.PST, Time to Walk the Plank
Published Jan 30 2012 09:00 AM 44.6K Views

Ask and ye shall receive, mateys!

As we announced in July, we are always looking for new ways to make your work easier - especially when your work involves ending PST proliferation. Today, we are happy to announce that PST Capture is now available as a free download.

PST Capture helps you search your network to discover and then import .pst files across your environment - all from a straightforward admin-driven tool. PST Capture will help reduce risk while increasing productivity for your users by importing .pst files into Exchange Online or Exchange Server 2010 - directly into users' primary mailboxes or archives.

In addition to all the positive feedback you have given us regarding the Archiving, Retention, Legal Hold and Discovery capabilities of Exchange, you made it clear that PST import is an important area for us to focus on moving forward. As we looked at the best ways to address this challenging need, we saw the great work that ISV partner, Red Gate, has done with their stellar solution. We determined that acquiring this product from Red Gate as a starting point was the best strategy to ensuring a quality product for you.

We put Red Gate’s tool through further feature development and a rigorous testing process that included beta testing with customers, passing through our internal product security gates, and overall quality assurance. It’s now ready for prime time and available as a free download here! For even more insight, watch the video below

And thus, we offer you PST Captarrrrrrrrrgh - or PST Capture, for those more refined than I.

As always, keep the feedback coming!

Ankur Kothari

Red Gate creates ingeniously simple software tools used by more than 500,000 IT professionals worldwide. The company works to uplift the market it serves through free web community sites, technical publications and conference sponsorships that reach millions annually.

71 Comments
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What is the behavior if the PST is currently open in the users outlook profile?  

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That is a good news but why there is no support for Exchange 2007?

So for anyone to get advantage or make use of this tool they will have to first upgrade to Exchange 2010 which does not sound a strategy.

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Why do you need Org Admin Rights to import PST's surely with RBAC you could create a custom role, just for the use of this tool?

if it's possible what commands does this tool need for one to build such a role, and if not why not?

This goes against against an organisations least privilege model.

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I am interested in a scenario on how can we export a PST file to a fileshare in the network. Does this tool support bulk exports for archiving purpose?

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@Viministrator: Although the tool can import PST data to a user's primary mailbox, the primary goal is to move PST data to personal (on-premises) archives, an Exchange 2010 feature, or cloud-based archives in  Exchange Online.

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@PST Accessed: Open PSTs can't be copied. The tool will display a message indicating the file is open, try again later.

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@Himanshu: PST Capture does not export PSTs from a mailbox. It discovers/collects PST files from users' computers (copies them to a file share), and imports them to Exchange 2010 / Exchange Online.

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@Viminstrator - THe only version tested is Exchange 2010 - please feel free to run this with Exchange 2007, but it has not been tested.  

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Looks great. Autonomy Zanatz EAS had a PST import tool which was able to rip out PST encryption/password protection. I haven't tested yet, but will this also do this?

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A very welcome addition. Keep up the good work MSFT!!

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@Daniel - Yes, PST Capture can import password-protected .pst files.

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Great work guys! Cant wait to start testing this out. Any chance of getting the doco in a downloadable format?

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@MattCline: The tool doesn't require a lot of documentation, but you can always create your downloadable PDF. See

Build your own book of TechNet topics about Exchange (http://aka.ms/technetbook).

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@Bharat Suneja You just made my day :)

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Is the agent installable and working on a Windows XP 32 with OLK 2003?

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I tried to import an password protected PST - got the Error: "Import error: Incorrect password" Is the tool able to break the password (which would be good because many users have fogotten their password) or there do i have to specifiy the password?

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i just tried to install the agent it on my 2003 x64 file cluster, but the setup stops where it tries to start the service. when i cancel i get this error in %temp%:

Error 1920. Service 'Microsoft Exchange PST Capture Agent Service' (MSExchangePSTCaptureAgent) failed to start. Verify that you have sufficient privileges to start system services.

well, i´m domain admin - so it can´t be a permission issue i think...

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For Office365, the set mailbox list is empty.  What steps have to be taken to populate this ?  Admin roles are all checked and seem fine.

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everytime i try an import, i get "error opening mailbox"

tried with domain admin, and also tried making new account with only org management role

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@Karsten - If the user has selected to remember the password, then PST Capture can open it.  

Here's the dialog box: officeimg.vo.msecnd.net/.../ZA010378465.jpg

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@Frustration - Give it 10-15 minutes.  It creates the list on a periodic basis.  You have entered in credentials in settings->online connection settings?

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@Erik - I'm curious as to whether you have the console installed on an Exchange Server or standalone machine - you may have more troubleshooting detail here:

%programdata%microsoftExchangePST Capture

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Great Product! Where can I find a copy of the Exchange 2010 component map that is on the wall behind Ankur in the video?

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@Deas - installing services on a cluster is always slightly different.  Are you installing the agent on each node separately or as a cluster service?

