Entourage won't start after OS update to 10.4.6

B

bjjjhansen

I just upgraded to 10.4.6 via Software Update and restarted. Now
Entourage fails each time I try to launch it. I get the "Entourage has
encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the
inconvenience" error window.
Suggestions?!
Thanks,
Bruce Hansen
 
T

Travis

I would suggest using the disk utility to repair permissions. Then hold
down the option key while launching Entourage and let the database
utility rebuild your database. This should solve the problem.

Mike
 
D

Diane Ross

I just upgraded to 10.4.6 via Software Update and restarted. Now
Entourage fails each time I try to launch it. I get the "Entourage has
encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the
inconvenience" error window.
Click to expand...

Create a new User in System Preferences. Switch Users and try to open
Entourage in the new User. If it opens with no problems, this points to your
Entourage database or a problem in your User's folder.

If Entourage does not open in the new user, this would indicate that you
would need to do uninstall/install of Office 2004 then update.

If it opens OK, then I suggest holding down the shift key when starting
Entourage in your regular User and see if that helps. This will disable any
schedules that might be causing a problem.

Let us know what you find.
 
B

bjjjhansen

Thanks. It did not open in another user. So I'll have to
uninstall/reinstall/update I presume this means I'll loose all my
account settings, preferences, folders, categories etc. That'll be the
huge time sink resetting all that. I have Retrospect back up sets, so
perhaps I can figure out how to re-coup some of that. Anything I
could/should do with the Entourage files on my hard drive before
running uninstall? Any suggestions are appreciated.
Thanks,
Bruce
 
D

Diane Ross

Thanks. It did not open in another user. So I'll have to
uninstall/reinstall/update I presume this means I'll loose all my
account settings, preferences, folders, categories etc. That'll be the
huge time sink resetting all that. I have Retrospect back up sets, so
perhaps I can figure out how to re-coup some of that. Anything I
could/should do with the Entourage files on my hard drive before
running uninstall? Any suggestions are appreciated.
Click to expand...

Your data is stored in the Microsoft User Data folder. This folder is not
touched by uninstall. You will need your registration number for the
install.

Is it possible to test Office on a different drive? I'm suspicious that it
could be something in your OS update that causing the problem.
 
B

Bruce

Good idea. I started my computer in Target disk mode attached by
FireWire to my wife's computer then launched Entourage from my drive's
applications folder. It launched fine, though it treated me like a new
user. I suppose that's because it looked for my Microsoft User Data
folder on the same drive the OS was running on and couldn't find one.
So it seems you are right that the OS update is causing the problem.
what's the appropriate remedy?
thanks,
Bruce
 
E

Eric Tiffany

You might try getting the 10.4.6 combo updater and apply that. Some people
find that the incremental update achieved by Software Update does not always
work correctly.

These days I always use the combo updater. I also restart, and login
holding the shift key to disable any startup items, before applying the
combo updater.

ET
 
B

Bruce

Am I right to presume that getting the combo updater means downloading
the update from the Apple web-site? Then do I need to delete or
uninstall any files fromthe Software Update so that the combo updater
replaces them?
Thanks,
Bruce
 
E

Eric Tiffany

Well, normally you just get the combo updater (from
http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/ making sure you get the right one,
PPC or Intel) and apply it to your system. No need to delete anything. Of
course, your mileage may vary.

What you *really* need to do is read any of the myriad mac websites where
this sort of thing is discussed, such as macintouch.com

ET
 
B

Bruce

Archive and Install followed by Remove Office and Reinstall Office took
care of it.
thanks.
 
F

Ferny

Diane, I had the same issue and the SHIFT Option worked. It was an
invitation to an appointment in my outbox which was blocking the
program... 2 hours lost removing the program 100 times, and with the
shift, I was able to access the outbox and delete that msg fast. now it
works again.
 
D

Diane Ross

Archive and Install followed by Remove Office and Reinstall Office took
care of it.
Click to expand...

Did you use the combo updater or the software updater install?

Glad the problem is fixed.
 
L

laurent.sporcq

I got the same problem

We got 3 mac intel in our parc, we can't execute entourage 2004 on them
i reinstall 10.4.6 combo, the last office update, always the same

Can you help me ?
 
L

laurent.sporcq

Nobody can help us ?

I got the same problem

We got 3 mac intel in our parc, we can't execute entourage 2004 on them
i reinstall 10.4.6 combo, the last office update, always the same

Can you help me ?
Click to expand...
 
B

Barry Wainwright [MVP]

Have you tried removing Office by using the 'remove office' utility in
"/Applications/Microsoft Office 2004/Additional Tools/Remove Office/Remove
Office"?

This will remove the office folder and all the support files, while leaving
your data intact.

If, after doing this, you still cannot start any office app, it points to
problems in the MUD folder. In that case, follow these instructions:

1. start "activity Monitor" (in your Utilities folder)
2. look for a process called "Database Daemon", select it and hit the 'quit
process' button, and then the 'quit' button in the confirmation dialog.
3. find the folder "Microsoft User Data" in your Documents folder, and drag
it to the desktop
4. now try and restart entourage. A new MUD folder should be created,
giving you an empty database.

If that works, you can maybe recover your old data by making a new identity
in the MUD folder:

5. in the MUD folder you dragged to your desktop, look inside it to find a
folder called "Office 2004 Identities". Inside that should be a folder for
each identity you had created. By default, there would be just one folder
called "Main Identity".

6. rename that identity folder to "Old Identity", and drag it into the
"Office 2004 Identities" folder inside the newly created MUD folder in your
documents folder. Now, it should sit alongside the brand new "main Identity
folder that was created when you started Entourage in step 4.

7. from the 'Entourage' menu inside Entourage, select 'Switch Identity...',
and select the identity 'Old Identity'.

Hopefully, this will solve all the problems and give you back your data
intact.
 
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