Most users who have an email account on the Microsoft Exchange Server prefer to use Outlook as their email client and work offline with their Exchange data. This allows them to work without any interruptions even if there is no connection with the Exchange server or if there is any break in the connection. Outlook stores this offline data in the form of OST files. Any changes that are made in the offline data is then synchronized with the data on the Exchange server the next time a connection is made.  One point to be noted is that these offline files too carry the same risk as any other files of being damaged because of server crashes or because of virus attacks. In such cases, recovery tools like Advanced Exchange Recovery from DataNumen are an easy way to recover exchange data.

 

While there is no doubt that working offline allows a user to work faster as they do not have to worry about staying connected to the Exchange server or of any lost connections, OST files can typically grow into fairly big files. As a result, they start occupying a large amount of space on the local hard disk. One way of overcoming this problem and of ensuring that hard disk space is conserved is by compacting the OST files. We will first see how we can use Outlook to delete unwanted items from the OST file and then carry out a compaction process. Later we will also look at how easy it is to recover exchange data from damaged OST files using Advanced Exchange Recovery.

 

Here is how you can go about compacting the OST files.

 

§         Open Microsoft Outlook 2007 and delete all the unwanted items from the various folders. Now empty even the Deleted Items folder.

§         Now open the main Tools menu and go to Account Settings.

§         From the list that opens up, you can select Microsoft Exchange Server and click on Change.

§         In this window, click on the tab titled Advanced and then Offline Folder File Settings. You will see the Compact Now option. Click on it to start the process immediately.

 

There is always a concern with offline files that if they get corrupted due to hardware or software problems, then all the data stored in them or changes carried out in them will also be permanently lost. However, Advanced Exchange Recovery makes it possible to recover exchange data from very large OST files, even those running into terabytes! In fact, using this powerful recovery tool, you can recover all your OST files and even save them as PST files that can be easily read by Microsoft Outlook.