Outlook 2003 keeps corrupting my PST

[YBOTI]

I have used Outlook for years now, but not until 2003 have I been
ready to throw it out the window. My experience has been:
1) OL constantly gets locked up forcing me to kill the process - it
often pegs the processor at 100%
2) OL constantly corrupts the PST - I often have to use SCAN PST 4-5
times a day. Corruptions do not always follow lock-up, but often do.
3) I constantly get messages saying OL is low on resources and then
it will not allow an operation such as saving the email (so I can
restart and complete), or send
4) OL has trouble exporting to other files, moving messages to
folders - low resources message will appear, or "PST is Corrupt"
message
5) Archiving folders will;; corrupt the PST every single time
6) I cannot sync my palm anymore - but I have been so involved with
the other problems I don't recall why. I don't think the sync program
could read the 2003 Unicode file format, so maybe with the 2002 format
it will???
7) Several times OL could not find default folders - had to do
outlook /setdefaultfolders and/or /setdefaultfoldernames AND rebuild
the PST
8) Several times folders would end up in "lost and found". When it
happened to be Inbox, had to rebuild entire PST and profile because OL
does not allow you to move Inbox and other specific folders. Once I
had "lost and found" folder inside another "lost and found" folder.
Lost and found would often contain numbered folders with no content.

Recently I had to take a trip, so I exported the file to a 2002
format, moved it to my Laptop, and worked blissfully for 10 days. When
I returned, I kept the 2002 format, moved it back to my desktop, and
have had to rebuild the very same PST 5 items so far - in 2 days.

I have tried all of the following MULTIPLE times
1) Build a new profile, and new PST (tired both 2003 and 2002 PST
formats)
2) Ensured that all patches are up-to-date
3) Ran Detect-And-Repair
4) Uninstalled and reinstalled Office 2003
5) Ran office-update

I have read the news groups till my eyes are bleeding, grasping at
every MVP suggestion, and have gotten no where.

I really would rather not abandon all the other things that 2003
offers, but I am ready to chuck 2003, and roll back to 2002. I was
hoping someone out there might have some missing link.

I have the following configuration:
Win2K Pro
SP4 Build 2195
Microstar Int'l system with Award BIOS and AMD Duron Processor
512MB memory
1.2 GB virtual

I had loaded office 2003 on a clean Windows build
Outlook 11.5608.5703
iHateSpam version 4.0.406 (Sunbelt Software) (have been using IHS
for over a year - no problems with previous version of Outlook. Tried
running without it. Same result.

Not sure if this is relevant, but System Info indicates both an Office
2002 AND 2003 section, thought I do not have and have not had 2002
installed.

My primary PST file is currently 134,009 KB. I have 3 other PSTs I
keep open all the time. They also get corrupted occasionally by OL
2003, but not as often as the main PST. Until I went to 2003 I never
had an auxiliary PST to get corrupted. Now it is 1-2 items per week.
It is not as bad since I turned archiving off.

I would be grateful for any workable suggestions.

 

[Roady [MVP]]

I don't think Outlook 2003 is your issue here but an add-in or a program
that integrates with Outlook like a virusscanner or synchronisation
software. Disable these add-ins or integration and see if Outlook runs fine
on it's own. It could very well be possible that they are not compatible
with Outlook 2003. This explains that you're not able to sync with your Palm
as well. You can disable your add-ins by going to Tools-> Options-> tab
Other-> button Advanced Options...-> button COM Add-Ins/Add-In Manager.
Virusscan integration most of the time needs to be disabled from within the
configuration of the virusscanner.

Check your pst-file for errors or even better; start with a clean one in a
new profile.

Once you've done all that start Outlook by Start-> Run-> "path to
outlook.exe" /safe

If Outlook isn't giving you any trouble now Outlook 2003 isn't your issue
but one of your add-ins.

