I am setting up a new Windows 2008 R2 SP1 server as a domain controller for client with 12 Windows 7 Pro 32 bit domain workstations using Office 2010 and Outlook 2010 for POP email which means that will have large .pst files. I am trying to come up with a good backup strategy for desktop data because try as I can users always want to keep a good amount of data on their desktops instead of in their user share or public folder. Yeah it is a training issue but people are lazy and I don't work there. In the past i have used redirected folders with great results but Microsoft decided that for Outlook 2010 that they will store Outlook .pst files in the My Documents folder which totally hoses Outlook 2010. Yes I know I can move the .pst data files and that is fine until auto archive kicks in or the user tried to make another personal folder and guess what - Outlook is hosed again. And yes I tried Group Policy settings to change default .pst location but NO that does not work as it should while every other setting in the GPO works fine. So then I decided to try to use Windows 7 backup to backup local data files such as Desktop and My Documents to the user share on the server. All went GREAT!! They don't change their data that often and it looked like the ideal solution. Well then I tested Outlook. I deleted one email for a user that has a 5G Outlook .pst. I ran Windows 7 backup again and the backup size increased by 5G meaning the WHOLE .pst file was backed up again. So if 12 users each hase a 3G .pst file and Windows 7 is set to backup daily then server hard drive will be full in just over a couple weeks so that is NOT going to work. I tried to get this client to go to hosted Exchange but they don't want to pay for that right now at the whopping cost of about $1300 a year even after explaining all the benfits such as shared contacts, shared calendars, Sharepoint, and data backup problems solved for Outlook. Of course the consultant that sold the job told them - oh yes EVERYTHING will be backed up to your new server. So my question is their anyway to limit the amount of "previous" versions of data backups that Windows 7 will keep so that it will not fill up the server hard drive?? If not I guess I will go with something like Syncback to backup the My Documents and Desktop folders to the users server shared folder unless someone has a better idea that will not cost any more money. Thanks! Steve

Hi, Thanks for posting in Microsoft TechNet Forum. As we know, the first backup created will be a full backup of all selected content, and subsequent backups will include only new or changed files (incremental backup). As the .pst file is a changed file, so the result is your current situation. Currently, I suggest you use extra method to backup Outlook files: How to automatically back up your personal folders file in Outlook Back up files using Backup and Restore Hope it helps. Alex Zhao TechNet Subscriber Support in forum. If you have any feedback on our support, please contact tngfb@microsoft.comPlease remember to click Mark as Answer on the post that helps you, and to click Unmark as Answer if a marked post does not actually answer your question. This can be beneficial to other community members reading the thread.

Hi, I just wanted to say Hi! Did the information provided solve your query? Please do not hesitate to let me know if you have any further concerns or questions regarding the issue. Alex Zhao TechNet Subscriber Support in forum. If you have any feedback on our support, please contact tngfb@microsoft.comPlease remember to click Mark as Answer on the post that helps you, and to click Unmark as Answer if a marked post does not actually answer your question. This can be beneficial to other community members reading the thread.

Hi, As this thread has been quiet for a while, we assume that the issue has been resolved. At this time, we will mark it as ‘Answered’ as the previous steps should be helpful for many similar scenarios. If the issue still persists, please feel free to reply this post directly so we will be notified to follow it up. You can also choose to unmark the answer as you wish. BTW, we’d love to hear your feedback about the solution. By sharing your experience you can help other community members facing similar problems. Thanks for your understanding and efforts. Alex Zhao TechNet Subscriber Support in forum. If you have any feedback on our support, please contact tngfb@microsoft.comPlease remember to click Mark as Answer on the post that helps you, and to click Unmark as Answer if a marked post does not actually answer your question. This can be beneficial to other community members reading the thread.

Hi Alex, Thanks for the information you've provided here. I was mistakenly thinking that Backup and Restore would automatically back up the .pst file, but I see now that it doesn't. But the article you refer us to, "How to automatically back up your personal folders file in Outlook," doesn't seem to address the issue of incremental backups. That seems key to the discussion. Honestly, I've never been happy with the fact that Outlook shoves everything into one massive file like this. Because our company is using a gmail-hosted POP environment, they can save messages on the server anyway and not worry about backing up the messages. But when it comes to contacts and calendars, this is the main stuff that doesn't exist elsewhere, and it's cumbersome at best to back these up. Export to another file, then back up that file, etc. It would be great if there were some automation of this. Are other programs that claim to be able to do incremental backups of .pst files worth considering, or is it best to just "grin and bear it," teach the users how to export their contacts and calendars, and then include those backup files in a standard Windows Backup routine? Keith Gardner New York City