Creating Personal Folders in Outlook

Creating a Personal Folder file (.pst) in Microsoft Outlook allows you to move folders, messages, and files that are on the mail server to your computer or Cabinet folder, freeing up disk space for your e-mail, especially if your mailbox is reaching its size limit. This means that the files moved into the Personal Folder will no longer be accessible through the web mail client (http://ecmail.emerson.edu).

Follow these steps to create Personal Folder file:

1. From the File menu in Microsoft Outlook 2002, point to New, and click Outlook Data File
2. Under Types of storage, make sure Personal Folders file (.pst) is selected. Click OK.
3. Enter a name for the Personal Folders file that will remain on your computer. In the File name box, enter a name for the file, such as "OLDMAIL" or "Archive," and click OK.
4. A new window appears. In the Name box, type a display name for the .pst folder. This is the name that will appear in the Folder List in your Microsoft Outlook. It is recommended that this name be the same as the .pst file entered before. Click OK.
5. To view the Folder List, from the View menu, click Folder List. Drag any item from your current folders to the new folder. You can also hold the CTRL key while dragging to copy items instead of moving them.

If you are using Microsoft Outlook 2002, the way in which you create Personal Folders have changed slightly from Microsoft Outlook 2000.

If you are a faculty or staff member, the IT Help Desk recommends that you store your .pst file in your Cabinet folder. If your computer encounters a hardware failure, its possible all data saved on it will be lost. Cabinet is backed up regularly, so you can be sure your archived emails are safe. Please see the instructions on setting up your Cabinet folder for more information.