The best guide to deleting .ost file

Microsoft Outlook also known as MS Outlook is and email client and personal information manager which comes with Microsoft Office. OST is the short form for Offline Storage Table is has been created by Microsoft Outlook. OST files stores all the offline work and whenever the Outlook goes online all the information gets updated online. The server is automatically synced regularly and you can work in offline mode. It helps you work when the network connection or server is very slow or vulnerable.

• Part 1. Step by step tutorial to delete damaged or corrupted .ost files
• Part 2. Reducing the size of .ost file
• Part 3. Deleted .ost files accidently? Here is a way to get them back

Part 1Step by step tutorial to delete damaged or corrupted .ost files

To delete a damaged or corrupted .ost file you must make sure that the MS outlook is closed.

Setp 1. Now to delete the .ost file, click on the start button and then type ‘Run’ in the search bar. The Run program appears in the search list. Click on it to open it.

Setp 2. Once you click on Run, the run window appears. Enter the address in the following format to locate the .ost file in your system as shown below.

C:UsersUser NameAppDataLocalMicrosoftOutlook

Setp 3. Once you click on ‘OK’, a new screen appears which opens up the file destination where the .ost file is present as shown below.

Setp 4. To delete the .ost file, select the file by clicking on it and then press the ‘Delete’ button. A notification appears asking ‘Are you sure you want to delete the file?’ as shown below. Click on the ‘Yes’ option and the file gets deleted.

Part 2Reducing the size of .ost file

Earlier versions of MS outlook had a predefined file size limit as 2GB, but fortunately from MS Outlook 2007 onwards the size limit has been increased to 20 GB. However it is necessary your .ost files from time to time so that the size does not become excessively large.

Size of the .ost file can be reduced with the help of Mailbox cleanup tool which is a feature of MS Outlook.

1. Once you open the MS Outlook click on the ‘Tools’ menu and then click on the option ‘Mailbox cleanup’.
2. To view the total size of your mailbox and of the individual folders within it click on ‘View Mailbox size’. A screen appears which shows you different folders and their sizes. To delete any folder click on the folder once and press the ‘Delete’ button.
3. To delete files within a folder, open the folder by double clicking on it and the select the files you want to delete and finally press the ‘Delete’ button.
4. Now again click on the ‘Tools’ menu and then click on ‘Account settings’.
5. From the list that appears, click on the option ‘Microsoft Exchange Server’. A new menu appears.
6. In the new menu click on ‘Change’ and then click on ‘More settings’ which further opens up a new screen.
7. Click on the ‘Advanced’ tab in the new screen, and then click on ‘Offline Folder File Settings’.
8. After clicking on the ‘Offline Folder File Settings’ a new screen appears. In this new menu click on the option ‘Compact now’.
9. Your .ost files starts to compress and the size of the file is reduced.

Part 3Deleted .ost files accidently? Here is a way to get them back

If you have deleted important ost. files by accident, then we will need to restor them with the help of data recovery tools. Here is a quick guide to recover deleted or lost .ost file.

Step 1. Free download Wondeshare Data Recovery and launch it. Select the type of file you want to recover, to recover .ost file you need to select the "Email" option.

Step 2. On doing so a new screen appears asking you the location where you lost your .ost file. Select the proper location and click on "Start" to scanning lost ost files.

Step 3. You can go to deep scan your lost .ost files after a quick scan completed. It will take more time than quick scan

Step 4. The remaining time at the top shows how long will it take for the process to complete. Once the search has been completed the list of all deleted .ost, .pst etc. files appears in the screen. Select the .ost file which you want to save and then click on the "Recover" option present at the bottom.

This is all you need to know if you’re looking for recovering deleted software.