Table of Contents

Introduction

MS Outlook is a widely used email client for home users and corporate users. MS Outlook is more popular because it offers the ability to manage emails. Contacts, calendar entries (meeting and scheduling), notes, and task items are all in one place. When Outlook is configured through the IMAP protocol. It creates an OST file, and when it is configured through the POP3 protocol. It creates a PST file and stores everything in a single file. Sometimes users need to extract contacts from OST or PST files for personal or business reasons. If you are the one who is required to extract contacts from OST file, then you can stay with the blog post and know about each step of extraction.

While looking at the problem of users, I came up with this article and discussed the method of extracting contacts from OST or PST files for free, as well as the PRO method (using expert software).

This blog is going to be helpful for all the users who are looking for a complete solution and an understanding of the OST contact extraction process.

Users Queries

Query 1. I have an archived OST file in my backup flash drive, and I am looking for a way to open the archived OST file and see a few of my saved contacts, but MS Outlook refuses to open the OST file. How can I open an archived OST file in Outlook? OR do you have any suggestions for extracting contacts from the OST file?
Query 2. I have copied my Outlook data file from my previous company, and now I am trying to open these data files on my home computer, but MS Outlook is not accepting the file because it is an OST file. I need to extract all my client’s contact details from the OST file, but I don’t know how to get it when Outlook refuses to open it. Do you have any suggestions or ideas for opening the OST file to extract the contact list?

How OST or PST file is created in Outlook

MS Outlook handles both file types (.pst and .ost) and there are some configuration matters when .pst file is generated and when .ost files are. When we configure a user account in MS Outlook through the IMAP protocol and when we connect an Exchange Server-based user account, then the .ost file is generated similarly when the user configures an account through POP3 protocol, the .pst file is automatically generated in Outlook.

The OST and PST files are a single file that contains all folder items like Inbox, Sent Items, Deleted Items, Drafts, Contacts, Calendar, Notes, Journals, Tasks, and all user-created folders and sub-folders.

In the blog, we are going to elaborate on how to extract contacts from OST file in multiple ways. So, read the below-mentioned methods choose the appropriate suggestion for your need, and execute it.

Also Read:- How to Upload OST to Office 365 mailbox without Outlook?

Why do users want to extract the contacts from the OST file?

Contacts are vital information for any business or personal use. So, various reasons and situations arise when we need to extract contacts from Outlook OST files for further use. I have mentioned below some reasons for extracting contacts from the OST file:

  1. When we need to access contacts on mobile phones
  2. When required to share contacts with someone
  3. In some cases, when we migrate from one place to another,
  4. When the Exchange server connection breaks with MS Outlook and the OST file is not usable, we require a backup of contacts from the OST file.

Methods of Extracting Contacts from OST File

Now we are coming to the main write-up here, we will discuss the methods of extracting contacts from the OST or PST file format. There are two major methods of extraction we show you-

  1. Manual Method
  2. PRO Method (with the use of eSoftTools OST to PST Converter Software)

1. Manual Method

Users can extract all the contacts from the OST file manually, but this is beneficial for small businesses that have a very small number of contacts. In this method, users have to copy each contact that they want to extract from the OST file and paste it into Microsoft Word, Notepad, or any other email client. This method requires a lot of time and effort from users because they take the backups one by one.

Manual methods are a time-consuming way of extracting contacts. If somebody has a lot of contacts for extraction, go for the second option, which would be the perfect and fastest method for you.

2. PRO Method (with the use of eSoftTools OST to PST Converter Software)

The second method is to extract the contacts from OST or PST files with the help of expert OST Converter Software, which was developed by eSoftTools developers. Through the software, users can convert the contacts into Outlook PST, MSG, and vCard format. The vCard files are mobile supported format so user can easily move the contacts to any mobile device.

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Smart Functionalities of Software

  • Convert OST Files Into Different File Formats:- OST to PST Converter Software Export the OST file into PST file. And also converts into other formats like MSG, HTML, EML, EMLX, VCARD, GMAIL, YAHOO.., AND OTHERS. This Software gives multiple options for selecting a file format for conversion.
  • Maintain OST File Structure And Folder Hierarchy:- This is the specialty of the software that does not affect the tree-like structure of the OST file and does not deteriorate the structure. This software maintains the structure and folder hierarchy of OST files.
  • Add Bulk and Single OST File:- Users have also the option of selecting the Outlook OST files. They can select either a single OST file or a bulk OST file as their preference. And there is no size limit for OST file conversion and retrieving.
  • Split Feature for Saving in PST:- With this feature, user can split their large OST files into multiple smaller files. The software provides various splitting ranges according to file size and these are- 1GB, 2GB, 3GB, 4GB, 5GH, 6GB, 7GB, 8GB, 9GB, 10GB.
  • Email Filter and Save:- This is another unique feature of the software that allows users to filter emails from any folder and save them accordingly in multiple file formats.
  • Convert OST to Office  365 Cloud:- This Software has multiple features but this is one of the best features. With this feature, the User can convert OST to Office 365 cloud-based applications including Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook, and others.
  • Preview Mailbox While OST Recovery:- The user can take a preview of the entire OST mailbox after scanning the OST file. All the emails, contacts, calendars, notes, and other items can be easily previewed by the software in front of the user’s computer.
  • English or Non-English OST folder:- Sometimes users want to recover or convert the non-English data of OST files. For those, this is the software that provides the best solution. This software easily recovers or imports both English and non-English OST folder data.

Easy Steps to Extract Contacts from OST to PST, MSG, and vCard

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  • Download and install the eSoftTools OST to PST Converter Software from the official site (eSoftTools) on your Computer.
  • Open the Software and Click on the add button to add the OST files. Then choose the conversion option either Single file conversion or bulk file conversion. 
  • Click on the Scanning button to proceed ahead.
  • Users can take a preview of the OST  file Mail folder from the Email preview panel after the scanning process and select the Mail folders for all the data extraction.
  • In the Next step, the user will get the options of the format in which they want to extract the data file formats are (HTML, EML, EMLX, PST, MSG, PDF, Mbox, vCard, ICS, etc.

For conversion of contacts, the user can go with the PST, MSG, or vCard option to save only the contacts files.

  • Provide the location from your file manager where the users want to save the recovered or converted files.
  • Lastly, click on the Export button to save the files, It will take a few minutes and your OST files successfully will export in the user’s selected file format.
The Final Word

Extracting contacts from OST files is sometimes a complicated process for users or people when the contact files are huge in number. In this blog, I provided two methods of solving the issue: the first is the manual method, and the second is the PRO method called eSoftTools OST to PST Converter Software. Users can use any of them as per their situation or the number of contacts they have for extraction. The PRO method is always a good choice for extracting a larger number of contacts from OST files to PST or another format. This software maintains data integrity during the conversion with no data losses.

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