume you mean you installed Outlook 2003 over an older version?
If so, it probably created a new profile with a new data file.
Your old one is still there. All Outlook data files have a PST extension and
are hidden files. Just search for your old PST file and open it in your
current version of Outlook.
Do you back up your data before you try things like installing over an older
version?

 

[Christian Goeller]

Janie, you wrote on Sat, 3 Sep 2005 06:55:03 -0700:

I have just uploaded Microsoft Office Professional 2003 and when I have gone
into my email account I don't have any of my previous emails.
I am unsure if I clicked 'no to upgrade' and now do not know how to restore
my folders.
Please help!

Search for files with the extension *.pst! In one of them you'll find
your previous mails are stored. Import the content to Outlook via

File | Import/Export | Import from other programs.... | Personal Folder
(.pst)

Best Regards
Christian Goeller

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it. An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.

 

[Guest]

How do you reuse the old PST file as the new default? Outlook is storing my
PST files on my C: and I want them to be stored on my D: by default and I
can't figure out how to change the default.

Arlene

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it. An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

Clarify your question.
You seem to be asking how to move your data file, not use a different one.
Specify your Outlook version.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

How do you reuse the old PST file as the new default? Outlook is storing
my
PST files on my C: and I want them to be stored on my D: by default and I
can't figure out how to change the default.

Arlene

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it. An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

Janie, you wrote on Sat, 3 Sep 2005 06:55:03 -0700:

I have just uploaded Microsoft Office Professional 2003 and when I
have
gone
into my email account I don't have any of my previous emails.
I am unsure if I clicked 'no to upgrade' and now do not know how to
restore
my folders.
Please help!

Search for files with the extension *.pst! In one of them you'll find
your previous mails are stored. Import the content to Outlook via

File | Import/Export | Import from other programs.... | Personal Folder
(.pst)

Best Regards
Christian Goeller

 

[Guest]

Hi Russ--I'm using Outlook 2003 and have a complicated scenario. Basically I
have a C: and an E:. Drives were switched a few months ago and now my E: is
my boot drive and all software must be installed to it rather than the C: I
have identical hard drives so that I can copy my entire E: to my C:
periodically as a backup. I just did it last night and this morning, my
contacts were changed and my email was changed and I had lost recent emails
and contacts. I finally realized why. In this confusing process, Outlook 2003
folders have been caught in the middle and Outlook is saving in both drives.
and when I backed up, I was overwriting new files with old ones. I want it to
save only to the E drive. Below are my folders as they now stand

C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\archive.pst
C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\OutlookHotmail-00000007.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\My Documents\My Practice
Files\ManagePST\ManagePST.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\MyPractice.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Personal Folders(1).pst
C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Outlook.pst

Clarify your question.
You seem to be asking how to move your data file, not use a different one.
Specify your Outlook version.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

How do you reuse the old PST file as the new default? Outlook is storing
my
PST files on my C: and I want them to be stored on my D: by default and I
can't figure out how to change the default.

Arlene

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it. An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]
Janie, you wrote on Sat, 3 Sep 2005 06:55:03 -0700:

I have just uploaded Microsoft Office Professional 2003 and when I
have
gone
into my email account I don't have any of my previous emails.
I am unsure if I clicked 'no to upgrade' and now do not know how to
restore
my folders.
Please help!

Search for files with the extension *.pst! In one of them you'll find
your previous mails are stored. Import the content to Outlook via

File | Import/Export | Import from other programs.... | Personal Folder
(.pst)

Best Regards
Christian Goeller

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

Not possible. Outlook cannot write to 2 different PST files at the same
time. I suspect you are simply overwriting one PST file with another because
of the way your are "backing up," which you will want to stop doing
immediately before you corrupt both your profile and your PST file.
Look at the properties of your default PST file to see which one Outlook is
really using. Decide where you want it to reside. If it is not where you
want it to be, move it there when Outlook is closed. When Outlook is
launched next, it will ask you where its data file is. Direct it to the new
location.
Finally, stop using this method for backing up. Data should always be stored
and backed up separately from everything else.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

Hi Russ--I'm using Outlook 2003 and have a complicated scenario. Basically
I
have a C: and an E:. Drives were switched a few months ago and now my E:
is
my boot drive and all software must be installed to it rather than the C:
I
have identical hard drives so that I can copy my entire E: to my C:
periodically as a backup. I just did it last night and this morning, my
contacts were changed and my email was changed and I had lost recent
emails
and contacts. I finally realized why. In this confusing process, Outlook
2003
folders have been caught in the middle and Outlook is saving in both
drives.
and when I backed up, I was overwriting new files with old ones. I want it
to
save only to the E drive. Below are my folders as they now stand

C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\archive.pst
C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\OutlookHotmail-00000007.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\My Documents\My Practice
Files\ManagePST\ManagePST.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\MyPractice.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Personal Folders(1).pst
C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Outlook.pst

Clarify your question.
You seem to be asking how to move your data file, not use a different
one.
Specify your Outlook version.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

How do you reuse the old PST file as the new default? Outlook is
storing
my
PST files on my C: and I want them to be stored on my D: by default and
I
can't figure out how to change the default.

Arlene

:

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It
may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it.
An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the
new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]
Janie, you wrote on Sat, 3 Sep 2005 06:55:03 -0700:

I have just uploaded Microsoft Office Professional 2003 and when I
have
gone
into my email account I don't have any of my previous emails.
I am unsure if I clicked 'no to upgrade' and now do not know how to
restore
my folders.
Please help!