--
Robert Sparnaaij [MVP-Outlook]
www.howto-outlook.com

Tips of the month:
-What do the Outlook Icons Mean?
-Create an Office 2003 CD slipstreamed with Service Pack 1

-----

 

[YBOTI]

Thanks for the try Robert, but unfortunately, none of these
suggestions made one bit of difference. In spite of the fact I had
tried most of them before, I did all you suggested. The one thing I
had not done before was to look for add-ins. The only thing there was
Microsoft Exchange Extensions, but I turned it off anyway. I also
uninstalled my Spam checker, and turned off the Microsoft spam
checker. It continued to corrupt the profile as before.

Just now I finished rebuilding my Windows profile. Then I again did a
Detect and Repair, Went through all updates, created a new profile,
created a new PST, and within moments Outlook had to shut down - The
"Outlook has detected a problem and must shut down" dialog. When I
reopened it, the profile was corrupt. I spend over 6 hours just today
rebuilding the entire Windows 2000 profile, cleaning up, checking the
disk, reinstalling, etc, and in the last 30 minutes since I finished I
have already had to rebuild the profile 3 times.

I do not like to go off the edge, but I really think Outlook 2003 is
high quality fertilizer. Having used the exact same PST without flaw
under 2002 for 2 weeks, and having to rebuild it every few minutes
under 2003, I cannot come up with any other conclusion. But I would
love to be proven wrong.

I don't think Outlook 2003 is your issue here but an add-in or a program
that integrates with Outlook like a virusscanner or synchronisation
software. Disable these add-ins or integration and see if Outlook runs fine
on it's own. It could very well be possible that they are not compatible
with Outlook 2003. This explains that you're not able to sync with your Palm
as well. You can disable your add-ins by going to Tools-> Options-> tab
Other-> button Advanced Options...-> button COM Add-Ins/Add-In Manager.
Virusscan integration most of the time needs to be disabled from within the
configuration of the virusscanner.

Check your pst-file for errors or even better; start with a clean one in a
new profile.

Once you've done all that start Outlook by Start-> Run-> "path to
outlook.exe" /safe

If Outlook isn't giving you any trouble now Outlook 2003 isn't your issue
but one of your add-ins.

--
Robert Sparnaaij [MVP-Outlook]
www.howto-outlook.com

Tips of the month:
-What do the Outlook Icons Mean?
-Create an Office 2003 CD slipstreamed with Service Pack 1

-----

I have used Outlook for years now, but not until 2003 have I been
ready to throw it out the window. My experience has been:
1) OL constantly gets locked up forcing me to kill the process - it
often pegs the processor at 100%
2) OL constantly corrupts the PST - I often have to use SCAN PST 4-5
times a day. Corruptions do not always follow lock-up, but often do.
3) I constantly get messages saying OL is low on resources and then
it will not allow an operation such as saving the email (so I can
restart and complete), or send
4) OL has trouble exporting to other files, moving messages to
folders - low resources message will appear, or "PST is Corrupt"
message
5) Archiving folders will;; corrupt the PST every single time
6) I cannot sync my palm anymore - but I have been so involved with
the other problems I don't recall why. I don't think the sync program
could read the 2003 Unicode file format, so maybe with the 2002 format
it will???
7) Several times OL could not find default folders - had to do
outlook /setdefaultfolders and/or /setdefaultfoldernames AND rebuild
the PST
8) Several times folders would end up in "lost and found". When it
happened to be Inbox, had to rebuild entire PST and profile because OL
does not allow you to move Inbox and other specific folders. Once I
had "lost and found" folder inside another "lost and found" folder.
Lost and found would often contain numbered folders with no content.

Recently I had to take a trip, so I exported the file to a 2002
format, moved it to my Laptop, and worked blissfully for 10 days. When
I returned, I kept the 2002 format, moved it back to my desktop, and
have had to rebuild the very same PST 5 items so far - in 2 days.

