When moving from one workstation to another or having your workstation re-imaged, it may be necessary to backup or migrate your Outlook Data Files (PST). These files contain your Outlook email archives and are saved with the extension ".pst." The default location of these files are in the Documents folder under "Outlook Files" (C:\Documents\Outlook Files). These files can be moved to a safe location for backup or migration to a different workstation. Backup options include saving to a DVD if the file size isn't too large or saving to OneDrive. This guide will cover the steps of migrating your PSTs to DVD or OneDrive.
- Before anything can be done with PST files, note that Outlook must be closed. If Outlook is running, some of the files might be locked.
- Open File explorer and browse to "C:\Documents\Outlook Files." If you do not see any files here, they may be saved elsewhere. In that case, please place a support ticket an we can assist you.
- At this point, if you have a large enough DVD or External Hard Drive, you can copy and paste the files over to the external media. If you would like to upload your files to OneDrive then proceed to the next step.
- Once in the directory with your PST files, select the 'View' tab at the top of the window and make sure 'File name extensions' is checked. This will show the ".pst" extension of your files.
- Before you can migrate your files to OneDrive you will need to change the ".pst" extension of your files to something else. As a standard, we change it to "o" for Outlook.
- Once all of your files extensions have been renamed, login to OneDrive via the web browser by going to https://portal.apps.mil and selecting OneDrive from the menu icon on the upper left. From here, you can select 'Add new' and then 'Folder upload' to upload the 'Outlook Files' folder. Depending on the folder size, this could take a few minutes or many hours.
- Once you have uploaded your files to OneDrive, you can change the extension of your local files back to .pst and continue to use them in Outlook or if you are moving to a new workstation or have received a re-imaged workstation, you can download the files from OneDrive and configure them for use with Outlook.
- To download your files from OneDrive, browse to the folder where they're saved, select the folder or files you wish to download and select the download option. The download will begin and download the files as a zip file. You will need to click on the zip folder and follow the instructions to extract the files.
- Once the files have been extracted, move them to the "C:\Documents\Outlook Files" directory on your new/re-imaged computer and change the extension back to ".pst."
- Open Outlook and select 'New Items' in the upper left. Scroll down to 'More Items' and 'Outlook Data File' at the bottom. You will see a dialog box where you can select the archive file to open. It should appear on the left pane. Repeat this process for all necessary files.
You should now be able to access your archives on the new workstation. If you have run into any issues following this guide, please place a trouble ticket at our helpdesk. Your feedback helps us improve these guides. If you have found this guide helpful or if you have any suggestions, please consider leaving a like or comment below.