Proven Methods to fix “Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer”

MS Outlook is a widely used email client across the world for individual use as well as professional use. The application stores data in two file formats i.e, PST and OST. However several Outlook users face issues like Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer sometimes. This error appears in Outlook 2016, 2013, 2010. Working with this issue is quite difficult to solve. Users keep searching for a way to get rid of this issue. Here in this write up we will discuss some easy and reliable solutions to fix this issue.

But before we fix the issue, let’s know about the error “Outlook data file usage is disabled on this computer”.  So let’s understand this in the next segment of the blog.

What do you mean by “Outlook Data Files usage is Disabled Error”?

This error generally occurs in the MS Outlook 2010, 2013, or 2016. The error does not let you add new PST files or new data PST files to Outlook. But you need not panic as you can fix this issue by disabling the option ‘Prevent User from Adding New Data to Existing PST File’. 

Here, we discussed what exactly the issue means, now let’s discuss how we can fix this particular issue.

Different Techniques to Solve “Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer”:

Here we will discuss the best solution to fix the issue, let’s discuss them below:

Solution 1. Disable the option Prevent Users from Adding New Data to Existing PST File

In order to disable the option follow the below-listed steps:

1. Go to the MS Download Center and Launch the Office Administrative Template according to the Outlook version.
2. Now, view “Policy Management Support” and choose the GPO, requested Custom settings. Then right-click on the Default Domain Policy and choose the ‘Edit’ option.
3. Go to the Outlook settings and view Outlook Options. choose Other and tap on Auto-Archive. Now, first Enable the Disable data file and then Disable the Auto-Archive Settings.
4. Here, Initialize the Outlook application and browse to the PST settings.
5. Finally, here you can Disable the option  “Prevent User from Adding New Data to Existing PST File”.
6. Execute the gpupdate to apply the GPO immediately and sign in.

After all these you need to import or export the Outlook PST. This way the error  ‘Outlook Data Files Usage is Disabled on this Computer gets resolved. But if still, the error persists then go to the next solution discussed below.

Solution 2. With Outlook Registries

Sometimes due to inappropriate modification in the Outlook registries, these error encounters. So you fix the issue by doing modification in Registries but before always ensure to have a backup of the outlook registries.

Notes:

1. You need to Enable or Prevent Users from Adding New Data to Existing PST Files appropriately.
2. Ensure to Enable/Prevent Users from Adding a New PST File properly.

Here we discussed manual ways to troubleshoot the error. But none of the manual ways gives you a complete solution. As you may have to face its limitations like- time consuming, Lengthy. Even in some cases, users may also face data loss issues. So if you are a non-technical user or beginner, then you can use a professional solution. Let’s discuss the automated solution in the next section of the blog.

Automated Solution to fix the error “Outlook data files usage is disabled on the system”

The error may also generate if you have corrupted Outlook PST files. If somehow you can not fix the Outlook error with the manual ways, then you can opt for the automated solution. The automated solution makes use of various automated utilities like Outlook PST Repair. The tool can resolve this Outlook issue without causing any data loss. The tool gives you complete security during the recovery process. It has an intuitive and easy to use interface, so you need to have the prior technical knowledge to execute the utility.

Final Words

Here in this blog, we discussed different methods to fix the error “Outlook Data Files(.pst) Usage is Disabled on this Computer”. Hope this write up will help you to fix the issue easily.