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#1
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Hi
Last week I got a screen message about inserting my OEM disc to upgrade Windows XP, which I duly did, and from there it seemed to completely screwed things up. Fortunately, I had a recent full back up, and a number of other incremental back-ups, so no problem thought I! Wrong!! My general data is held on a second hard drive, so if I have problems with the system disk, I can disconnect it and know everything is safe. (Has proved useful a number of times already!) This time I had to format and re-install Windows, Office and all my printer / program disks - very pee'd off about that, as Dell didn't want to help unless I coughed up money first!! Having re-loaded everything, I went for my back-ups, and put everything back, then re-commected the second hard drive. All was OK exc ept there was nothing in my Outlook folders. (I have many personal folders and drag messages I want to keep into them asap to keep the inbox down.) Also, my address book is completely empty. Could any kind person tell me where I should be looking in my back-ups to get my messages and addresses back, as I have some important mail outstanding, and have spent three days so far in trying to get myself back up and 'running' (theoretically ONLY, that is!). If there's anything else I should know about putting these files back I should be grateful for that info too. -- Regards, Tony |
#2
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Search your various hard drives for all .PST files -- these are the files
that hold your data (actually you should have one that you were using as your main file most recently; look for a file with a very recent modification date and a size that seems compatible with the amount of data you had in your folders). Since you're using Windows XP, the .PST files will likely be in hidden folders, so make sure you search there. Once you find the file, you can open it in Outlook using File | Open | Outlook Data File. It will open in your Folder List. Once you're satisfied that this is the right file, make it your default -- go to Tools | E-mail Accounts | View or change existing e-mail accounts, click Next, and select your preferred .PST file as the default in the dropdown on that page. Your "address book" is actually just a different view of your Contacts folder(s) and is actually called the Outlook Address Book. Once you have your data file back in Outlook, let me know and I'll post the instructions for reconnecting the OAB and the Contacts folder(s). -- Jocelyn Fiorello MVP - Outlook *** Messages sent to my e-mail address will NOT be answered -- please reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** In , Tony wrote: Hi Last week I got a screen message about inserting my OEM disc to upgrade Windows XP, which I duly did, and from there it seemed to completely screwed things up. Fortunately, I had a recent full back up, and a number of other incremental back-ups, so no problem thought I! Wrong!! My general data is held on a second hard drive, so if I have problems with the system disk, I can disconnect it and know everything is safe. (Has proved useful a number of times already!) This time I had to format and re-install Windows, Office and all my printer / program disks - very pee'd off about that, as Dell didn't want to help unless I coughed up money first!! Having re-loaded everything, I went for my back-ups, and put everything back, then re-commected the second hard drive. All was OK exc ept there was nothing in my Outlook folders. (I have many personal folders and drag messages I want to keep into them asap to keep the inbox down.) Also, my address book is completely empty. Could any kind person tell me where I should be looking in my back-ups to get my messages and addresses back, as I have some important mail outstanding, and have spent three days so far in trying to get myself back up and 'running' (theoretically ONLY, that is!). If there's anything else I should know about putting these files back I should be grateful for that info too. |
#3
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Tony,
Jocelyn has hit the nail directly on the head, make sure your folder options show all files and folders including hidden and system. In addition, you may want to consider moving the PST to your 2nd hard drive and accessing it from there. In the event you dump on the boot drive you still have your important data. RickD "Jocelyn Fiorello [MVP - Outlook]" wrote in message ... Search your various hard drives for all .PST files -- these are the files that hold your data (actually you should have one that you were using as your main file most recently; look for a file with a very recent modification date and a size that seems compatible with the amount of data you had in your folders). Since you're using Windows XP, the .PST files will likely be in hidden folders, so make sure you search there. Once you find the file, you can open it in Outlook using File | Open | Outlook Data File. It will open in your Folder List. Once you're satisfied that this is the right file, make it your default -- go to Tools | E-mail Accounts | View or change existing e-mail accounts, click Next, and select your preferred .PST file as the default in the dropdown on that page. Your "address book" is actually just a different view of your Contacts folder(s) and is actually called the Outlook Address Book. Once you have your data file back in Outlook, let me know and I'll post the instructions for reconnecting the OAB and the Contacts folder(s). -- Jocelyn Fiorello MVP - Outlook *** Messages sent to my e-mail address will NOT be answered -- please reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** In , Tony wrote: Hi Last week I got a screen message about inserting my OEM disc to upgrade Windows XP, which I duly did, and from there it seemed to completely screwed things up. Fortunately, I had a recent full back up, and a number of other incremental back-ups, so no problem thought I! Wrong!! My general data is held on a second hard drive, so if I have problems with the system disk, I can disconnect it and know everything is safe. (Has proved useful a number of times already!) This time I had to format and re-install Windows, Office and all my printer / program disks - very pee'd off about that, as Dell didn't want to help unless I coughed up money first!! Having re-loaded everything, I went for my back-ups, and put everything back, then re-commected the second hard drive. All was OK exc ept there was nothing in my Outlook folders. (I have many personal folders and drag messages I want to keep into them asap to keep the inbox down.) Also, my address book is completely empty. Could any kind person tell me where I should be looking in my back-ups to get my messages and addresses back, as I have some important mail outstanding, and have spent three days so far in trying to get myself back up and 'running' (theoretically ONLY, that is!). If there's anything else I should know about putting these files back I should be grateful for that info too. |
#4
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Hi Jocelyn, and thank you for your prompt response.
