Having a corrupt pst file is about the same as having your whole computer go down.  At least for me.  those who use Outlook should know that it is very important to always backup your pst file on a regular bases.

The PST file should be consider as the grand daddy of all Outlook files because it stores all you info in this one big file.  If you don’t know how to make a backup of this then we urge you to look over at this Outlook PST backup page.  It has a link to the free Microsoft backup plug-in that will help ensure you never suffer if your pst file goes down.

If your file is already damaged then the above link will help you out big time on trying to recover it.  Keep in mind that in the end if the free methods do not work then you will need to purchase some pst recovery software to get the job done.  While the software can be a hard hit on the wallet it’s nothing for the cost of all your e-mails back.
As you should already be able to tell the best thing to do is always have a back of any file you use a lot.Not only when the file is in good condition but alwasy before you attempt any repair.  The reason for this is you need to ensure you do not do more damage to the file.Making a backup is a must.  That way you can use multiple methods to try and get your data back without having to worry about doing more damage.

Outlook has a nice free tool called scanpst.exe that you can try first for free.  It is a very week tool but if your issue is just in the headers of the file it will resolve your issue.  If the file is more corrupt then it won't do much for you.  It should only take about 20-30 minutes for you to run this free tool so it's worth a try.

As far as I am aware this is the only free repair tool on the market at this time.  you would think Microsoft would of made a better tool to help in the repair process and perhaps they re-working on one but it's not here yet.

If you are having an issue with your old pst file being too big and over the 2g mark then there are a number of free and paid tools out there that can help you resolve this issue.

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