How to Recover Outlook Mailbox Exchange
Microsoft Exchange Server makes implementing business email networks possible, but like any system that works with massive amounts of digital data, file corruptions happen.
Whether that’s due to user error, an application error or a cyberattack, such events can slow productivity and cost businesses money.
While there are other approaches you can take to repair corrupt .edb files, the faster and more reliable approach is to use mailbox recovery software designed for Exchange. One such tool is Stellar Mailbox Exchange Recovery, developed by the same company that produces what is, in our experience, the best data recovery software overall.
During the how-to review, we’ll introduce you to Stellar’s mailbox repair solution, reviewing both its features and license options, before walking through the steps involved to fix damaged .edb files. If it’s an Outlook personal storage table you’re trying to repair, we have a guide for that, too.
Who Needs Mailbox Exchange Recovery Software?
Corrupted Exchange Database (.edb) files can cut a business off from its mailbox data for hours and quite often, without the right tool, indefinitely. There are many causes that can lead to such corruptions, too. Those include virus attacks, improper shutdowns, missing database objects and user errors.
While your IT department can attempt manual repairs or backup recovery using the Eseutil command, doing so can take a substantial amount of time, requires quite a bit of free space and can result in permanently deleted data.
A good .edb repair tool greatly reduces both the chance of failure and the time required to complete the work. A really good tool, like the one we’re going to show you, also reduces the technical demands required of your IT team. Stellar Mailbox Exchange Recovery is capable of dealing with all common causes of .edb files gone bad, including failure to mount, jet errors and dirty shutdowns (server versions of “personal” problems).
Stellar’s tool is capable of working with large and even multiple .edb files at once. It can also perform selective recovery of mailboxes, restoring items like emails, calendars, contacts and attachments rather than the entire file.
Once scanned, you can export repaired files to Live Exchange Mailbox and Office 365. A corrected.edb file can be saved as a .pst file, or a .msg, .eml, .rtf. .html or .pdf.
We’re going to give you a complete tutorial on actually using the tool. However, before we pile on the details, it makes sense to talk cost.
Stellar Mailbox Exchange Recovery Software Licensing
There are two license types available for Stellar Mailbox Exchange Recovery: a corporate license for $399 and technician license for $599.
| Corporate | Technician | Toolkit | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost: | $399 | $599 | $999 |
| Computers: | One computer | Multiple computers | Multiple computers |
| License term: | One year | Lifetime | Lifetime |
While more expensive, the technician variant provides more value overall thanks to the fact that it’s good for life and can be installed on multiple computers, rather than one year and one computer.
Both licenses work with multiple versions of MS Exchange (2016, 016, 2013, 2010, 2007, 2003, 2000) and include free technical support.
If you’re looking to build out your recovery and repair options even more, there’s an
$999 might seem like a hefty price, but its good for life and you’ll save several hundred dollars over just buying each piece of software individually. We have separate guides on using the converters if you want to see more:
You check the Exchange recovery software out for yourself by downloading a free version. You’ll only be able to complete scans and preview the results without being able to perform the actual repair, however.
How to Recover Exchange Mailboxes with Stellar
After you’ve decided on a license, Stellar will email you a download link and registration key to complete a full installation. Doing so shouldn’t take more than a minute or two, after which you’ll be ready to start fixing mailboxes.
The next step is to start the program and select an .edb file for repair.
If you know exactly where the file is, you can choose the location yourself. If not, there’s a “find” feature that will scan your drive and find it for you.
Once you’ve got your file, click “start.”
You’ll be given the option of performing a “quick scan” or an “extensive scan. The quick scan option is supposed to be able to fix most .edb corruption issues, so in the interest of time, you might want to give that try first.
Once the scan completes, the software will ask if you want to add an additional .edb file to the results.
Whether you do or not, working with the completed scan data is straightforward thanks to a design that mimics an Outlook mailbox.
The leftmost pane of the tool presents a tree where you’ll find user mailboxes. Expand a mailbox, and you’ll be able to access the inbox, sent items, calendar, contacts, journal, tasks — basically, anything you’d find in a typical Outlook mailbox.
The two panes to the right let you drill down into the objects in the tree. For example, click on “inbox” and you’ll see all the emails contained within it in the second column. Click on an email, and the rightmost pane will show its contents.
To find emails and other mailbox items more quickly, Stellar has provided a handy search feature you can access by clicking the binoculars icon near the top of the client.
You can search based on different criteria like the email sender and recipient addresses, email subject, attachments and, of course, the email text itself.
Once you’re ready to complete the repair, you can generate a converted file by clicking the “save” button. You’ll be able to convert to a .pst file or any of the other formats the tool is capable of (.msg, .eml, .html, .rtf and .pdf).
Alternatively, you can save individual emails or other mailbox objects into a file of their own by right-clicking on that object and choosing the file format you want to use.
If you’re not ready to convert any data just yet, just click “save scan.” Stellar Exchange Recovery will save the scan results as a .dat file that you can load and work with later on.
Final Thoughts
That’s all there is to fixing corrupt Exchange mailbox files. As we said, it’s much easier than working with Eseutil and, additionally, more user-friendly than most similar tools.
If you’ve read our Stellar Phoenix Data Recovery review, you’ll see that’s true of the company’s flagship recovery software as well, which can be used to repair corrupt or deleted files on your hard drive. It’s the combination of ease along with reliability and features that led us to become fans in the first place, and why we think Stellar products are a good choice to equip your IT office with, starting with the Outlook Toolkit.
Let us know what you think about Stellar Mailbox Exchange Recovery in the comments below. If you’re looking for online storage to keep your repaired .edb safe or quickly share it with others, don’t forget to check out our best online backup for business guide. Thanks for reading.
A technophile with a love for words, Joseph Gildred utilizes his degree in comparative literature and background as an information technology analyst to ponder the future of human ingenuity. Not one to sit still for too long, Joseph joined the team because cloud technology and hopping from place to place go hand in hand. He has roots in Belgrade, Maine.