I'd recommend starting a thread here:  social.technet.microsoft.com/.../exchangeserver as its primarily something unique to cluster setups with this tool.

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@Ankur i had the 32 bit version of outlook installed :( everything is working now that i put 64bit on

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Thanks Ankur, it did come through after a while.  Which was nice.

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@Ankur Kothari

Thank you for your explanation about how to specify the. password. I will try this.

@Michael (Exchange Poster)

blogs.technet.com/.../3411344.aspx

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@Ankur - i don´t think that the agent is cluster aware. i just tried to install it on each node so it can scan the drives mounted at this node. but when it comes to start the service it just stops. what forum would you recommend for this tool?

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@Michael

I believe it can be found here: www.microsoft.com/.../details.aspx

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Hey Guys,

when I try to select the Mailbox for the Import I'm getting the following error:

twitter.com

My user is a Domain-Admin and Exchange Organisation Admin.

The following Errors do I see in the LOG:

05:25:38.856|Trace  |Listener            |5  |Accepted incoming connection from 10.10.128.41:49067

05:25:39.053|Trace  |CentralService      |4  |Received message from Agent

05:25:39.053|Trace  |Request parser      |4  |Processing configuration request from Agent

05:25:39.055|Debug  |DBComputer          |4  |SetStatus - Agent of XXX002 sent state  Completed

05:25:39.847|Error  |CentralService      |3  |Error occured in get mailbox update check

System.InvalidCastException: Specified cast is not valid.

  at System.Data.SQLite.SQLiteDataReader.VerifyType(Int32 i, DbType typ)

  at System.Data.SQLite.SQLiteDataReader.GetString(Int32 i)

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.Engine.Repository.DbMailbox.GetMailboxes(Boolean is365)

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.Engine.Repository.RepositoryMailbox.GetMailboxes(Boolean is365)

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.CentralService.PstCentralService.DoADPoll(Object state)

05:25:44.885|Error  |CentralService      |3  |Error occured in get mailbox update check

System.InvalidCastException: Specified cast is not valid.

Any Idea?

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^^^^ That post was from me. forgot to signin.

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@ Taurec42 .. Remove the service account from the domain admins and then follow the permissions guidelines in the documentation. The domain admins group is normally denied access to all mailboxes across the organization. Hope this helps.

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tried to run the tool on 2 different servers. always the same issue. The service crashes and is not able to retrieve the list of mailboxes:

ExchangeHierarchy

Cannot retrieve information from Active Directory - permission denied.

Ensure the Central Service is running as a domain user with the required permissions.

My service account is member of Organization Management group

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@Chris - What version of Exchange and AD?

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RPC Errors abound and then the PST becomes unable to open until after a restart.  Haven't yet managed to import even a single PST, though I've managed a couple of folders.

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Exchange 2010 SP1, DC Windows 2008 R2, domain is in Windows 2003 mode.

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Looks like a great tool. I just read the documentation but didnt see any information about a silent/remote install of the agent. Are there any possibilities (GPO/Script)?

Is is correct, that the PST-File stays active, so in a bad case the user is again storing any items on this PST?

Thanks,

Martin

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@Martin - you remote install either via GPO by using the msi and an associated transform (mst) or via script

msiexec /i \<share>PSTCaptureAgent.msi /q CENTRALSERVICEHOST=<server> SERVICEPORT=<port#, 6674 by default>

If you want to cleanly shutdown Outlook before doing a discovery, you can run this vbs script:

On Error Resume

NextSet Outlook = GetObject(, "Outlook.Application")

If Err = 0

ThenOutlook.Quit()

End If

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@Chris - want to start a thread here: social.technet.microsoft.com/.../exchangeserver  ?  (In the Compliance section) I have a few ideas.

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@ Viministrator

There is another option that does work with Ex07 - Fortisware PST Finder.

I've used it and it works perfectly fine - but it isn't free.

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@ PST Accessed

At the risk of sounding like I'm selling the software - which I'm not; Fortisware will give you the option to Disconnect the PST from the users profile so that it will allow the import to progress..

Again, I've used this at one of my client sites who were heavily reliant on PSTs before I upgraded them to 2010 with Enterprise CALs for the Online Arvhive Feature. We then used Fortisware to scan the network and import all the PSTs in to this.

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Hello,

i'm unable to check my user account (member of tenant admin group on office 365) in the tools option. I got an error 401 each time (i tried with a new account admin, and same error)

Any idea ?

regards

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Getting a curious error importing a 1.9GB pst file.  Any ideas?:

Import error: Could not find any resources appropriate for the specified culture or the neutral culture.  Make sure "RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.Properties.Resources.resources" was correctly embedded or linked into assembly "Microsoft.Exchange.PSTCapture.MAPI.Engine" at compile time, or that all the satellite assemblies required are loadable and fully signed.

