Outlook 2007 Backup

[PurplePC]

Hey folks, I have searched all over the web looking for an answer to my issue. I have found others with similar issues, but none that are exact. Please read this carefully to see what my true issue really is. Any help available is truly appreciated.

This started from a client who wants an automated way to back up his .PST files daily. He runs a construction company and has hundreds of emails a day that he puts in to any one of 7 different .PST file folders. This is the way he likes it and he has been doing it that way for years, so changing his mind to simplify just won't happen.

Anyway, I did a little searching and found the PFBACKUP Microsoft offers. I wanted to test this add in myself before deploying to him. Difference being that I am using a Windows 7 Pro x64 and he is on XP Pro SP3.

At this point I have all but forgotten about his issue and am now focused on the fact that I can't get it to work on my laptop. Below are the steps I have taken.

Downloaded PFBACKUP.exe from Microsoft
With Outlook 2007 Closed I excute the PFBACKUP.EXE program
Once the program completes I open Outlook and click on File to test the BACKUP.

However, under File, BACKUP is not there. So I,
Click on TOOLS, Trust Center, ADD-Ins
It is not listed, so I click on GO for COM ADD-INs and select ADD
There is no file listed in the ADD IN folder for PFBACKUP, there is NOTHING in the folder at all.

I think that maybe I did something wrong so I close everything and reboot. Check in Outlook using the steps above and nothing has changed. I excute the PFBACKUP program again and select REMOVE ALL. I then reboot. After logging back in I go to Microsoft and try downloading the file agin wondering if it was corrupt. I execute the new file and then look for BACKUP using all the same steps as above. Still nothing.

I head to the web and find some answers. Some say the .DLL needs to be registered, others say something else. I try every answer I find and still nothing. I even find an answer for Office 2010 with a REG KEY change for how Outlook shutsdown. Still no BACKUP listed on my machine.

My issue is not what everyone has seen over the past few years or even what is being seen in 2010. I truly believe in my heart that there is something wrong with my EXE. However, I have even extracted the .MSI and tried it that was a Microsoft suggests, and still I have no BACKUP. :sarc:

The issue I have is there is no OUTBAK.DLL file anywhere on my machine. I have installed, reinstalled and uninstalled 30+ times and the file never appears. I have gone to the REG and look at the ADD IN folder where the others are stored and even there, there is nothing about BACKUP.

So my question to you is not one of I can't get the BACKUP to work. It is one of I can't even get the file to properly install from what I can see.

I have redownloaded it from Microsoft, but to me this is still the culprit....is there another DL site with this file that works? I mean the program runs as it should, but installs nothing.

Thank you in advance for listening to my rant. I am one of those that refuses to let something go until I have a reasonable explanation for it, and I just can't seem to find one for this. Mind you this has nothing to do with my client at this point...this is my own machine now. I don't anticipate this issue with his machine.

I am running Windows 7 PRO x64 with 12 GB of RAM and Office 2007 SP 2.

Thank you again and any answers will be very appreciated!!!

 

[PurplePC]

As I suspected, the file worked perfectly on XP SP3 and Office 2007. Although PFBackup allows you to back a number of folders, it does not play nice in trying to back up several actual .PST files. My client has 7 that he uses daily. In trying to back them up with PFBackup, it allows me to select them, then takes a substantial time to do the backup and shows on the drive as a large file. (All 7 equal about 4.3 GB combined) However in restoring the backup, it only shows the first selected folder in the group (a small one) and it does not restore all of the .PST files as I was expecting.

I tried both a restore and just opening the data file and received the same result. Bothered by this I I logged onto the PC as me and created and outlook IMAP profile so it was the same as his and then tried restoring the data file to the same result. It places the first of the selected folders but I was never able to see the rest of the back up. I still think this is odd....

Anyway, I personally, don't need the use of PFBackup as I store my .PST files on my RAID 5 2TB NAS at home. So I guess my original reason for the post is at this point null. Thanks to all that read it though, I know it was a tough one and I'm sure many of you did try to find an answer. I do appreciate it!!

Thanks

Jay

 

[mckillwashere]

There is a program called sync toy. It can be set to copy files at a certain point of time to a certain directory. Even across the network.

 

[gtrichter]

This fix worked for me - Try it

I searched all over and this worked perfectly for pfbackup.exe

http://www.howto-outlook.com/faq/backupaddin.htm#command

 

[jimbo45]

I searched all over and this worked perfectly for pfbackup.exe

Microsoft Outlook Backup Add-in not available - HowTo-Outlook | HowTo-Outlook

hi there

note it only works for x-86. Won't work on 64 bit versions of office.

cheers
jimbo

 

[darkhorse]

Hi.
I cannot find the outbak.dll file in the folder where it should be.

Where can I get it ?