Call me 'thick' ( Hi 'thick'!!), but I followed your instructions to the letter - I even had a printed copy of them in front of me, and somehow I still managed to end up with a my existing 'Outlook' folder, but with two exact copies of 'Personal Folders' (and their sub-folders) in each one!!! The search I carried out to find where the *.pst folder(s) was(were) gave me two answers - and as you said, nothing until I activated 'look in hidden files and folders'. The answere we C:/Documents and Settings/"user1"/Local Settings/Application Data/Microsoft/Outlook size c2Mb with today's date under properties. The second file is in exactly the same place except it's under "user2", and has a size of c33Mb dated 03/07/04 (obviously, "user1" and "user2" are actual names which I don't want to give out publicly!) Do you have any clue(s) as to what I am doing to cause all this confusion? (Incidentally, the 'file search' window was still open, and when I had performed the 'transfer instructions' you sent me, that also appeared on the list of *.pst files!) Thanks again for your help. -- Regards, Tony reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** |
#5
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Success!! I now have all my personal folders back, with the full back-up details in them, and the details from the incremental back-ups also present. However, what I have lost is the 220+ messages I have downloaded over the last two days!!! Any ideas where this information might be - I've done a search for "*.pst" without success - so am even more stuck now, as I hadn't got round to reading many of these e-mails?? Thanks in anticipation. PS I have also re-acquired my address book - don't ask me how, but I have, so there's no need to go through that in detail for me Jocelyn. Thanks all the same. -- Regards, Tony *** reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** |
#6
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Forget the comment on the address book details - I only have the names I have put in over the last three or four days in it! I DO, therefore, need help on getting all my contacts back (and how to dispose of all these multiple 'personal folders' now sitting in 'Outlook', if there is such a way!) -- Regards, Tony "Tony" wrote: Success!! I now have all my personal folders back, with the full back-up details in them, and the details from the incremental back-ups also present. However, what I have lost is the 220+ messages I have downloaded over the last two days!!! Any ideas where this information might be - I've done a search for "*.pst" without success - so am even more stuck now, as I hadn't got round to reading many of these e-mails?? Thanks in anticipation. PS I have also re-acquired my address book - don't ask me how, but I have, so there's no need to go through that in detail for me Jocelyn. Thanks all the same. -- Regards, Tony *** reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** |
#7
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
You didn't overwrite one .PST file with another, did you? That could
conceivably cause two problems you are having -- one is the "ghost" .PST files in your profile, the other is the loss of the data you most recently downloaded, if the data was in the file that got overwritten. -- Jocelyn Fiorello MVP - Outlook *** Messages sent to my e-mail address will NOT be answered -- please reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** In , Tony wrote: Hi Jocelyn, and thank you for your prompt response. Call me 'thick' ( Hi 'thick'!!), but I followed your instructions to the letter - I even had a printed copy of them in front of me, and somehow I still managed to end up with a my existing 'Outlook' folder, but with two exact copies of 'Personal Folders' (and their sub-folders) in each one!!! The search I carried out to find where the *.pst folder(s) was(were) gave me two answers - and as you said, nothing until I activated 'look in hidden files and folders'. The answere we C:/Documents and Settings/"user1"/Local Settings/Application Data/Microsoft/Outlook size c2Mb with today's date under properties. The second file is in exactly the same place except it's under "user2", and has a size of c33Mb dated 03/07/04 (obviously, "user1" and "user2" are actual names which I don't want to give out publicly!) Do you have any clue(s) as to what I am doing to cause all this confusion? (Incidentally, the 'file search' window was still open, and when I had performed the 'transfer instructions' you sent me, that also appeared on the list of *.pst files!) Thanks again for your help. |
#8
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Let's start with the last reply I sent you about overwriting .PST files --
