How to base new email-less Outlook profile on old *.pst file?

I bought and installed Outlook 2019 to use as my Personal Information Manager (PIM) without putting the information in the cloud. This is how I used Outlook 2007 and 2010. One account acted as an offline PIM while another served as an IMAP account.

I created an email-less profile in Outlook 2019 using Outlook.exe /PIM NoEmail. It is associated with a *.pst file. I additionally opened my *.pst from Outlook 2007, where all my stuff is. In the Account Settings, I set the latter as my default data file.

I then selected the first *.pst file and tried to remove it. No matter how many times I try, and how long I wait, all I get is "You cannot delete this Outlook data file. Configuration information in the file is being copied to your new default data file. You can delete the file after this information is copied".

It has been a half hour now, and my *.pst file from Outlook 2007 is less than 30MB. What is really preventing me from deleting the *.pst file created with Outlook.exe /PIM NoEmail?

user2153235

Posted 2020-02-21T03:39:16.803

Reputation: 203

What happens if you move or delete the actual file, can you delete the file, after the error that will be generated after Outlook can’t find the file? – Ramhound – 2020-02-21T03:48:38.903

I'd like to hold off on that for now. Having made the old *.pst file the default, the profile is no longer considered email-less. I am prompted to sign in when starting Outlook. This, despite the fact that I didn't have an email account associated with old *.pst file. I will have the set the default data file to the one created with Outlook.exe /PIM NoEmail. – user2153235 – 2020-02-21T04:15:04.340

This means that, rather than switching to my old *.pst file to access my stuff, I have to copy or import all my stuff over to the newly created *.pst file. I remember having terrible surprises from that, e.g., all the calendar subject lines prefixed with "Copy of" or some such. In Month view, that prefix takes up all the available viewing space, and none of the information in the original subject line shows. I also remember having to answer the same prompt question a gazillion times, one for each appointment.

Microsoft doesn't make simple things easy. – user2153235 – 2020-02-21T04:16:08.427

Eureka! Importing does the job with none of the issues described above. Those issues must result from copying rather than importing. – user2153235 – 2020-02-21T05:51:35.443

How to base new email-less Outlook profile on old *.pst file?

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