Solved – ‘Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer’

Nowadays, MS Outlook is the most popular email client, which can be used by normal users as well as professional users. It can save the complete data in two file formats such as PST and OST. But, sometimes users may face various issues while using MS Outlook application. Out of them, one such issue is “Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer” appearing in Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010. Thus, to overcome this type of issue, users should disable ‘Prevent User from Adding New Data to Existing PST File’ option. Therefore, in the upcoming section, we are going to explain the step-by-step procedure to do it manually in Outlook settings or Outlook registry. Before proceeding that, users have to understand the below scenario more clearly:

Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer -Registry / Manual Steps

Go through the following methods that will help to resolve “Outlook Data Files Usage is Disabled on this Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010 versions manually. This Outlook error message pops when adding PST files or adding a new data PST file is disabled in your Outlook account. There is nothing to be worried since this is an Outlook setting option provided by Outlook for users. So this can be easily resolved by disabling ‘Prevent User from Adding New Data to Existing PST File’ in Outlook settings. Now let us have a look:

A Quick Guide:

Fix “Outlook Data Files Usage is Disabled”

When users are unable to troubleshoot “Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer” issue with the help of the above-stated method. Thus, users can take help of a reliable third-party tool named as Outlook PST File Recovery Tool. It is designed in such a way to restore .pst files in bulk without any data loss in MS Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010, 2007, 2003, 2000. It has an easy-to-use interface that even a novice user can understand its working without taking external help. Furthermore, there are some advanced features that are facilitated by the tool.

Method 1: Fix Outlook Issue Manually

For Example: Consider Outlook 2010, the user can follow similar steps according to the MS Outlook Version)

• Firstly, you have to install the “Office Administrative 2010 Template” via the MS download center.
• There are two versions available, i.e., 32-bit & 64-bit. Choose an appropriate version according to your installed Office version.
• Next, open the “Policy Management Support” and select the GPO that will be requested Custom settings. Well click, right at Default Domain Policy and choose ‘Edit’.

• Open Outlook 2010 settings and keep navigating to get Outlook Options. Now, choose “Other” and click on Auto-Archive. Here, you have to Enable the Disable data file. Exit Archive option and Disable the Auto-Archive Settings.

• Now, start MS Outlook 2010 go to PST Settings. Here, you have to disable the “Prevent User from Adding New Data to Existing PST File or Prevent using sharing Exclusive PST’s”.

Note: If you need to prevent a user from adding new content to existing PST file, click enable and go to option ‘No PST’s can be added”.

• Then, this option “Prevent User from Adding New Data to Existing PST File” is disabled.

So now on your local machine, run gpupdate or force to instantly apply the GPO and log in. After that, you will notice that the final user is not blocked from executing Outlook .pst related operations. Likewise, the ‘Open MS Outlook Data File’ option will be visible when clicking on File in MS Outlook 2010.

So, trying to Export and Import Outlook PST data will not result in “Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer” error anymore.

Method 2: Fix Outlook Issues using Registry

If you change the registry incorrectly then, you may face a serious problem. Before doing any alteration, back up the registry for restoration if any problem occurs. There are two methods:

• To Enable users to add new data into existing PST file
• To Enable users to add new PST file

1. Enable/ Prevent User from Adding New Data to Existing PST File

To prevent a user from adding new content to an existing Outlook PST data file, do changes in PSTDisableGrow registry entry, asset value to 0. To do that, follow these:

• • Now, Open the Registry Editor

• Find and then, go to the following registry subkey:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\.0\Outlook\PST
[The .0 placeholder states the version of MS Outlook]

• Under the Edit menu, click on New, and then choose DWORD Value.
• Enter PSTDisableGrow, and press Enter key
• Right-click on PSTDisableGrow registry entry that you have created, and then select Modify.
• Type 0 in the Value data box, and then press OK

Note: The PSTDisableGrow registry entry will be set according to the given values:

• 0 = User can add new data to an existing PST file. This is the default value.
• 1 = Uses cannot add the new content to an existing PST file

2. Enable/ Prevent User from Adding a New PST File

In order to prevent a user from connecting a single PST file in MS Outlook, do changes in DisablePST registry entry, as value to 0. This will help you to fix ‘Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer’. To do this, follow the listed steps:

• Open the Registry Editor
• Locate, and then click the below registry subkey:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Office\.0\Outlook
[The .0 placeholder indicates the version of MS Outlook]

• On the Edit menu, go to New option, and then click on DWORD Value.
• Type DisablePST, and then click the Enter key
• Right-click on DisablePST registry entry that you have created, and select Modify.
• Under the Value data box, type 0, and then press OK.

Note: The DisablePST registry entry that can be set to the following values:

• 0 = User can add PST data files. This is the default value.
• 1 = User cannot add PST files. PST Functionality Completely
• 2 = User can only add exclusive sharing PST data, such as SharePoint PST files.

Remember: If you want to disable PST file usage, then you should follow the above steps to restrict others from using PST files.

Final Words

MS Outlook is a reliable and efficient email application used by many users around the world. However, sometimes users may face issues while working with Outlook application. In this blog, we have described many solutions to fix ‘Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer’ error. The user can implement any of the above-stated methods to resolve the issue. Henceforth, it is always advisable to opt for a trustworthy solution to avoid the data loss issue in Outlook 2010, 2013, 2016 versions.

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