I have tried all of the following MULTIPLE times
1) Build a new profile, and new PST (tired both 2003 and 2002 PST
formats)
2) Ensured that all patches are up-to-date
3) Ran Detect-And-Repair
4) Uninstalled and reinstalled Office 2003
5) Ran office-update

 

[Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]]

Where is your PST stored - locally or on a network share on another
computer? Outlook will not work well against a PST on the network (the PST
was designed for local, not remote, access).

You say you're getting crashes, as well? Have you been sending the reports
to Microsoft? If so, can you look in the Application section of Event
Viewer and find errors whose source is Outlook? Some of these will contain
a "bucket number" - could you post that?

--
Jeff Stephenson
Outlook Development
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

Thanks for the try Robert, but unfortunately, none of these
suggestions made one bit of difference. In spite of the fact I had
tried most of them before, I did all you suggested. The one thing I
had not done before was to look for add-ins. The only thing there was
Microsoft Exchange Extensions, but I turned it off anyway. I also
uninstalled my Spam checker, and turned off the Microsoft spam
checker. It continued to corrupt the profile as before.

Just now I finished rebuilding my Windows profile. Then I again did a
Detect and Repair, Went through all updates, created a new profile,
created a new PST, and within moments Outlook had to shut down - The
"Outlook has detected a problem and must shut down" dialog. When I
reopened it, the profile was corrupt. I spend over 6 hours just today
rebuilding the entire Windows 2000 profile, cleaning up, checking the
disk, reinstalling, etc, and in the last 30 minutes since I finished I
have already had to rebuild the profile 3 times.

I do not like to go off the edge, but I really think Outlook 2003 is
high quality fertilizer. Having used the exact same PST without flaw
under 2002 for 2 weeks, and having to rebuild it every few minutes
under 2003, I cannot come up with any other conclusion. But I would
love to be proven wrong.


"Roady [MVP]" <newsgroups_DELETE_@_DELETE_sparnaaij_NO_._SPAM_net> wrote

I don't think Outlook 2003 is your issue here but an add-in or a program
that integrates with Outlook like a virusscanner or synchronisation
software. Disable these add-ins or integration and see if Outlook runs fine
on it's own. It could very well be possible that they are not compatible
with Outlook 2003. This explains that you're not able to sync with your Palm
as well. You can disable your add-ins by going to Tools-> Options-> tab
Other-> button Advanced Options...-> button COM Add-Ins/Add-In Manager.
Virusscan integration most of the time needs to be disabled from within the
configuration of the virusscanner.

Check your pst-file for errors or even better; start with a clean one in a
new profile.

Once you've done all that start Outlook by Start-> Run-> "path to
outlook.exe" /safe

If Outlook isn't giving you any trouble now Outlook 2003 isn't your issue
but one of your add-ins.

--
Robert Sparnaaij [MVP-Outlook]
www.howto-outlook.com

Tips of the month:
-What do the Outlook Icons Mean?
-Create an Office 2003 CD slipstreamed with Service Pack 1

-----

I have used Outlook for years now, but not until 2003 have I been
ready to throw it out the window. My experience has been:
1) OL constantly gets locked up forcing me to kill the process - it
often pegs the processor at 100%
2) OL constantly corrupts the PST - I often have to use SCAN PST 4-5
times a day. Corruptions do not always follow lock-up, but often do.
3) I constantly get messages saying OL is low on resources and then
it will not allow an operation such as saving the email (so I can
restart and complete), or send
4) OL has trouble exporting to other files, moving messages to
folders - low resources message will appear, or "PST is Corrupt"
message
5) Archiving folders will;; corrupt the PST every single time
6) I cannot sync my palm anymore - but I have been so involved with
the other problems I don't recall why. I don't think the sync program
could read the 2003 Unicode file format, so maybe with the 2002 format
it will???
7) Several times OL could not find default folders - had to do
outlook /setdefaultfolders and/or /setdefaultfoldernames AND rebuild
the PST
8) Several times folders would end up in "lost and found". When it
happened to be Inbox, had to rebuild entire PST and profile because OL
does not allow you to move Inbox and other specific folders. Once I
had "lost and found" folder inside another "lost and found" folder.
Lost and found would often contain numbered folders with no content.

