Repair Corrupted Outlook PST File

If you can’t open your Personal Folders file (.pst) or you suspect that your .pst data file is corrupt, you can use the Inbox Repair tool (Scanpst.exe), to diagnose and repair errors in the file. Instructions for both Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007 are given below.

Outlook 2003

• Close Outlook if it’s running
• Open folder “drive:Program FilesCommon FilesSystemMSMAPILocaleID”
  (drive is normally the C drive, and LocaleID is the locale identifier (LCID) for the installation of Microsoft Office. The LCID for English – United States is 1033)
• Double-click Scanpst.exe
• Select the PST file to scan by using the “Browse” button
• Click Start
  When the scanning is completed, and if errors were found, you will be prompted to start the repair process
• If required, change the location of the backup file in the Backup File Box
• Click Repair
• Start Outlook using the profile that contains the .pst file that you tried to repair
• The Lost and Found folder contains folders and items that the Inbox Repair tool recovered

Outlook 2007

• Close Outlook if it’s running
• Open folder “drive:Program FilesMicrosoft OfficeOffice12″
  (drive is normally the C drive)
• Double-click Scanpst.exe
• Select the PST file to scan by using the “Browse” button
• Click Start
  When the process is completed, the results will be displayed
• If required, change the location of the backup file in the Backup File Box
• Click Repair
• Start Outlook using the profile that contains the .pst file that you tried to repair
• The Lost and Found folder contains folders and items that the Inbox Repair tool recovered