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@Neil - Can you post the relevant parts of the logs from %programdata%microsoftexchangepst capture

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Thanks Ankur - output from log:

System.Runtime.InteropServices.COMException (0x8004060C): Exception from HRESULT: 0x8004060C

  at Microsoft.Exchange.PSTCapture.MapiLib.msgclass.SaveChanges()

  at RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.MapiMessage.SaveChanges()

12:47:28.408|Error  |PstToolImporting    |10 |Import of 'C:PSTStaging�2e7c298-1489-495d-b94d-f5105c85aead.pst' did not complete

System.Resources.MissingManifestResourceException: Could not find any resources appropriate for the specified culture or the neutral culture.  Make sure "RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.Properties.Resources.resources" was correctly embedded or linked into assembly "Microsoft.Exchange.PSTCapture.MAPI.Engine" at compile time, or that all the satellite assemblies required are loadable and fully signed.

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.GetString(String name, CultureInfo culture)

  at RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.MapiMessage.SaveChanges()

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.ImportEngine.PstExchangeImporter.StartImport(String pstPath, String passWord, ImportOptions options, List`1& problems)

12:47:28.424|Debug  |ImportListImporter  |10 |Error importing c:usersAdministratordesktoparchive.pst from C:PSTStaging�2e7c298-1489-495d-b94d-f5105c85aead.pst

System.Resources.MissingManifestResourceException: Could not find any resources appropriate for the specified culture or the neutral culture.  Make sure "RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.Properties.Resources.resources" was correctly embedded or linked into assembly "Microsoft.Exchange.PSTCapture.MAPI.Engine" at compile time, or that all the satellite assemblies required are loadable and fully signed.

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.GetString(String name, CultureInfo culture)

  at RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.MapiMessage.SaveChanges()

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.ImportEngine.PstExchangeImporter.StartImport(String pstPath, String passWord, ImportOptions options, List`1& problems)

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.CentralService.ImportListImporter.<>c__DisplayClass3.<ImportFile>b__0(Object )

12:47:28.424|Debug  |ImportListImporter  |10 |Keeping Exception ex for result 36864177

System.Resources.MissingManifestResourceException: Could not find any resources appropriate for the specified culture or the neutral culture.  Make sure "RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.Properties.Resources.resources" was correctly embedded or linked into assembly "Microsoft.Exchange.PSTCapture.MAPI.Engine" at compile time, or that all the satellite assemblies required are loadable and fully signed.

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.InternalGetResourceSet(CultureInfo culture, Boolean createIfNotExists, Boolean tryParents)

  at System.Resources.ResourceManager.GetString(String name, CultureInfo culture)

  at RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.MapiMessage.SaveChanges()

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.ImportEngine.PstExchangeImporter.StartImport(String pstPath, String passWord, ImportOptions options, List`1& problems)

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.CentralService.ImportListImporter.<>c__DisplayClass3.<ImportFile>b__0(Object )

12:47:28.424|Debug  |ImportListImporter  |11 |Rethrow od result 36864177

12:47:28.424|Trace  |DBImportFile        |11 |Saving 333 False Error c:usersAdministratordesktoparchive.pst

12:47:28.440|Error  |ImportListImporter  |11 |Import error:

System.Resources.MissingManifestResourceException: Could not find any resources appropriate for the specified culture or the neutral culture.  Make sure "RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.Properties.Resources.resources" was correctly embedded or linked into assembly "Microsoft.Exchange.PSTCapture.MAPI.Engine" at compile time, or that all the satellite assemblies required are loadable and fully signed.

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.CentralService.ImportListImporter.ImportFile(RepositoryImportFile file)

12:47:28.440|Error  |Import Action       |11 |Error during import

System.Resources.MissingManifestResourceException: Could not find any resources appropriate for the specified culture or the neutral culture.  Make sure "RedGate.ExchangeArchiver.MAPI.Engine.Properties.Resources.resources" was correctly embedded or linked into assembly "Microsoft.Exchange.PSTCapture.MAPI.Engine" at compile time, or that all the satellite assemblies required are loadable and fully signed.

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.CentralService.ImportListImporter.ImportFile(RepositoryImportFile file)

  at RedGate.PSTImporterForExchange.CentralService.Actions.StartImportAction.RunImport(Object state)

12:47:39.752|Verbose|AD                  |11 |GetExchangeServerHostnames() returns:

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@Neil - what local/language/version of the OS is running?  I suspect that you've hit another error and the failure here is *logging* the first failure.

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I have the same setup as Chris and everything seems to be working fine. The permissions for the service account I use is listed below. Hope this may help someone!

Name : Domain Users

Name : Public Folder Management

Name : View-Only Organization Management

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Hi,

I have a question about this product. After a successfull import vill it delete the original PST file?

We dont want any pst file left on the servers/clients after migration.

Thank you.

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@Ankur: Thanks for the hint! I do have another question: Can i disconnect the PST from Outlook, so the user can't access it anymore?

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