- PST files allow you to store Microsoft Outlook data locally. This can be useful for archive or security reasons. PST files can be protected by passwords to restrict access to the information within.
- Prior to Outlook's 2003 version, PST files had a size limit of 2 gigabytes. When PST files approached this limit, Outlook's performance would slow considerably. With the release of Outlook 2003, Microsoft raised the size limit for PST files to 20 gigabytes.
- Outlook Express does not utilize PST files like the full version of Outlook does. However, Outlook Express can import PST files from Outlook, allowing you to migrate Outlook data to an Outlook Express installation.
- Microsoft published a utility called the Exchange 2000 Tool which can be used to shrink the size of PST files which are over or close to their size limit. However, using this tool will truncate some data and can potentially corrupt the PST file, so make sure you have a good back up before trying it.
- PST files with the 2 gigabyte size limit (pre-Outlook 2003) can become corrupted if they are allowed to grow beyond this size. If you are using PST files with an older version of Outlook, make sure to monitor the size of the file periodically. You can use multiple PST files, so if one becomes too large, just create another.
