Inbox Repair Tool – A First Aid Tool to Deal with PST Corruption Issues
Sunil Sharma
Updated On - August 21, 2020
After the corruption of PST files, Outlook users usually turn to the Scanpst.exe, popularly known as the Inbox Repair Tool, to fix the issues. The Inbox Repair Tool is a free tool from Microsoft, and is installed on the system by default along with the installation of MS Outlook. Also, it is available for download.
What does the Inbox Repair Tool do to Recover Messages from Corrupt PST?
In order to recover folders and items from corrupt PST files, the Inbox Repair do the following actions when it is run on the corrupt PST file:
- analyzes the PST file directory structure and item headers
- attempts to turn a file into mountable PST file
- backs up PST file before attempting to repair it
- validates and corrects errors in the internal data structures of the PST file
- checks and repairs structures like BTrees and reference counts, if necessary
- removes unreadable or corrupt block of the structure or table
- removes the items to which the unreadable or corrupt block of the structure or table belongs
- enters the removal of the blocks and items in the ScanPST log file
- examines PST folders and messages performs corrective operations on them
Corrective Operations Performed by the Inbox Repair Tool on PST Folders
- ensures that correct tables are associated with the folder
- checks rows in the table to remove the rows without messages or subfolders
- validates the messages or subfolders in the rows to see if they exist
- removes corrupt messages or folders from the table and deletes them from the database
- double-checks the newly-recovered messages to ensure that the recovery is accurate
- recreates the corrupted folders from the scratch
Corrective Operations Performed by the Inbox Repair Tool on PST Messages
- validates attachment tables and recipient tables
- synchronizes the contents of valid recipient tables with the recipient properties on the message
- ensures that message folder is a valid one
- checks message properties to ensure that they follow valid formats
- recalculates sizes and compares them to the stored ones
- display properties of the recipient are made consistent with the recovered table
- collects all orphaned messages and puts them in an Orphans folder
Location of the Outlook Inbox Repair Tool |
|
| Outlook & Windows versions | Location |
|---|---|
| Outlook 2013 (Windows 32-bit) |
\Program Files\Microsoft Office 15\root\office15 |
| Outlook 2013 (Windows 64-bit) |
\Program Files(x86)\Microsoft Office 15\root\office15 |
| Outlook 2010 (Windows 32-bit) |
\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office14 |
| Outlook 2010 (Windows 64-bit) |
\Program Files\Microsoft Office(x86)\Office14 |
| Outlook 2007 (Windows 32-bit) |
\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12 |
| Outlook 2007 (Windows 64-bit) |
\Program Files(x86)\Microsoft Office\Office12 |
What to do if the Inbox Repair Tool Fails to Fix the PST Corruption Issues?
The Inbox Repair Tool is only a first aid tool to fix the corruption of Outlook PST files. It can solve minor corruption issues only. If the corruption is a serious one, you need to use professional PST repair tools like RecoveryFIX for Outlook.
I use Outlook 2016, and my PST files got corrupt. But, the inbox repair tool isn’t helpful in repairing my PST files, so what should I do?
Hello Abigail,
Thanks for the query. In case, if the Inbox repair tool isn’t helpful in repairing corrupt PST files, it means the files are majorly corrupt. So, you can use our effective utility – Recoveryfix Outlook PST repair tool, which is capable of fixing all major corruption errors in PST files.
Nice information providing by your blog and I would really like to thank for your blog it’s really helpful. Thank you and good luck for the upcoming articles.
I would say if you are an MS Outlook user, you must keep Recoveryfix for Outlook Repair pre-installed on your System for future references. It’s a software with a simple GUI & advance functionalities; you don’t find that every day.
Enjoyed reading the blog above , really explains everything in detail,the blog is very interesting & impressive. Thank you and good luck for the upcoming blogs.
I am unable to mount the PST file even after scanning the inbox repair tool multiple times. What should i do now?
Hello Isla,
Sometimes, when the tool finds a severe corruption, then it deletes the whole data from the file. Perhaps that why it is not mounting back. you can use a professional recovery software to recover the deleted items.
Can the ScanPST tool retrieve the deleted contacts also from the corrupt PST files?
Hello Martin,
ScanPST tool is not suitable to retrieve the deleted contents fro the PST files. For a better recovery, you should use a professional software with better features.