Nobody likes to see an error message on their computer when they go to start their day, especially when they’re launching Microsoft Outlook to catch up on all their email. It’s difficult enough for most of us to get through all our email messages, keep the SPAM to a minimum, and still have a productive day. The last thing any of us wants is for Outlook to refuse to open. Even worse, the error message reported by Outlook is often cryptic and meaningless to the average individual.
Now, it isn’t my intent to scare you with a big list of error messages. However, the following are just some of the errors that you might find yourself faced with some day. If one of these should ever appear to you, keep reading the rest of this article for an understanding of the usual cause of the problem. Here’s that big list of awful errors:
Client Error: 0×80040600Fatal Error: 80040900An unknown error has occurred. 0×80040116An unknown error has occurred. 0×80040119An unknown error has occurred. 0×80040600Data error (cyclic redundancy check)Errors have been detected in the file [file_path].Messaging interface has caused an unknown errorOutlook.pst is not a personal folders fileOutlook.pst could not be foundOutlook.pst could not be openedOutlook.pst can not be accessed – 0×80040116Outlook.pst has reached its maximum sizeUnknown Error 0×80040116Unknown Error 0×80040119Unknown Error 0×80040600Can’t move the items. Unable to delete this folder. Right-click the folder, and then click Properties to check your permissions for the folder. See the folder owner or your administrator to change your permissions.Can’t move the items. Could not complete the operation. One or more parameter values are not valid.Internal MAPI error: An invalid parameter was passed to a MAPI function. Contact your administrator.[FileName].pst file could not be opened. The file may not be compatible with this version of Outlook or it may be corrupted.OUTLOOK caused an invalid page fault in module OUTLLIB.DLL at [memory address]File path\filename.pst could not be accessed. Data error. Cyclic redundancy check.Unable to display the folder, Outlook.pst could not be accessed, access denied.The file [drive]:\[path][file name].pst could not be found.The operation failed due to a registry or installation problem. Restart Outlook and try again. If the problem persists, please reinstall.Having researched many of these, I can tell you that they almost always point to a problem with the .pst file that Outlook uses to store all of your emails, contacts, calendars, etc. You see, Outlook stores everything you care about in one big file (it’s actually a database under the covers) that ends in a .pst extension (the file is usually named “Outlook.pst”). And if anything bad happens to it, Outlook can’t open the file and make sense of it, resulting in one of these error messages.
Now, before you panic, there are three possible ways to get back up and running. First, see if you have a recent backup of your Outlook.pst file that you can restore. Second, try the free repair tool provided by Microsoft called ScanPST. Unfortunately, ScanPST is rather weak and can’t fix all Outlook corruption problems. So there are a few third party tools on the market that do a more extensive job of recovering and repairing PST files. Search for “PST Repair” and look for a tool that lets you download a free trial version that you can run on your own file as a test. And, finally, it probably won’t hurt to keep your fingers crossed.