Recently I had to take a trip, so I exported the file to a 2002
format, moved it to my Laptop, and worked blissfully for 10 days. When
I returned, I kept the 2002 format, moved it back to my desktop, and
have had to rebuild the very same PST 5 items so far - in 2 days.

I have tried all of the following MULTIPLE times
1) Build a new profile, and new PST (tired both 2003 and 2002 PST
formats)
2) Ensured that all patches are up-to-date
3) Ran Detect-And-Repair
4) Uninstalled and reinstalled Office 2003
5) Ran office-update

 

[YBOTI]

Thanks for your attention, Jeff.

My PST is stored locally.
RE: Sending reports - about 10% of the time, but increasingly lately.
I will make a habit of it now.

I have never noticed a relevant message after a crash. Crashes with
Outlook happen perhaps several times per week.

Having to rebuild the data file happens many times per day. Typical
indicators I need to rebuild are:
1) Outlook will not open and will give a message about a corrupt PST
2) OL will open, but will not display messages in the reading pane.
3) After creating a message I cannot send or save it, and get a
message about resources being too low - and it is often the very first
thing I have done ... When I close and try to reopen, I will often
then get number 1. Sometimes though, just closing and reopening will
resolve the resources issue.

Sometimes when I try to rebuild I get a message that scanpst cannot
rebuild it and that "no changes were made". Rebooting the PC will
almost always fix this.

Having either Microsoft OR my 3rd party SPAM checker seems to increase
frequency - I fully believe only because the increased internal file
operations which I believe are the real heart of the problem.

Below I have pasted typical Outlook generated event messages. None
contain a "bucket" number.

Often, the corruption can be within moments of opening Outlook. Any
file operation - getting mail, deleting mail, moving mail to a
different folder SEEMS to trigger the problem - but not every time.
Sometimes I go for a day or two, then I may have problems 5-6 times in
a few hours.

Another thing that is happening is Outlook is constantly "loosing"
data (another indicator of internal file operation problems). Upon
recovery (scanpst) often I will find default folders in the Lost &
Found. They continue to function there as normal, and even get their
names back if I run with the /resetfoldernames option. Naturally, if
have to create a new pst file if I want to get them out of L&F since
OL does not allow you to move "special" folders.

If there is any other information I can post regarding this issue that
would be helpful, please let me know. If you need to contact me
directly for more prompt, in depth interchange, feel free.

-------------- Typical Example Event Messages
-------------------------
Unable to load personal free/busy data. The Calendar folder could not
be found. There are not enough system resources available for this
operation.

-------------------------
Cannot start the reminder service. Unable to show reminders.

-------------------------
There was a problem reading one or more of your reminders. Some
reminders may not appear.

-------------------------
Cannot start the reminder service. Unable to show reminders. The
Reminders folder could not be found. There are not enough system
resources available for this operation.

-------------------------
The operation failed.

-------------------------
Unable to load personal free/busy data. The Calendar folder could not
be found. Errors have been detected in the file C:\Documents and
Settings\yboti.DADDY\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\ra2.pst. Quit Outlook and all mail-enabled
applications, and then use the Inbox repair tool (Scanpst.exe) to
diagnose and repair errors in the file. For more information about
the Inbox repair tool, see Help.
-------------- End Example Event Messages -------------------------

 

[Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]]

Which spam filter are you using? Could you try turning it off for a while
(a pain, I know...) to see if it might be causing the problem?

If turning off your spam filter doesn't work, could you go to Tools ->
Options -> Other -> Advanced Options and see if you have any add-ins
installed (look in Add-In Manager and COM Add-Ins). I'm unaware of any
problems with corrupted PSTs except on network shares; frequent crashes and
corruption are often (not always, I'll admit...) tied to third-party
software trying to work with Outlook.

