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Recovering Outlook.pst file -- WHERE IS IT?

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1. I need to recover my Outlook.pst file (located in Users/USERNAME/AppData/Microsoft/Outlook), but when I performed the "recover files" procedure there was no "AppData" folder at all under USERNAME. I looked for a setting to release "hidden" files, but could not find one. I have recovered the entire disk in the past, so it has to be there. How do I access it for recovery purposes?

2. Previous versions of ATI Home enabled one to create a virtual disk of the backup and move files around just like a real disk. I found no such option in ATI 2016. Have they eliminated it?

The older versions seem to have done the job in a much more straightforward manner.

 

Zvi Ofer

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When you restore, can you see any hidden files or folders, like c:\programdata?

I am on an 8.1 machine at the moment and File Explorer search had no problem finding "*.pst".

My default location

"C:\Users\YourName\Documents\Outlook Files\Outlook.pst"

I meant, when you use ATI to recover, can you see other hidden files/folders to be selected for recovery. I understand you don't see the pst file, just wondering if you cansee any hidden files

FYI... Outlook.pst is opened in "memory" when in use and not on the local hard drive until you save/close outlook.  Any new changes to the PST will not be backed up as they are committed to memory and not written to the local hard drive.  This is the same for other Microsoft files such as documents and spreadsheets.  Normally, these are configured to save every so often automatically, but you may want to check those settings and or shorten the save time to say 5 minutes.  Ideally, when backing up a .pst, if you can back it up when it's not in use, you're likely to have a better copy of it as well. 

This is from another competitor forum, but explains the limitation well.  I did not link the post since it's a direct competitor and have edited out the name and some items that don't apply specifically to Acronis.  The point of the information is to show the limitation of backing up open .pst files with Microsoft Volume Shadow Service (VSS).

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Recommended Solution

To eliminate issues with the Windows Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS), follow the steps below to clear your VSS snapshots.

  1. Go to the Windows Start menu.
  2. Search for cmd.
  3. Right-click on cmd.exe select Run as Administrator.
  4. In the command prompt, enter this command:
    vssadmin delete shadows /all
  5. Press Enter.

It may take up to 24 hours for VSS to rebuild its snapshot in order for **** to successfully back up the PST. 

Alternative Solutions

Solution 1: Separate Backup Set

Create a separate backup set with specific settings optimized for backing up your PST file.

  1. Open the **** app.
  2. Create a new backup set.
  3. Change the file selection of your new backup set to include only the PST file location.
     
  4. Go to Settings > Backup and change one or both of the following settings in your new backup set (as applicable for your Outlook usage):
    • Change Backup Will Run to Between specified times and select a time window when Outlook is usually closed.
  5. Wait for the new backup set to back up completely.
  6. Change the file selection of your other backup set to exclude the PST file.

Solution 2: Back Up Copy Of PST File

As an alternative to backing up the PST file directly, you can use a two-stage process: use another application to copy your PST file, then back up the copy with ****. This process grants **** full access to back up the copied file, because it is not actively in use.

There are a number of tools that can be used to copy your PST file, including:

To back up the copied file, follow the instructions below.

  1. Select a PST copy tool.
  2. Configure the tool to copy your PST file as needed (for example, once per day).
  3. Change your backup file selection to include the copied PST file.
  4. Wait for the copy of the PST file to back up completely.
  5. Change your backup file selection to exclude the original (non-copy) PST file.

[Edited]

Hey Mark, how would that work, if the version of the PST Is not corrupted, but missing emails because the user needs to revert to an earlier point in time of the PST since they may have accidetnally delted some fo the emails permanently?  Or, perhaps the users machine is complete toast and they want to recover their PST from a backup, but the PST was not part of the backup since it was committed to memory and not the local machine when the backup was taken?  

It just doesn't seem like Oulook PST recovery would offer any help here. Just curious, but as your account was created just today and references a third party product, do you work for or have ties to said 3rd party product? 

Mark's post looks like spam to me.