Endow Your Community

Before we can examine PST recovery as a part of Microsoft Outlook file recovery we must first have an idea of exactly what a PST file is. Microsoft Outlook uses this unique file type as a means of storing all of the Outlook emails, settings and customizations. These may include messages, calendar functions and other scheduling. The PST file is an early text based database that allows for a large amount of information to be stored in a relatively small space. This is accomplished by the information sharing attributes. These attributes must be assigned to messages and other Outlook functions whenever that data is called forward.

Programs developed for PST recovery specifically address corruption to file creation tables within the database. These programs designed to recover Outlook PST messages do so by repairing or more precisely replacing the damaged instructional information within the PST file. This replacement is made by using a scripted comparison of the corrupted file to a known valid application.

Many versions of Microsoft Outlook allow only a 2 GB PST file capacity. Today with messages including imbedded photographs that 2 GB inbox and settings capacity maximum is quickly exceeded. Once the limit is reached the Microsoft Outlook inbox will no longer receive messages. The solution is to use a PST repair tool and then more regularly use a program for Outlook backup. Most software designed to repair the 2GB PST file simply cut down the size of the file so as to restore functionality. In fact the Microsoft tool for PST repair does exactly this. But this process also permanently damages and throws away a certain number of archived messages.

There are better programs and better methods of PST repair. One method is to use a program that divides the content of the PST database file into and essentially creates two accessible inboxes. This then allows you to use an Outlook backup to send the data to a new location. The second method examines the file creation tables within the PST file and should it find corruption replaces the tables with clean files from a non corrupted example. In situations where neither of these two techniques work and the files in question are crucial one can use an Outlook repair program that will extract the core data from the PST file and allow it to be read.

Most people think that rescuing damaged or deleted files from a USB flash drive or a video cam memory stick is a difficult process. In truth this type of data recovery is more simple than the process to recover data from a computer’s internal hard disk drive whereby one must often remove the computer’s hard drive and connect it by cable to a working computer. Recovery of data on an external device is much easier. Simply download a digital media recovery tool designed to help you recover photos from corrupted flash drive media and choose that particular drive as the location on which you need to recover lost files.

This same step would apply if attempting to recover photos from corrupted memory stick storage. Because most of the better file recovery tools are designed using a wizard style interface all you need do is answer a few questions by checking boxes and in minutes all of your corrupted or deleted digital photos are found and saved to a safe location.

When attempting to recover photos accidentally deleted on a Mac computer or digital camera connected to the Mac platform one must remember that Mac computers play by a different set of rules than the basic Windows PC. Obviously Mac computers use the Mac OS X operating system which is completely different than any version of Windows. A Windows application to recover lost files will not load onto a Mac. Mac recovery software is designed to mesh perfectly with the slightly different microprocessors used in most Mac laptop and desktop computers.

Once loaded the software allows Mac digital photo recovery from the computer’s internal hard drive by accessing files within the HFS directory system. In some cases you may be able to rescue files from a high end digital camera smart card by placing that card directly into a Windows PC and using a Windows data recovery program to reconstruct those generic files. However that would not allow you to scan for and save to files stored on a Mac hard drive.

Do you know where fully 90% of all identity theft problems originate? They start at your PC or Mac. Many people think that these problems begin at and spread from an outside source. While this is often true. Most of the time security breaches occur when someone unauthorized to view your files gains access to them. There are many ways that a person can accidentally or maliciously gain access to your private information even after you have deleted files. When the file was deleted from your computer’s hard disk drive the information held in that file remains in magnetic form until new information comes along to overwrite it.

The only way to be sure that no one can use a basic data recovery program to reopen that file information is to overwrite data beforehand by using a file shredder program. Sometimes referred to as a file eraser, these programs not only overwrite the original file information but they do so in a way so as to scramble that data time and again. This results in a complete drive wipe that is so secure the U.S. Department of Defense rates these programs has usable for removal of top secret information.

If you need to recover Mac data don’t be fooled by low quality Windows platform based programs that promise the ability to find and recover proprietary Mac files. These programs require you to remove your computer’s hard disk drive and connect it using cables to a Windows based PC onto which their supposedly viable program to recover Mac files has been installed. While in the narrowest sense these programs can recover a few files from a hard drive in that manner they are simply scanning for files in general and recovering them on a select and find basis.

The true program designed to recover Mac files will be able to download and install directly onto your Mac computer. From there you can use the wizard style interface to direct that program to scan either a partition on your computer’s hard drive or the entire drive. You can also use these programs to scan through for the purpose of recovery any universal Mac application connected as a portable device to your computer.

Many people are unaware that disk recovery seldom involves actual repair of a computer’s internal hard disk drive. The reality is that the cost of replacing a hard drive is far less than the cost of repairing one. Plus the replacement is usually twice the size of the old disk drive. No, crashed hard drive recovery refers to rescuing of any files that were on the crashed hard drive whether they were existing or recently deleted. The two main methods of hard drive recovery are as follows.

One can either remove the computer hard drive connected using cables to a second working PC onto which a powerful data recovery tool has been installed or one can reinstall Windows on their crashed hard drive computer and download the data recovery program directly onto that personal computer. Bear in mind that while reloading your Windows operating system does return your PC to operational status it also deletes all prior existing files. At this point you will need to use the data recovery program to search through your entire hard drive for any files that were deleted due to reformatting.