.pst files/personal folder files

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HELP!!!!!

here i go again. last week, the beast got attacked by a lotta buncha virii. they managed to disable IE, which was frustrating. we could log on, but that was as far as we could go. i wound up having to back up my data, then reformat the hard drive (not the first time i’ve done this, which is why i am so frustrated.) i used nero(OEM)/nero express 6 to copy and/or backup all the data, all five DVDs worth. this is the same way i have performed this evolution in the past, aside from the fact that this time i used a DVD burner, as opposed to a CD burner. anyway, i started reinstalling all the programs (whew), and data after that. the first data that i always reinstall is all the .pst files for outlook, so that i can get to my e-mail. i did it the way that i was told here, so long ago, and the way that woody’s book told me how. it has always worked in the past just fine. not so this time. every time i tried to inport a folder, this is the message that i got:

File access is denied. You do not have the permission required to access the file.

then it listed the path to the file. i don’t understand why i don’t have permission: heck, i’m the administrator! i did all the file copying and the file backing up. no one else even touched the ‘puter (there’s only two of us, and my husband won’t touch it when it’s misbehaving until i tell him it’s okay to do so.)

so, my question/cry for help is this: what can i do to get outlook to let me open or import my personal folders? i’m shut out of almost four years’ worth of e-mail. there’s some (ebay related) that i really need right now. it’s very frustrating, especially since i haven’t done anything differently form what i have done in the past. the really urgent part here is that i am leaving town on saturday morning to go to baltimore for at least a month to take care of a critically ill parent, and i need to have all this fixed before i go, so that i can access it all while i am gone. sorry to dump all this into your laps so close to the weekend, but you’re my last hope, and also my first hope, as all y’all are always so wonderful when it comes to figuring things out. thanks ever so much for any and all help that you can send my way. until the next time, take care and God bless.

smiles-
ladyleadfoot!!!

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Locate your .pst file in Windows Explorer.
Right-click it and select Properties from the popup menu.
Make sure that the Read-only check box is clear (off).
Then click OK.
Does this solve the problem?

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hi hans!

nope, it didn’t help. i tried it, and i got the following error message:

An error occurred while applying attributes to this file: {it listed the file path}

Access is denied.

this is frustrating, because i have done this several times in the past, and had no problem. this time, when i really need it, it doesn’t work. thanks for the thought, and for your help. any other ideas?

until the next time, take care and God bless.

smiles-
ladyleadfoot!!!

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Please forgive me for asking the obvious. You’re not trying to import directly from a .pst file on the DVD, are you? Outlook cannot work with .pst files on a CD or DVD.

In order to do anything with a .pst file, you must do the following before using it in Outlook:
– Copy it to a folder on your hard disk.
– Clear the read-only check box as described in my previous reply.

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hi again hans!

i was trying to do it directly from a DVD. didn’t know i couldn’t. now, i have another problem. i did what you told me to do, and then tried to import the file. this is the error message that i am now getting:

OUTLOOK.exe has generated errors and will be closed by WIndows. You will need to restart the program.

An error log is being created.

i don’t have much hair left to pull out. any ideas as to where i should go from here? thanks for all your help; it’s greatly appreciated. i eagerly await your next post. until then, take care and God bless.

smiles-
ladyleadfoot!!!

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That’s sort of a generic error message that unfortunately doesn’t really pin down the problem.

Rather than import, how about opening the old PST side-by-side with the new one? At least then you can drag and drop to move old entries into the new PST.

The menus changed in Outlook 2002, so if you have 2002 or 2003, you use File>Open>Outlook Data File. In Outlook 2000, it was File>Open>Personal Folders file.

Can you open it without errors that way?

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hi!

thanks for the answer. sorry i took so long to reply, but i just got back from my trip, which was much longer than i had thought it was going to be. between your suggestion, and a bit of this and a bit of that, i have managed to get everything all together. i will be days, i think, clicking and dragging, but at least i’ll be able to get at my e-mail. i have another problem that needs to be asked, but i will do that one in another thread, even if it is outlook related. i have had more problems with this beast and its software (and hardware) over the last year or so than i have had since i bought it. a friend of mine that i ask a lot of questions of suggested this evening that i use it as an anchor for my non-existent boat. i am considering buying one just so that i can heed his suggestion! thanks to one and all for your help; my sweetheart and i appreciate it greatly. until the next time, take care and God bless.

smiles-
ladyleadfoot!!!

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In addition to what Hans suggested, the problem may be – if you’re running WinXP – that the “Ownership” of the *.pst is marked as being to an identity that ceased “existing” when you reformatted the hard drive. As administrator, you have the powers to take Ownership of the file. Right-click on the file and see if there is a Security tab. If so, take ownership of the file, as necessary. HTH

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hi unkanunka!

nope, i’m running win 2000 pro, not XP, so there’s no way for me to take ownership of the file. i’ve never had this problem before, and i have reformatted the hard drive, and reinstalled files, and imported personal folder files (.pst) more times than i care to think about. that’s why i wrote to all y’all, because i am frustrated, and just a bit upset, because what once worked no longer does. take a look as hans’s idea, and my reply to his suggestion.

of course, the rest of the past week and a half or so hasn’t been any better. i couldn’t answer your answer, or hans’s, until today due to the fact that we had a woodchuck(some people call them groundhogs), in our house (no idea how the heck it got here, either. it had been here for at least two days. based on what my husband said, but our cats didn’t say a thing; nor did they evince the slightest bit of interest.) it was in the library/office, which is where the ‘puter is. it took two calls to the cops, three different police officers, my husband coming home to set a trap (a haveaheart trap, for those who don’t like killing critters), several boxes, two briefcases, a broom used as a croquet mallet, and a lot of peanut butter. that’s all i’ll say, other than to say that it’s put me about three days behind and i have to get this all solved by no later than 1200 EST, as i am leaving town for the next month or month and a half, and the beast has to be running right before i leave.

so, i thank you for your help, and for the thought. i only wish that it had worked. do you have any other ideas? until the next time, take care and God bless.

smiles-
ladyleadfoot!!!

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