Do I risk my 5GB PST with a free converter, or is it truly safer to use a professional converter?

[kevinjones]

So, do I take the risk of a free PST to PDF converter for my 5GB PST file or am I actually safer with a professional tool? Has anyone in this sub tried converting a large PST file and what has the result been from your testing.

 

[markjohns]

When you have a large PST file that is around 5GB, choosing the method to convert the PST file into a PDF file makes a significant difference. Many users have this dilemma of whether they should use a free PST to PDF converter or a professional solution, Softaken PST to PDF Converter. Let's discuss:

Manual Way to open PST files into PDF file format

You will have to convert the emails individually. Converting emails individually is going to take a long time, especially if you have a 5GB PST file.

There is a possibility of losing data or causing your converted PDF to be corrupted or incomplete while trying to convert a large PST file.

Attachments may not get exported properly.

The email may not get converted or exported in proper formatting into one PDF file. Converted emails could potentially wind up being incomplete or disorganized, with messages and attachments appearing on separate pages within the PDF file.

This is serious because if you are using manual work or a free conversion tool with things as mentioned above, your large PST file is at great risk with losing data or hours of work.

Professional Way to Convert PST file into PDF.

For a risk-free option, consider the Softaken PST to PDF Converter, which facilitates the handling of larger-sized PST files without error or loss of information. Advantages include:

1. Convert the entirety of a PST file (even 5GB+) as a batch without any size restrictions.
2. Email formatting, metadata, and attachments remain intact during conversion.
3. Batch conversion allows you to complete the conversion process in a fraction of the time.
4. Outlook does not need to be installed, nor do you need to have an Outlook account.
5. You can preview emails before converting to confirm your data is converted accurately.

 

[ishasingh]

When converting a 5 GB PST, using a free converter always carries risks—corruption, data loss, incomplete conversion, or failure mid-process are common pitfalls, especially when handling large files—and the support or error recovery is usually minimal. In contrast, a professional tool like Aryson PST to PDF Converter Tool is built to handle large PST files robustly, offering error-handling, integrity checks, and reliable output, making it far safer for mission-critical data.