Are multiple Entourage database rebuilds a death knell?

J

joe

Hello all!

I recently (a few months ago) rebuilt my Entourage database after
encountering some problems and just this week have been encountering
similar problems (more than a few -4362 errors).

My question, and it may be of the "duh" variety, is: Is it a bad sign
that I have to rebuild my database multiple times in a short period of
time?

Does the need to rebuild mean the database is fatally corrupted/ready
to die, or is it not that big of a deal? I have always viewed the
database rebuild as a major corrective step, but is it more of a
maintenance thing rather than an major problem-solving move? (How many
rebuilds are too many?)

More questions! Instead of rebuilding, is it time to trash this
identity and start a new one, and move everything to the new identity?
Or would that just possibly bring the flaw(s) in my current identity
with it?

Thanks for any input!

Joe
 
G

Gene van Troyer

My question, and it may be of the "duh" variety, is: Is it a bad sign
that I have to rebuild my database multiple times in a short period of
time?
Click to expand...

It's always a sign that something somewhere is wrong when you must rebuild
your mail database, so you could say it's "bad", but the problem isn't
necessarily with Entourage but with something else wonky: Preferences, a
conflict with some other system process, a corrupted mail message, etc.
Rebuilding the DB is a way to fix some of these problems.
Does the need to rebuild mean the database is fatally corrupted/ready
to die, or is it not that big of a deal? I have always viewed the
database rebuild as a major corrective step, but is it more of a
maintenance thing rather than an major problem-solving move? (How many
rebuilds are too many?)
Click to expand...

No, it doesn't mean your mail DB is fatally corrupted. If it was fatally
corrupted, it's doubtful you could even access it to do a rebuild. It DOES
mean that there may be a fatally corrupted message in the DB, or that
something somewhere else is messing with the DB file. You need to diagnose
and fix the problem, not the symptom (the need to rebuild). Otherwise, doing
what you ask in the next question won't do you any good: the same problem
with manifest its symptoms again.
More questions! Instead of rebuilding, is it time to trash this
identity and start a new one, and move everything to the new identity?
Or would that just possibly bring the flaw(s) in my current identity
with it?
Click to expand...

Always rebuild if possible. It's not efficient to abandon identity after
identity just because you encountered a problem that required a rebuild.
I've used the same identity and DB for years despite numerous rebuilds. As I
said, the Rebuild and Advanced Rebuild functions are intended as ways for
you to preserve your mail DB and identity, not warning signs that it's time
to cast away the old and move on to the new.

This is a last resort. Unless you have determined that there are no other
problems causing you grief except an unfixable DB, the same problems will
emerge under the new identity with the new database.

Cheers,

Gene van Troyer
 
N

Nathan Herring [MSFT]

It's always a sign that something somewhere is wrong when you must rebuild
your mail database, so you could say it's "bad", but the problem isn't
necessarily with Entourage but with something else wonky: Preferences, a
conflict with some other system process, a corrupted mail message, etc.
Rebuilding the DB is a way to fix some of these problems.


No, it doesn't mean your mail DB is fatally corrupted. If it was fatally
corrupted, it's doubtful you could even access it to do a rebuild. It DOES
mean that there may be a fatally corrupted message in the DB, or that
something somewhere else is messing with the DB file. You need to diagnose
and fix the problem, not the symptom (the need to rebuild). Otherwise, doing
what you ask in the next question won't do you any good: the same problem
with manifest its symptoms again.


Always rebuild if possible. It's not efficient to abandon identity after
identity just because you encountered a problem that required a rebuild.
I've used the same identity and DB for years despite numerous rebuilds. As I
said, the Rebuild and Advanced Rebuild functions are intended as ways for
you to preserve your mail DB and identity, not warning signs that it's time
to cast away the old and move on to the new.

This is a last resort. Unless you have determined that there are no other
problems causing you grief except an unfixable DB, the same problems will
emerge under the new identity with the new database.

Cheers,

Gene van Troyer
Click to expand...

Great advice from Gene.

However, there may be cases (like the corrupted message in the DB that will
hoark the DB if it's ever referred to again) where a new identity might be
useful.

What you can do is keep a new identity and a rebuilt identity around and
alternate between them (especially if you're just using server-hosted email,
like Exchange or IMAP, rather than local email like POP3), and if the
rebuilt identity tanks and the new identity does not, it might be worth
ditching the rebuilt identity. Because this is a time-consuming suggestion,
I'd suggest only doing this if you're at your wits end.

-nh
 
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