Search for files with the extension *.pst! In one of them you'll
find
your previous mails are stored. Import the content to Outlook via

File | Import/Export | Import from other programs.... | Personal
Folder
(.pst)

Best Regards
Christian Goeller

 

[Guest]

Thank you so much. That did it!!

Not possible. Outlook cannot write to 2 different PST files at the same
time. I suspect you are simply overwriting one PST file with another because
of the way your are "backing up," which you will want to stop doing
immediately before you corrupt both your profile and your PST file.
Look at the properties of your default PST file to see which one Outlook is
really using. Decide where you want it to reside. If it is not where you
want it to be, move it there when Outlook is closed. When Outlook is
launched next, it will ask you where its data file is. Direct it to the new
location.
Finally, stop using this method for backing up. Data should always be stored
and backed up separately from everything else.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

Hi Russ--I'm using Outlook 2003 and have a complicated scenario. Basically
I
have a C: and an E:. Drives were switched a few months ago and now my E:
is
my boot drive and all software must be installed to it rather than the C:
I
have identical hard drives so that I can copy my entire E: to my C:
periodically as a backup. I just did it last night and this morning, my
contacts were changed and my email was changed and I had lost recent
emails
and contacts. I finally realized why. In this confusing process, Outlook
2003
folders have been caught in the middle and Outlook is saving in both
drives.
and when I backed up, I was overwriting new files with old ones. I want it
to
save only to the E drive. Below are my folders as they now stand

C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\archive.pst
C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\OutlookHotmail-00000007.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\My Documents\My Practice
Files\ManagePST\ManagePST.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\MyPractice.pst
E:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Personal Folders(1).pst
C:\Documents and Settings\ArleneZimmerly\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Outlook.pst

Clarify your question.
You seem to be asking how to move your data file, not use a different
one.
Specify your Outlook version.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]
How do you reuse the old PST file as the new default? Outlook is
storing
my
PST files on my C: and I want them to be stored on my D: by default and
I
can't figure out how to change the default.

Arlene

:

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It
may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it.
An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the
new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]
Janie, you wrote on Sat, 3 Sep 2005 06:55:03 -0700:

I have just uploaded Microsoft Office Professional 2003 and when I
have
gone
into my email account I don't have any of my previous emails.
I am unsure if I clicked 'no to upgrade' and now do not know how to
restore
my folders.
Please help!

Search for files with the extension *.pst! In one of them you'll
find
your previous mails are stored. Import the content to Outlook via

File | Import/Export | Import from other programs.... | Personal
Folder
(.pst)

Best Regards
Christian Goeller

 

[Christian Goeller]

Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook], you wrote on Sat, 3 Sep 2005 12:52:54
-0500:

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it. An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.

Could you specify the drawbacks? I have done this hundred times on
several computers and I respectively the user never had any problems
after importing a pst-file. Is there any Microsoft KB-Article where I
can read why it is not recommendable to import a pst-file?

TIA

Best Regards
Christian Goeller

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

Importing PST's will lose:
1. Custom Forms
2. Custom Views
3. Connections between contacts and activities
4. Received dates on mail
5. Birthdays and anniversaries in calendar
6. Journal connections
7. Distribution Lists

Opening a PST file will preserve all of these. That is why we do not advise
people to import a PST file into Outlook.
Moreover, many users find the import menu confusing and frequently misdirect
data into the wrong folders or end up with an entire duplicate PST file.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook], you wrote on Sat, 3 Sep 2005 12:52:54
-0500:

Using import to transfer data from a PST file has many drawbacks. It may
work but is generally not recommended. Most of us recommend that users
simply open the PST file in Outlook and copy what they need from it. An
alternative is simply to reuse the old PST file as the default in the new
Outlook profile. These methods preserve more data and are safer.

Could you specify the drawbacks? I have done this hundred times on
several computers and I respectively the user never had any problems
after importing a pst-file. Is there any Microsoft KB-Article where I
can read why it is not recommendable to import a pst-file?

TIA

Best Regards
Christian Goeller

 

[Guest]

Russ,
Can you please tell me how to start a new thread. I go to "new" and
"question" but there no message box (such as this) that comes up to allow me
to start the thread? I'm unable to configure an email account into Outlet on
this desktop computer through the wizard. I have entered all of the correct
information the wizard asks for, name, email address, ingoing, outgoing
server info. etc. An error message keeps coming back saying the outgoing and
incoming server could not be reached. I know that is not true because I have
another copy of Outlook on my notebook with the same settings and it works
quite normally. I have Outlook 2003 on Windows XP Professional. Any help in
all areas is appreciated.

Lew Brown
--
LJB

I assume you mean you installed Outlook 2003 over an older version?
If so, it probably created a new profile with a new data file.
Your old one is still there. All Outlook data files have a PST extension and
are hidden files. Just search for your old PST file and open it in your
current version of Outlook.
Do you back up your data before you try things like installing over an older
version?
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

I have just uploaded Microsoft Office Professional 2003 and when I have
gone
into my email account I don't have any of my previous emails.
I am unsure if I clicked 'no to upgrade' and now do not know how to
restore
my folders.
Please help!

 

[Brian Tillman]

Can you please tell me how to start a new thread. I go to "new" and
"question" but there no message box (such as this) that comes up to
allow me to start the thread?

You'd be better off using a newsreader. Try this link:
news://msnews.microsoft.com/microsoft.public.outlook.installation