Please do send the reports whenever Outlook crashes. These reports are
incredibly valuable to us, because they give us the ability to debug crashes
that we simply never saw during testing. Since we fix crashes that users
experience in most-frequently-reported order, the more often you click that
"send report" button, the more likely it is that the bug will be fixed in
the next service pack.

--
Jeff Stephenson
Outlook Development
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

Thanks for your attention, Jeff.

My PST is stored locally.
RE: Sending reports - about 10% of the time, but increasingly lately.
I will make a habit of it now.

I have never noticed a relevant message after a crash. Crashes with
Outlook happen perhaps several times per week.

Having to rebuild the data file happens many times per day. Typical
indicators I need to rebuild are:
1) Outlook will not open and will give a message about a corrupt PST
2) OL will open, but will not display messages in the reading pane.
3) After creating a message I cannot send or save it, and get a
message about resources being too low - and it is often the very first
thing I have done ... When I close and try to reopen, I will often
then get number 1. Sometimes though, just closing and reopening will
resolve the resources issue.

Sometimes when I try to rebuild I get a message that scanpst cannot
rebuild it and that "no changes were made". Rebooting the PC will
almost always fix this.

Having either Microsoft OR my 3rd party SPAM checker seems to increase
frequency - I fully believe only because the increased internal file
operations which I believe are the real heart of the problem.

Below I have pasted typical Outlook generated event messages. None
contain a "bucket" number.

Often, the corruption can be within moments of opening Outlook. Any
file operation - getting mail, deleting mail, moving mail to a
different folder SEEMS to trigger the problem - but not every time.
Sometimes I go for a day or two, then I may have problems 5-6 times in
a few hours.

Another thing that is happening is Outlook is constantly "loosing"
data (another indicator of internal file operation problems). Upon
recovery (scanpst) often I will find default folders in the Lost &
Found. They continue to function there as normal, and even get their
names back if I run with the /resetfoldernames option. Naturally, if
have to create a new pst file if I want to get them out of L&F since
OL does not allow you to move "special" folders.

If there is any other information I can post regarding this issue that
would be helpful, please let me know. If you need to contact me
directly for more prompt, in depth interchange, feel free.

-------------- Typical Example Event Messages
-------------------------
Unable to load personal free/busy data. The Calendar folder could not
be found. There are not enough system resources available for this
operation.

-------------------------
Cannot start the reminder service. Unable to show reminders.

-------------------------
There was a problem reading one or more of your reminders. Some
reminders may not appear.

-------------------------
Cannot start the reminder service. Unable to show reminders. The
Reminders folder could not be found. There are not enough system
resources available for this operation.

-------------------------
The operation failed.

-------------------------
Unable to load personal free/busy data. The Calendar folder could not
be found. Errors have been detected in the file C:\Documents and
Settings\yboti.DADDY\Local Settings\Application
Data\Microsoft\Outlook\ra2.pst. Quit Outlook and all mail-enabled
applications, and then use the Inbox repair tool (Scanpst.exe) to
diagnose and repair errors in the file. For more information about
the Inbox repair tool, see Help.
-------------- End Example Event Messages -------------------------




"Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]" <[email protected]> wrote in

Where is your PST stored - locally or on a network share on another
computer? Outlook will not work well against a PST on the network (the PST
was designed for local, not remote, access).

You say you're getting crashes, as well? Have you been sending the reports
to Microsoft? If so, can you look in the Application section of Event
Viewer and find errors whose source is Outlook? Some of these will contain
a "bucket number" - could you post that?

 

[YBOTI]

Which spam filter are you using? Could you try turning it off for a while
(a pain, I know...) to see if it might be causing the problem?

Did that already - uninstalled it completely. I have been using
IHateSpam from Sunbelt. Also turned Microsoft spam filter off.

