Solution for “Outlook is using an Old Copy of your Outlook Data File (.ost)” Error
Microsoft Outlook is one of the most used email client. It is used to manage several types of personal data including calendar appointments and related entries, tasks, contacts, and notes.
However, it also has some vulnerabilities that lead to many errors and problems. When these error occur they frustrated the users and in most cases stop you to access their mail data further.
One of the most common error that users often face while accessing their mailbox items is “Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost)”. This message is generally displayed when users find difficulty in accessing or fetching their OST file.
Let’s have a look at the real-time user query –
“Hi, everyone! I am using Microsoft Outlook 2016 and my boss asked me to share the report through Outlook. And I am about to send an email to him. Suddenly, Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost) Outlook 2016 gets to appear on my screen. And it stops me to send or receive any emails further. I have thousands of important email files in my Outlook 2016. Please help me to get out of this issue. Kindly share me the feasible solution how can I fix this Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file OST exit Outlook 2016 error.”
Are you in the same dilemma? Then, no need to worry!
In this article, we will share the top-notch solutions to resolve Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost) exit Outlook delete the file error.
But before this, it is necessary to identify the real cause of getting this Outlook issue.
Why “Outlook is using an Old Copy of your Outlook Data File (.ost)” Error Occurs?
- Improper synchronization process between OST and Exchange server
- Corruption in OST file
- Virus and malware infection
- Inappropriate up-gradation of Outlook application
- Abrupt termination of system
- Hardware or software issues
Methods to Fix “Outlook is using an Old Copy of your Outlook Data File (.ost)”
Here, we come up with the tremendous approaches that helps the user to diagnose and fix the Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost) exit Outlook delete the file.
Method 1: Deletion of Old OST Files
You can resolve this error by deleting the old offline storage table or OST files.
Note- Before the deletion process, don’t forget to take a backup OST file. You can convert OST to PST, As if any data loss occurs, you can retrieve the data in Outlook through that archived PST.
To delete the Outlook OST, first, you have unhide OST file as Outlook OST file is a hidden file. After making the files unhide, you’re able to view the hidden files. Now, perform the given steps:
1: Go to the Computer or File Explorer Window.
2: Navigate to C:\Users\\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook.
3: Now, delete the files with .ost extension.
4: Make sure that you have not deleted any file with .pst extension.
5: Restart your MS Outlook application.
Once you delete the Outlook ost file in which error was arising, then you have to recreate an OST file.
Method 2: Repair Offline Data Files using Scanpst.exe
If you are still getting Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost) error then it means that your OST file is corrupted or damaged.
In this situation, Microsoft Outlook provides an inbuilt utility referred to as Scanpst.exe. This Inbox Repair Tool will scans & repair the Outlook data file. Follow the below instructions carefully:
1: Close Outlook application and locate scanpst.exe.
2: Click on the Browse to select the corrupt file.
3: Now, click the Start button to begin the scanning phase.
4: If any errors are found, click on the Repair button to repair the corrupted PST files.
Note: Scanpst.exe can only repair minor corruption issues. If your OST files are severely corrupted, then you should opt for an alternate solution.
Read on to know the alternative way to fix Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file ost delete the file and restart Outlook issue.
Alternate Solution to Fix “Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost)
You have to use a proficient utility to recover corrupt OST file without any data loss. The software provides quick and advanced scanning mode to easily repair highly file.
It helps the users to recover permanently deleted items into multiple formats such as PST, MSG, EML, PDF, Office 365 from a specific date range.
Apart from this, the application is designed with advanced algorithms which makes it easy for the users to decrypt SMIME / OpenPGP encrypted emails in selected OST files.
Know Some Prominent Features of the Tool
The Software is integrated with numerous features that make tool the best utility among various other available tools in the market. Some of them are listed below:
- Rapidly repair corrupted and restore the deleted data from in multiple formats.
- Provides a quick and advanced scanning mode to repair severely damaged OST files.
- Perform the recovery of the password-protected files.
- Generate a preview of all OST items after the recovery process.
- Maintain and preserves the folder structure of OST data.
- Compatible with Windows 10 (32/64 bit) & All Below Versions.
The Bottom Line
Most of the Outlook users get to stumble upon an error Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost) while accessing Outlook mailbox data. So, it is advised to users to save your OST files into PST format at regular intervals to avoid any kind of data loss.
Also, we mentioned some manual methods to resolve “Outlook is using an old copy of your Outlook data file (.ost) exit outlook delete the file” issue. But, unfortunately, if your Outlook OST files are extremely corrupted then these manual tricks failed to fix the error.
Thus, we recommended an automated application that helps you to easily troubleshoot the error.