we can go from there and try to get the other issues solved :-) -- Jocelyn Fiorello MVP - Outlook *** Messages sent to my e-mail address will NOT be answered -- please reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** In news Tony wrote: Forget the comment on the address book details - I only have the names I have put in over the last three or four days in it! I DO, therefore, need help on getting all my contacts back (and how to dispose of all these multiple 'personal folders' now sitting in 'Outlook', if there is such a way!) Success!! I now have all my personal folders back, with the full back-up details in them, and the details from the incremental back-ups also present. However, what I have lost is the 220+ messages I have downloaded over the last two days!!! Any ideas where this information might be - I've done a search for "*.pst" without success - so am even more stuck now, as I hadn't got round to reading many of these e-mails?? Thanks in anticipation. PS I have also re-acquired my address book - don't ask me how, but I have, so there's no need to go through that in detail for me Jocelyn. Thanks all the same. -- Regards, Tony *** reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** |
#9
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
Hi Jocelyn
Sorry I didn't get back to you over the weekend, but I decided to 'give it a rest', as it was driving me mad trying to get all my bits and pieces back! However, the two files I found - the main back-up and the incremenral back-ups, have both been accepted into 'Outlook', but those I downloaded on two days last week are ?????? In 'Outlook' at the moment, I have the following folders: Personal Folders (i.e. all mine), with everything from the back-ups in them Outlook Today (Personal Folders) - minimum 'Outlook' folders, nil content Personal Folders - as above Personal Folders - as above Personal Folders - as above Outlook Today(Personal Folders) - as above I thought I had put the back-up stuff in one of the Outlook Today (PF), but obviously not, as they are both empty. The *.pst files I have found are located thus: C:\D&S\user1\MyDocuments 48kb archive Office Data File C:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook ODF C:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook ODF D:\D&S\user1\MyDocuments 48kb archive ODF D:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook ODF D:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook2 ODF c:\D&S\user1\Recent 2kb outlook.pst shortcut C:\D&S\user1\LocalSettings\AppData\M-soft\Outlook 45,412kb outlook ODF C:\ ditto 48kb personal folder(2) ODF C:\D&S\user2\LocalSettings\AppData\M-soft\Outlook 43,833kb outlook ODF C:\ ditto 283kb outlook.pst Text Hope this all makes some sense to you - it doesn't to me (ask me anything on spreadsheets and i might be able to help!!). Hope you can spot where my most recent downloads might be, and how we can get them back, as I haven't dared send or receive any e-mail since I 'lost' the last lot!! Many thanks, -- Regards, Tony "Jocelyn Fiorello [MVP - Outlook]" wrote: You didn't overwrite one .PST file with another, did you? That could conceivably cause two problems you are having -- one is the "ghost" .PST files in your profile, the other is the loss of the data you most recently downloaded, if the data was in the file that got overwritten. -- Jocelyn Fiorello MVP - Outlook *** Messages sent to my e-mail address will NOT be answered -- please reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** In , Tony wrote: Hi Jocelyn, and thank you for your prompt response. Call me 'thick' ( Hi 'thick'!!), but I followed your instructions to the letter - I even had a printed copy of them in front of me, and somehow I still managed to end up with a my existing 'Outlook' folder, but with two exact copies of 'Personal Folders' (and their sub-folders) in each one!!! The search I carried out to find where the *.pst folder(s) was(were) gave me two answers - and as you said, nothing until I activated 'look in hidden files and folders'. The answere we C:/Documents and Settings/"user1"/Local Settings/Application Data/Microsoft/Outlook size c2Mb with today's date under properties. The second file is in exactly the same place except it's under "user2", and has a size of c33Mb dated 03/07/04 (obviously, "user1" and "user2" are actual names which I don't want to give out publicly!) Do you have any clue(s) as to what I am doing to cause all this confusion? (Incidentally, the 'file search' window was still open, and when I had performed the 'transfer instructions' you sent me, that also appeared on the list of *.pst files!) Thanks again for your help. |
#10
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Outlook 2002 (Windows XP Pro) Standalone PC
A couple of thoughts:
