In today’s world where email is an essential part of our life, Microsoft Outlook has become the foremost choice for computer users. When it comes to email, Outlook is the first name that users look for. We all very well know about Microsoft Outlook. Generally, users are found calling it an email client application, which is absolutely correct. But as a matter of fact, it’s not just an email client. Yes, you heard me right. In fact, it is a personal information manager tool containing various features other than email. It includes calendar, task manager, contact manager, note-taking, journal, and web browsing. But it is not easy to change OST file to PST.

Outlook is the part of a well-known Office suite, called Microsoft Office. Also, it comes as a separate application. It is commonly used as a stand-alone application for individual purposes. But in organizations and large enterprises, it is used with Exchange Server for multiple users. Being a part of Microsoft Exchange Server, users can easily share their mailbox data with one another.

Microsoft Outlook allows users to work in offline mode if they do not connect with the Exchange Server or Internet connection is not available. For this, Outlook creates a copy of mailbox data on a local system, called OST aka Offline Storage Table. In case you do not connect to Exchange Server, Outlook stores the mailbox data into an Outlook data file, called PST or Personal Storage Table.

What is the need to Change OST file to PST?

Sometimes it becomes an essential task to convert OST into PST format. The most common reasons are below:

Due to a crash in Exchange Server, users’ mailbox becomes inaccessible. Though you can work with the OST file in offline mode, you can’t synchronize it with the Exchange Server. If you need urgently to access the mailbox in order to make some changes over it, you can transform the OST file into PST format.

Exchange Server needs regular maintenance. During the maintenance process, you can’t use Exchange Server. Sometimes it becomes very necessary to have access to the mailbox items which is not possible during the Exchange Server maintenance. In order to get access to mailbox data, you need to transfigure OST format to PST format, and then you can import the file into Outlook.

Switching from one organization to another one can also be a key factor for turning the OST file to PST. How? For example, your Outlook profile is connected with the Exchange Server of your company. A few months later, you leave the organization and join a new one. As you have left your previous organization, the Server administrator has removed your account. Though you have OST files, you can’t use them without an Exchange Server connection. In such a situation, you can change the OST files to PST format in order to access your old mailbox data.

your Outlook profile is connected with the Exchange Server of your company. A few months later, you leave the organization and join a new one. As you have left your previous organization, the Server administrator has removed your account. Though you have OST files, you can’t use them without an Exchange Server connection. In such a situation, you can change the OST files to PST format in order to access your old mailbox data. If you’ve recently deleted some of your crucial data from the mailbox, the only way to recover them is by converting the OST file into PST format.

File corruption can also force users to convert offline OST files into PST format. OST Repair tool is available in the market that can repair corrupt OST files. Though Microsoft provides Scanost.exe, the Integrity Check tool to scan corrupt OST files, it’s not that effective in case of severe corruption.

There could be a few more reasons for converting the offline files to PST. But now the question is how to do that. Outlook professionals suggest a few manual tricks for exporting Outlook mailbox data from offline mode to PST. Also, many software companies provide professional tools for changing OST files into PST format. However, you should always try the manual tricks first as they require no 3rd party tool or any other cost.

Before you can start exporting Outlook mailbox from OST to Online PST format via manual tricks, you need to make sure few things:

Your Outlook is configured with the Exchange Server and you are having a valid connection with it at the time you are exporting Outlook mailbox from OST to Outlook PST file.

The local system in which the OST files were originally created is mainly needed to perform the manual trick.

Create a new Outlook data file in PST format into which you can export or move your mailbox data.

The Import and Export feature of Outlook is the best way to convert OST file to PST.

You can try this feature in this way:

Launch Microsoft Outlook on your system.

on your system. Click the File menu on top, then click Open > Import .

menu on top, then click . In the Import and Export Wizard , choose an action to perform: Export to a file . Then hit Next .

, choose an action to perform: . Then hit . Now select Outlook data file (.pst) in the list, and again hit Next to continue the process.

in the list, and again hit to continue the process. Here you need to select the mailbox folder to export from. You may also include the subfolders. Hit Next one more time.

one more time. Now define a location where you want to save the new PST file. Also, check other options given there before exporting Outlook mailbox data. Click Finish to start the process.

to start the process. Within a couple of minutes (usually depends on the size of the mailbox), the process completes. You can now check the new Outlook data file at the location you defined earlier.

Few other manual tricks include Outlook’s archive feature, Move to the items to new PST file, etc. Manual tricks are helpful, but you can’t use them if the OST files are corrupt. In case of corruption, you can run scanost.exe, the Integrity check tool to scan the corrupt files.

3rd party professional tools are the best alternative in this situation. A professional OST to PST Converter is programmed to support normal as well as corrupt OST files, and change OST file to PST format within a few mouse clicks. Manual tricks are always time-consuming and tricky for novice users. But if you employ a professional tool, the file conversion process becomes an easy task to perform without taking much time, i.e. hardly a couple of minutes would be enough for the entire operation.

Also, Read- Mbox to PST Conversion Free Techniques