Do I import items into current Folder or ...

Anonymous

I'm reinstalling Outlook 365 to another computer and have the PST file in a Folder carried over from the older computer. When I go to import the PST file over to the new computer, I have two options, one being "Import Items into the Current Folder" OR "Import Items into the Same Folder" which has an email address as secondary and will not be my main email address. I'm attempting to import from the PST which has my main email address.

If I choose to import items into the current Folder, my secondary address is grayed out. If I choose to import items into the same Folder (which is my secondary email address) then that email address is no longer grayed out.

So the question is, which one do I choose: import items into the current folder or into the same folder which has the secondary email address?

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Anonymous

This is what I thought I was doing ... telling Outlook to use the copy of the PST file from the previous installation.

Let me go back and re-read your instructions.

Let me make it easier for you - I'll include the screenshot again that you will encounter when configuring a POP account. The critical part is to check the box for "Use an existing data file" and then browsing to the location you copied the file on your local hard drive. You do not want to select the thumb drive as the location of the file

Steps are:

#1 - On old machine copy PST file (with Outlook closed) to the thumb drive

#2 - On new machine, copy PST file to your local hard drive. A PST file can be located anywhere on the hard drive except the root of your C:\ drive. Yu should also not copy it to a folder that is being sync'd with a cloud file sharing service like OneDrive, Dropbox etc

#3 - Configure the POP account

You can always change the PST file that POP emails are being delivered to but it is a lot easier to do it right from the start

Lastly, as a FYI in case you're not aware, any PST file can always be opened in Outlook on it's own without being associated with any email account. That's done from within Outlook by

<File> --> <Open ^ Export> --> <Open Outlook Data File> --> browse to where the PST file is located and select it to open it in Outlook at which point it will appear in the Outlook Nav Pane

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Anonymous

Also, I'm not exporting a PST file to another PST FILE but rather exporting it to a thumb drive to be copied onto to the newly installed Office.

To be technically accurate - you export to a PST data where the "location" is the thumb drive. Nothing can be exported to a "drive" - data is always contained in a file that is located on a drive. When you export - your choices are

#1 - Export to a file

#2 - Select the file type you want to export to and then you have the option of where that file is going to be created

I've read too many times how one doesn't need to export and export but rather close down Outlook, copy the PST file over to the new computer to be copied onto that very computer.

There's are reasons for that. You are just needlessly complucating your life by exporting and importing just to move a POP account from one computer to another. Simply not the recommended approach but will leave it at that - can't add more then what has already been stated

If the export / import process works for you - then you should stick with it but keep in mind all the time you've already spent on this question instead of simply telling Outlook to use a copy of the PST file from the previous installation

That to me is confusing. I'm not using the pst file that is there after installing but the new pst file carried over from the other computer. As far as I can understand, the purpose of bringing over the pst file from the other computer is to copy it on to the newly installed Office on this computer.

There are different reasons to <copy> a pst file

#1 - To make a backup copy

#2 - To use it again in another instance of Outlook (as already described

#3 - To import the data onto a server (i.e. changing from POP to IMAP or Exchange)

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Anonymous

When I installed Office 365, there was one email address in there which was not the primary email address.

If that was the case, it means that Outlook was previously installed on this computer and the Outlook profile from the previous installation was used. Outlook profiles do not get removed when Office (Outlook) is uninstalled

As for using an existing PST file when you configure a POP account it's just a matter of explicitly telling Outlook to use an existing PST file as shown in the screenshot

That aside, it is never necessary to export a PST file to another PST file for the purposes of moving the data. Just need to make a copy of the existing PST file to the desired location making sure tat Outlook is closed before copying the file.

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Anonymous

So the POP account (with the check mark beside it) is the one I copied and have on this secondary computer in another folder and ready to import but as said earlier,

As mentioned in the previous response, there would be no reason to <import> the PST file, you just need to configure the POP account so that it uses the PST file that you copied.

From what you've described, the POP account was configured to create a new PST file instead of using the existing PST file. There are two ways to resolve this but will leave that unless you want that info

To import the PST file, what you need to do is

#1 - Select the <root> (top) folder in the PST file being imported

#2 - Make sure the box is checked for <include subfolders>

#3 - Select the <root> (top) folder in the destination PST file

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46 additional answers

Karl Timmermans 3,685 Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2022-05-15T08:10:42+00:00

As to question #3, no PST File showing - just OST.

Am I understanding things correctly that you encountered the error ""Mail Deliver Location - Outlook (97-2002) Data Files (pst) cannot be used when more than one Exchange account is configured" when you tried to change the <default data file> from one OST file to another?

If yes, am I also correct in assuming that the OST file was (is?) set as the <default data file> belongs to an IMAP account and the OST file you wanted to change the <default data file) belongs to an Exchange account?

If the answer to the above is: Yes then it is quite likely that either there is corruption somewhere. FWIW, I have some 25 different email accounts configured in my primary Outlook profile using Outlook '365 with a mix of POP, IMAP and Exchange accounts and don't encounter any errors changing the <default data file>

One final question. How can I fix that broken ScanPst file that won't scan because of a missing dll file? Will a Repair on Office do the trick or is that totally out of the question.

Getting a DLL error for ScanPST certainly indicates that something is wrong. Doing an <Online Repair> of Office would certainly resolve that but certainly is curious as to why you got that error in the first place. Makes one wonder if there are other issues at play so repairing Office certainly wouldn't hurt things.

Now for some comments and a suggestion

#1 - When configuring email accounts in a new Outlook profile, the data file for the first account would be set as the <default data file>.

#2 - You really don't want to have the OST file for an IMAP account set as the <default data file>. An OST file from an IMAP account set as the <default data file> would contain "This Compute Only" folders (contact & calendar). The problem with storing anything in any "This Computer Only" folders is that if Outlook cannot find / open the OST data file, it will automatically create a new one, sync the email folders with the server but the "This Computer Only" folders will be empty (ergo the data in those folders would be lost"

#3 - Instead of worrying about prior posts in this thread and at the risk of being repetitious, my suggestions would be as follows

a) repair Office

b) if you haven't imported the contacts from the PST file into a contact folder belonging to an Exchange account, run ScanPST on the PST file you want to import

c) create a new Outlook profile using the Control Panel Mail app

d) configure the Exchange account where you want to store your contact / calendar data as the first account so that its data file is set as the <default data file>

e) add the rest of your accounts in any desired order - doesn't matter. If you want one of these account to be the <default email account> - you can set the account you want by

<File> --> <Account Settings> --> <Email> tab --> select the email account --> click on <Set as default>, This is complete separate and distinct from what data file is set as the <default data file>.

The <default email account> governs what Outlook uses as the default <From> address when composing a new email message.

f) import your contacts from the PST file originally referred to into the contact folder of the first Exchange account (step <d>)

That should end up with a clean Outlook profile with no need for any further changes
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