1) You're confusing yourself more having all those .PST files open in Outlook at once :-) First, I'd find out which file each of those entries is pointing to. Go to File | Data File Management and you will be able to see the list of files. Since you know none of those has your missing data, note which files they correspond to on your hard drive(s). Then close them out of Outlook by right-clicking their root folders one at a time and selecting Close. You won't be able to close the file designated as the default delivery location, so leave that one open, and your backup file too if it's not the default. 2) Now that you have eliminated some of the files you turned up in your Windows search, we can try to eliminate some of the others. Any file that is less than 256K is definitely empty, as that is the default size of a brand new .PST file with no data in it. I would look at the files that are ~43,000K. You can open them *one at a time* in Outlook using File | Open | Outlook Data File to see if any of them contain the missing data. If not, close them again right away -- right click the root folder and click Close. Cross each file off your list if it's not the right one. Let me know what you find out. -- Jocelyn Fiorello MVP - Outlook *** Messages sent to my e-mail address will NOT be answered -- please reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** In , Tony wrote: Hi Jocelyn Sorry I didn't get back to you over the weekend, but I decided to 'give it a rest', as it was driving me mad trying to get all my bits and pieces back! However, the two files I found - the main back-up and the incremenral back-ups, have both been accepted into 'Outlook', but those I downloaded on two days last week are ?????? In 'Outlook' at the moment, I have the following folders: Personal Folders (i.e. all mine), with everything from the back-ups in them Outlook Today (Personal Folders) - minimum 'Outlook' folders, nil content Personal Folders - as above Personal Folders - as above Personal Folders - as above Outlook Today(Personal Folders) - as above I thought I had put the back-up stuff in one of the Outlook Today (PF), but obviously not, as they are both empty. The *.pst files I have found are located thus: C:\D&S\user1\MyDocuments 48kb archive Office Data File C:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook ODF C:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook ODF D:\D&S\user1\MyDocuments 48kb archive ODF D:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook ODF D:\ ditto 43,833kb outlook2 ODF c:\D&S\user1\Recent 2kb outlook.pst shortcut C:\D&S\user1\LocalSettings\AppData\M-soft\Outlook 45,412kb outlook ODF C:\ ditto 48kb personal folder(2) ODF C:\D&S\user2\LocalSettings\AppData\M-soft\Outlook 43,833kb outlook ODF C:\ ditto 283kb outlook.pst Text Hope this all makes some sense to you - it doesn't to me (ask me anything on spreadsheets and i might be able to help!!). Hope you can spot where my most recent downloads might be, and how we can get them back, as I haven't dared send or receive any e-mail since I 'lost' the last lot!! Many thanks, You didn't overwrite one .PST file with another, did you? That could conceivably cause two problems you are having -- one is the "ghost" .PST files in your profile, the other is the loss of the data you most recently downloaded, if the data was in the file that got overwritten. -- Jocelyn Fiorello MVP - Outlook *** Messages sent to my e-mail address will NOT be answered -- please reply only to the newsgroup to preserve the message thread. *** In , Tony wrote: Hi Jocelyn, and thank you for your prompt response. Call me 'thick' ( Hi 'thick'!!), but I followed your instructions to the letter - I even had a printed copy of them in front of me, and somehow I still managed to end up with a my existing 'Outlook' folder, but with two exact copies of 'Personal Folders' (and their sub-folders) in each one!!! The search I carried out to find where the *.pst folder(s) was(were) gave me two answers - and as you said, nothing until I activated 'look in hidden files and folders'. The answere we C:/Documents and Settings/"user1"/Local Settings/Application Data/Microsoft/Outlook size c2Mb with today's date under properties. The second file is in exactly the same place except it's under "user2", and has a size of c33Mb dated 03/07/04 (obviously, "user1" and "user2" are actual names which I don't want to give out publicly!) Do you have any clue(s) as to what I am doing to cause all this confusion? (Incidentally, the 'file search' window was still open, and when I had performed the 'transfer instructions' you sent me, that also appeared on the list of *.pst files!) Thanks again for your help. |
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