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“There is Something Wrong With the File” Error while importing Data File from Windows to MAC Outlook.

  author
Published By Mohit Jha
Tej Pratap Shukla
Approved By Tej Pratap Shukla
Published On September 24th, 2024
Reading Time 3 Minutes Reading

MS Outlook for windows is identical to MS Outlook for Mac in subject of functionality. Thought in Mac the file format of Outlook is .olm, which is completely different from PST file format of Windows Outlook. Moreover, if you are currently using Outlook on Windows and wants to switch to Mac, you need to import your PST files.

But while performing such Procedure, one can face error like There is Something Wrong with the File Error while Importing Data File from Windows to Mac Outlook.

What is the Error?

“There is Something Wrong with the file” error while importing data file from Windows to MAC Outlook is the error related to the Outlook version files.
First, let’s see what nature of files is created in what version of Outlook.

Outlook version below 2003 i.e., “Outlook 97, 2002” creates ANSI PST files which have a file size limitation of 2GB. This means that items per folder are less than 16,000.
While Outlook version 2003 and above i.e., till 2016 creates UNICODE PST files which have no file size and items per folder limitation.

UNICODE file type is more preferred over ANSI Format because of large sized files. And is recommended to upgrade your Outlook files into UNICODE PST format.

The Cause of the Error?

When a PST file created in Outlook 97,2002 is converted into Outlook for MAC, an error “There is Something is wrong with the file” is encountered. This is because ANSI file format is not supported by MAC.
Outlook for Mac 2011 requires UNICODE PST file (standard format for Personal file folder) for importing it into Mac environment. This UNICODE format is created by Outlook 2003 and later versions.

Method of Solution

There is Something Wrong with the File Error while Importing Data File from Windows to Mac Outlook, can be resolved by:

You need to first convert your ANSI (Outlook version 97,2002 PST files) files to UNICODE format followed by importing of files. The process is explained as:

    • Install Outlook 2010,16 on your system and open “Outlook Data File” from “File” option.
    • Browse and select ANSI PST file from the local system that you want to convert into Mac Outlook.
    • Select ANSI PST file from left Navigation blog. Make sure that the root of the file is selected i.e all sub-files and folders are included.

location

  • Click on “Options” from “File” menu and select “Advanced” option.
  • Click on “Export to a file” option from “Export” button followed by “Next” Button.
  • Select “Outlook Data File(.PST)” option for exporting ANSI to UNICODE PST file format.
  • From “Browse” button, select the new file location for storing the exported files and click on “OK”. The process of migrating will begin.
  • After completion of the process, UNICODE PST files are created at the location selected.

Later you can import the new PST file without error while importing Windows Outlook PST File to MAC Outlook easily.

Conclusion

Before Performing the migration process make sure that the PST files are in the appropriate format to avoid problems like There is Something Wrong with the File Error while Importing Data File from Windows to Mac Outlook. Manual method for migrating the ANSI files can be used to convert into UNICODE file format.

  author

By Mohit Jha

Mohit is a Microsoft-certified expert who has assisted thousands of clients with Outlook & Microsoft Office 365 issues. He enjoys writing on email clients as well as data migration. He is always excited about giving troubled readers the most up-to-date knowledge, explanation, and refinements.