Trihimbulus
asked on
Outlook prompts to delete ost
I am using Outlook 2003 SP2 in a domain. Our exchange serbver is Ex2003SP2 and Outlook is in Cached Exchange Mode. When opening Outlook this morning, it prompted me to delete my existing ost file, and a new one will be created when I re-open outlook. Has anyone ever seen this one before? The ost file itself is about 500 MBs and it doesn't look like a good idea to delete it. Isn't this where emails are archived to? What is the difference between ost and pst files? Whats goin on??
ASKER
What will happen if i delete the ost like outlokk wants me to??
SOLUTION
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PST Files:
One or more .pst files can reside on each user's computer. A .pst can be defined as your primary store or as a secondary store. A primary store means that mail delivered to the Inbox in that file and all of your other default Outlook folders, such as Calendar, Contacts, Deleted Items, Journal, Notes, Sent Items, and Tasks reside there. A .pst file can also be defined as a secondary store, which means you can move items to that file, either manually or with Inbox Rules, from your primary store.
OST Files:
You can synchronize the .ost and your primary store so that they always contain the same information. This allows you to work offline when the server is unavailable. When you reconnect to the server, changes made offline upload to the server and mail received while offline downloads to the .ost. Only one .ost file can be used at a time.
"Isn't this where emails are archived to?"
Emails are archived to PST files.
An OST file is just a mirroe copy of the data stored in the mailbox on your Exchange server.
The only problem with deleting and recreating an OST file is that if you have been working offline and have made changes without synchronizing with the Exchange mailbox, then those changes will be lost.
An OST file is keyed to an Exchange mailbox and Outlook profile. If either of these change then you will not be able to use the existing OST file. This is for security reasons to keep someone from copying your OST file and reading the contents on another machine.