How to make a backup copy of a personal folders (.pst) file

This article describes how to automatically back up your personal folders (.pst) file in Microsoft Outlook 2002 and Microsoft Office Outlook 2003. If you are not using Outlook together with Microsoft Exchange Server, Outlook stores all its data in a .pst file. If you want to back up or export a particular folder, such as the Contacts folder or the Calendar folder, follow the steps :-

To back up the whole .pst file, follow these steps:

1. Close any mail-related programs such as Outlook, Exchange, or Microsoft Windows Messaging.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click Mail and Fax or Mail.
4. Click the Personal Folders service you want to back up. By default, this service is called Personal Folders. However, services may be renamed. If a service is renamed, you can determine the type of the service. To do this, click the service in the list of services, and then click Properties. In the dialog box that appears, the title bar displays Personal Folders if the service is a Personal Folders service. After you read the title bar of the dialog box, click Cancel. Use this method to determine the type of any service with which you are unfamiliar.

5. Click Properties, and then make a note of the path and the file name that is listed.

Note :- You can possibly reduce the size of a .pst file when you click Compact Now. This is especially useful if you plan to back up the .pst file to a floppy disk.
6. Click OK two times to close the Properties dialog box.
7. Make a copy of the file that you noted in step 5 by using Windows Explorer or My Computer.

If you ever have to restore a .pst file from removable media such as a floppy disk or a CD, copy the backup copy of the file that you created by using the previous steps. Restore the backup copy of the .pst file, to the same hard disk, path, and file name that you noted in step 5.

How to export .pst file data

To export an individual folder, such as the Contacts folder or the Calendar folder, follow these steps:
1. On the File menu, click Import And Export.
2. Click Export To File, and then click Next.
3. Click Personal Folder file (.pst), and then click Next.
4. Click the folder that you want to export, and then click Next.
5. In Save exported file as, type the name of the file to which the data is exported.
6. Click Finish.


How to import .pst file data
To import a .pst file into Outlook, follow these steps:

1. On the File menu, click Import And Export.
2. Click Import from another program or file, and then click Next.
3. Click Personal folder file (.pst), and then click Next.
4. Type the path and the name of the .pst file that you want to import, and then click Next.
5. Click the folder into which the data is imported.
6.Click Finish.