Friday, July 28, 2017

5 Ways to solve ‘This Personal Folders file (.pst) is already in use in the current profile’ Error

Indeed, Outlook is the Microsoft’s flagship email client that is quite useful for communicating as well as offers many other functionalities, such as Contacts, Calendars, Tasks, Journals, and To Do Lists. Yet, there are many instances when it comes up with different error messages limiting the normal functioning of the email client. Well, one of the error messages is as follows: ‘This Personal Folders file (.pst) is already in use in the current profile.’

You can also face this error while working with Outlook when you try to import a PST file. And when such a situation occurs it becomes a priority for you to get it fixed as soon as possible. The simple reason being, the sooner you get it fixed the sooner you will be able to resume your work in Outlook. Fair enough, here in this blog we present to you the 5 best ways to solve this Outlook PST error. But before that let us know the causes that lead to this error. The reason being, the causes play a great role in taking right and corresponding approaches to fix the error.

The Causes
Some of the causes for the error in PST file mentioned here are as follows:    
  •  Name conflicts in PST file
  • Incorrect location of PST file
  •  Read-only attributes of the PST file
  •  Corrupt or damaged PST file
The Solutions
Here are the corresponding approaches to fix the error!

1.    Check and remove Name Conflict if there - As this error occurs while importing a PST file you need to check if the name of the imported and existing PST file is same. If this is the situation you need to rename any one of the PST files. Thereafter, try to import it again.

Note - If Name conflict is the cause of the error it gets fixed, else you need to go for another approach or solution.

2.    Undo the Read-Only Status of the PST File – As the Read-only status of PST file is also one of the causes of the error you need to verify the same first. And, if found to be true you need to undo or cancel its read-only status before accessing the file in Outlook. For instance, if the PST file is in a CD/DVD it is certain that it is in a read-only state.

Now, know the way to undo the Read-only state of the PST file! The steps are as follows:
           (i)        Right click on the PST file and select ‘properties’ from the context menu.
          (ii)        ‘Outlook Properties’ dialog box appears. Here, discard ‘Read-only’ option and close the dialog box.


         (iii)        Open Outlook and import the PST file.

Note - On doing so, if the error still persists you need to go for another approach.  

3.    Relocate the Default PST FileThis method to fix the error can be followed if the location of the PST file is not correct. To relocate the original PST file, execute the following steps:
(i)           Start Outlook.
(ii)          Go to File menu and click on the Account Settings tab.
(iii)         In Account Settings window, go to Data file and pitch on the default file.
(iv)         Click on the Open File Location button.



(v)          In the next window that is displayed, check if the PST file is present there. If the PST file is not present at that location search its name in Windows Explorer to find it and place it in Outlook once again.

Note - Once the original PST file has been relocated try to import the PST file and check if the error occurs or not. If the error persists you need to try another method to fix the error.

4.    Run Inbox Repair Tool (Scanpst.exe) – Another cause for this error in PST file is a damaged or corrupt Outlook Personal Folders file. Therefore, if this is the case, execute Outlook’s built-in Inbox Repair Tool to repair the Outlook PST file. To do so, open MS Inbox Repair Utility, click on the Browse button to select the damaged PST file, and then click on the Repair tab to start the repair process.


Note – The Inbox Repair Tool may or may not be able to repair the PST file. The reason being, it is not 100% effective. If the PST file is not repaired, the ‘This Personal Folders file (.pst) is already in use’ error still exists. 

5.    Use a Third-party Software – There is a plethora of external or third-party software that can repair damaged and even extremely damaged Outlook PST file. Thus, if the cause of the Outlook PST error discussed in this blog is corrupt Personal Folders file, choose the right software so that it fulfils your purpose. For instance, you can use Stellar Phoenix Outlook PST Repair – a comprehensive and effective easy-to-use tool to repair PST file and recover all its data. It is also embedded with a number of beneficial features that make it one of the recommended software by the experts.

The Features:
·      Repairs the damaged Personal Folders file and restores data into a new and usable PST file.
·         Recovers emails & attachments, contacts, notes, calendars, tasks, and journals
·         Permits saving emails in several formats: PST, EML, RTF, MSG, HTML, and PDF
·         Repairs PST files that are protected with password or encryption.
·         Supports Microsoft Outlook versions 2016 to 2000

Note – Once repaired, the new PST file can be imported into Outlook and then used.

In the End:
You have been communicated about the 5 methods using which you can solve the ‘This Personal Folders file (.pst) is already in use’ error. Thus, you can now use the most suitable one which depends on the cause of the error. Well, when corrupt PST file is the cause, none but the third-party Stellar Phoenix Outlook PST Repair is the one that excels and works as a wonder!

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