How to Recover Deleted PST File in Outlook 2019/2016/2013/2010

I Accidentally Deleted My .pst File. Can I Retrieve It?

"I accidentally deleted my whole PST file from C:\Users\Name\Documents\Outlook Files. Is there any way to retrieve it? Now, when I click to open Microsoft Outlook, a warning sign appears and indicates "The file C:\Users\xxx\documents\Outlook Files\xxx@*******.com.pst cannot be found". How can I recover the deleted PST file? I need it to continue my works. Thank you in advance. Please help me."

A PST (Personal Storage Table) is an automatically created personal folder file in Microsoft Outlook. It stores a user's Outlook data such as emails, tasks, contacts, calendars, events, attachments, and other files on the client's hard disk. Sometimes the PST file can get deleted or lost due to a certain reason, like hazardous Trojan and Malware virus infection, unintentional deletion by pressing Shift + Delete keys, hard drive failure, or operating system crash.

If you just deleted the PST file, you should be able to restore it from the Recycle Bin. If it is permanent deletion or you have emptied the Recycle Bin, you will need to recover it from a backup if you have one. In case you still don't have a backup (for most users), you can use an ultimate EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard program to restore permanently deleted PST files.  

The Most Effective Way to Recover Deleted PST File from Hard Drive

The most practical method to recover deleted PST file for Outlook is using EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard. This is one of the top file recovery software that can recover lost PST or OST files at a high recovery rate.

Apart from PST file recovery, this data recovery application can also recover many other kinds of files, such as Word, Excel, PPT, PSD, videos, photos, audios, and more. Now download this program and follow steps to recover deleted PST files within a few simple clicks.

Step 1. Choose the drive or partition where you lost email files, and click "Scan".

Step 2. The software will initiate a scanning process immediately. Wait patiently until the scanning process completes. To quickly locate the email files, click "Others" in the left panel. Then, look for PST files or Outlook files in the file type list.

Step 3. Then, choose the desired email files and click "Recover". Save the files to another location instead of the original one.

How to Import PST files into Outlook

After the PST files have been recovered, you can import them to Outlook to restore all mailbox components within the files such as emails, attachments, contacts, calendar items, journals, notes, etc.

Step 1. Start Outlook. Go to "File" > "Open & Export" > "Import/Export" > "Import from another program or file" > "Open Outlook Data File". 

Step 2. In the navigation pane, drag and drop the emails, contacts, other folders from .pst file to your existing Outlook folders.

• A relevant tutorial you may need: How to restore and repair corrupted PSD files

Recover Deleted PST File from Previous Versions

Suppose that you have enables the File History or system backup on your Windows, you might recover deleted PST files from backup and previous versions.

Step 1. Open Windows Explorer.

Step 2.  Go to the C:\Users\UserName\Documents\Outlook Files.

Step 3. Right-click Outlook Files and choose "Restore Previous Versions". Switch to the "Previous Versions" tab. Then, choose a version to restore.

Final Words

If you have deleted Outlook PST files unintentionally, you must not compact your PST or save any new data, as these actions may lead to overwriting. Then, you need to recover deleted PST files through useful ways, either from backup if enabled or using EaseUS file recovery tool to get back your emails and other content in Outlook. The earlier you make the recovery, the more likely the data recovery will be.

Helpful Tips to Avoid PST File Loss

Based on the reasons result in data loss, you can do the following to avoid the loss of PST files.

• Regularly back up important files, including the PST file and store them on an external hard drive 
• Scan your system with antivirus software to check and remove virus
• Be careful not to delete files by mistake 
• Delete using the "Delete" key or right-click mouse with Delete option instead of press "Shift+Delete" keys
• Do not close Microsoft Outlook abruptly