:: Frequently Asked Questions - FAQ's

Can I warn users that they are approaching their 2GB limit on their PST?
Yes. You can post a message to the inbox of the PST warning the user of the danger. You can also send a warning to an administrator and even generate a report listing files approaching their limit. It is up to you what works best in your environment.

Can you keep users from adding too much content to a PST file?
You can warn them when their PST is getting too large, but you cannot stop them from adding more content, short of taking away their access to the PST file. If you have installed the latest patch from Microsoft, then the Outlook itself will keep them from adding too much content to their PST file.

Can .PST Attender manage PST files on a Netware server?
Although you cannot install or run .PST Attender on a Novel server, if you can access the PST file from the network, then you can manage them with .PST Attender. Simply specify the network path you want searched and .PST Attender will search it for files to manage.

We do not actually use Microsoft Exchange, but still have PST files generated from POP3 and SMTP servers and email. Will .PST Attender work with these types of PST files?
Generally, from all available information, the format of PST files has not changed in a long time. This means that as long as your PST files are in the "standard" format, which is recognizable by several Microsoft applications, .PST Attender should be able to process those files.

As for needing Exchange, .PST Attender can run fine without an Exchange server; however, you will not be able to use some of its functionality. Specifically, you will not be able to forward content, move or copy content to public folders, or send email alerts. Regardless or whether you have an Exchange server, you will still need Outlook installed on the computer running .PST Attender. This is because .PST Attender requires MS MAPI, which is only distributed with Outlook.

Why are there multiple list reports generated by one rule?
This usually occurs when the reports exceed 5000 lines. When a report gets this large, it is written and a new one is started. This is done primarily so it doesn't bomb out IE. When a report gets this large it is often several megabytes and will open slowly at best in IE.

Another reason may be if you have multiple processing engines running the same rule. Since they don't collaborate with each other directly, each one will generate its own reports.

What will the user see if .PST Attender has its file open?
Since .PST Attender uses MAPI to do its work, they will see the same thing if two people try to access the file at the same time. Outlook 2000 returns this error:

"The file Outlook.pst is in use and could not be accessed. Close any application that is using this file, and then try again."

Where do I install .PST Attender?
.PST Attender can be installed on any Windows NT, 2000 or XP machine with either Outlook 98 or higher and full access to the PST files you wish to manage. These files can be on the same machine or across the network. If you intend to copy, move or forward content from the PST files, then you will also need access to Exchange from the machine.

What are the system requirements for .PST Attender?
Windows NT 4.0, 2000 or XP (2002) Microsoft Management Console Version 1.2 or higher Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher Approximately 15 MB HD Space Outlook 98, 2000 or XP (2002)

Does .PST Attender do anything to reduce the file size once items are deleted from it?
PSTs, just like the Exchange database, must be "defragmented" for deleted space to be reclaimed. Outlook calls is Compacting. Outlook automatically compacts PSTs as an idle background process. (Q196890) You can trigger it manually from Outlook, but .PST Attender does not automatically compact PST files if you delete data. Currently, this can only be done by Outlook.

Does .PST Attender use CDO?
No. It supports its own MAPI library and does not use the CDO library.

Does .PST Attender bypass passwords placed on the PST files?
Yes, it does bypass all passwords.

How can I use .PST Attender to limit legal exposure?
Legal liability comes in many forms such as harassment (sexual, racial), non-business related email jokes or picture/video files, and any document that could be used against you in a lawsuit.

In most cases it is nearly impossible to stop this content from entering your email system. In the best case you can only scan for it after the fact. With .PST Attender you have the ability to scan mail by sender address, keywords and phrases, attachment types and names, and many other ways that make it easier to locate this kind of content. Simply by locating this content, and then correctly managing the offenders, you can significantly reduce your exposure to legal liability.

Will I need additional licenses when installing another processing engine?
Yes. .PST Attender (Server) is licensed per server installation. If you need multiple installations, you need a license for each installation.

Will I need additional licenses when installing another console?
NO. .PST Attender (Server) is license by server installation only. There is no additional charge per console.

Why is it important to delete old email?
Aside from the space issues, if your company is involved in a legal action, your corporate email is subject to discovery in court. Do you want someone else sifting through ALL your company email? The best proactive policy against this is to permanently delete emails beyond a certain date and to even destroy existing backups. If you do not have old emails, then you have no physical way to produce them in court.

How can I use .PST Attender to reclaim space?

Here are a couple examples.

First, you can simply delete or export old messages and attachments. Second, you could target large attachments or messages or nonbusiness related items and delete them. If you are concerned with users becoming irate, you could first warn them about the attachment/message that will be deleted, affording them the opportunity to save the important ones.

How can I keep an eye of .pst file growth?
It is possible to gather data such as .pst file size by using .PST Attender list reports. The report it generates will list the file name, location, size, last access date and % of 2GB limit. By collecting this data periodically, and comparing it to the previous information, it is possible to get a picture of which files are growing the fastest.

In what format are the exported messages?
They are in MSG format, which is opened by Outlook. In addition, the file will also contain any attachments that existed in the original message. When .PST Attender chooses a file name for the exported message, it uses the original message subject and replaces any characters not allowed in the file names with an underscore "_".

When exporting attachments, what happens if a file exists with the same name?
.PST Attender will not overwrite any existing files. It will simply add a number at the end of the file name. If a file exists with that name and number, it increments the number until it finds a non-existent file name. For example: MyProjects.doc, MyProject(1).doc, MyProject(2).doc and so on.

How can you notify users of a .pst file search?
A .PST Attender can search all .pst files to find keywords and phrases both in email bodies and attachment content. The users never receive a notification of the search that is happening. But, you can notify them with a warning message in the event an action, such as a Delete Message action, is going to occur. You have complete control over the number and text of the warning message. You can even turn them off and simply delete the message without any warnings.

How can .PST Attender eliminate viruses?
Almost all known email viruses propagate using attachments and tricking the user into executing the attachment. You can use .PST Attender to strip out any known virus attachment by name, label, subject, keyword and so on. .PST Attender is an excellent complement to your virus protection in the event your anti-virus software has allowed viruses to pass through.