Outlook OST File Location: Where Is It? How to Change It?

The purpose of the OST file is to make the contents of the MS Outlook mailbox accessible in offline mode. These include emails, contacts, calendar events, tasks, and other data types. Every OST file created is automatically saved in the default location.

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How to Find Outlook OST File Location

Where is the Outlook OST file? There are 2 ways for you to find it.

Way 1: Via File Explorer

First, you can find the Outlook OST file location via File Explorer.

Step 1: Press the Windows + E keys together to open File Explorer.

Step 2: The different Outlook version has different default file locations on Windows. You need to go to the corresponding location based on your Outlook version.

• Outlook 2007: C:\Users\User Name\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook
• Outlook 2010: Documents\Outlook File\
• Outlook 2013/2016/2019: C:\Users\User Name\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook

Way 2: Via Outlook

You can also find the Outlook OST file location via the Outlook app. Here, we take Outlook 2019 as an example.

Step 1: Open Microsoft Outlook. Go to File > Info >Account Settings > Account Settings….

Step 2: Click the Data Files tab and select the OST file. Then click the Open File Location… button.

How to Change the Outlook File Location

Some Outlook users want to change their OST file location. Here is how to do that:

Step 1: Press the Windows + R keys together and type regedit. Then, click OK/.

Step 2: Then navigate to the following registry key,

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\xx.0\Outlook

Step 3: Then right-click Outlook, and choose New> Expandable String Value.

Step 4: Type ForceOSTPath and press Enter

Step 5: Then right-click the ForceOSTPath registry key and then choose Modify.

Step 6: In the Value data box, type the new folder path where you want to keep the .ost file.

How to Back up the Outlook OST File

You might want to move and backup your OST files to a different location in any of the following scenarios:

1. To prevent data loss
2. To boost accessibility
3. To migrate your data

To back up OST files on Windows PCs, we recommend using the free backup software – MiniTool ShadowMaker. It allows you to automatically back up data and only back up changed files. Here is how to use it:

Step 1: Download and install MiniTool ShadowMaker. Launch it to enter its main interface.

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Step 2: Choose the source and destination, you can go to Options > Schedule Settings to make a regular backup.

Step 3: After performing the settings, you can click Back Up Now to start the task.

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Final Words

Where is the Outlook OST file location? How to find the Outlook OST file location on Windows? How to back up Outlook OST files? I believe that you have found the answers in this post.