Remember too, that at one point I transferred this PST file to a
Laptop running 2002. (I am using the 2002 format at the present time,
but this problem has been occurring with BOTH formats. I actually was
trying the old format at first just to see if only the new formated
file was a problem. Obviously, that was not it.) At any rate, I
transferred the PST to a laptop and used it with OL 2002 for two weeks
without a single incident. Transferred it back to my Desktop upon my
return and commenced having trouble the same as before immediately.
Since then I am on about my 3rd-4th new PST and profile. In fact, I am
going to have to rebuild again right now since my entire inbox,
outbox, and sent folders plus all sub-folders are all in a recovered
folder after the most recent hose job this afternoon. I had to kill
the OL process because it was not responding. Other than the messages
I sent the other day, there were no new events.

If turning off your spam filter doesn't work, could you go to Tools ->
Options -> Other -> Advanced Options and see if you have any add-ins
installed (look in Add-In Manager and COM Add-Ins). I'm unaware of any
problems with corrupted PSTs except on network shares; frequent crashes and
corruption are often (not always, I'll admit...) tied to third-party
software trying to work with Outlook.

I have uninstalled all third party software, and have no add-ins.
After my last reinstall I left everything else out of the mix.

Please do send the reports whenever Outlook crashes. These reports are
incredibly valuable to us, because they give us the ability to debug crashes
that we simply never saw during testing. Since we fix crashes that users
experience in most-frequently-reported order, the more often you click that
"send report" button, the more likely it is that the bug will be fixed in
the next service pack.

I will do so religiously. Thanks much.

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

Just wondering. How did you "move the PST back" from your laptop? Outlook
2003 is not very tolerant of that procedure. I hope you used these
instructions:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/assistance/HA010771141033.aspx

 

[YBOTI]

Jeff,

I am seeing the "Bucket" message you mentioned for the first time ...
---------------
Bucket 124798975, bucket table 1, faulting application outlook.exe,
version 11.0.6353.0, stamp 408f2937, faulting module outllib.dll,
version 11.0.6359.0, stamp 40c8adfd, debug? 0, fault address
0x006a396b.
---------------

Also got these:
---------------
Faulting application outlook.exe, version 11.0.6353.0, stamp 408f2937,
faulting module outllib.dll, version 11.0.6359.0, stamp 40c8adfd,
debug? 0, fault address 0x006a396b.
---------------
After my last recovery attempt, all Outlook messages were transformed
into reminders, and many of my 500+ contacts (backed up, of course)
lost bit of data like email addresses. My next action attempt will be
to turn off all rules, create a new PST, NOT import any old
information, and try to run a few days in a virgin environment. No
SPAM checker, no rules, no Contacts, or old messages.

 

[Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]]

Looking at the information for that bucket, it's clear that there's a bug in
the code (duh - Outlook wouldn't crash otherwise...), but I don't see
anything that would indicate how you could avoid it. I think your best bet
is to start with a new profile (see
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;829918), which will
give you a new PST, no rules, etc., and start adding things back one at a
time.

Sure wish I could be more helpful...

 

[YBOTI]

No doubt, the new code must be having heartburn with "the baggage I am
trying to bring in to the relationship"! I mean, I actually try to use
the feature of Outlook to my advantage ... I create form letters so I
don't have to retype, I use lots of rules to automate processes, I
bought a good spam checker to filter some of the 500+ junk mails I get
each day (no exaggeration - and you don't just go changing accounts
when you have lots of important business tied to that email account)

Since I have totally stripped it of all usefulness - no rules, no old
emails, none of my 500+ contacts, I have only had to rebuild once. So
it seems the rule of thumb might be, if it's useful it's broken.

At any rate, Jeff, I do thank you for trying. Funny, I solve computer
problems all day long for others with ease, but always manage to get
ones that neither I nor any one else can figure out.

 

[Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]]

Well, lots of people use Outlook as (if not more) strenuously as you and
don't have this sort of problem. The question is: what is different about
your setup/usage/hardware/whatever that is causing this to happen? I'm
afraid I don't really have a clue, and the only suggestion I can make is
what I said below - try starting with a new profile and slowly add things
back in. If you ever figure out what's causing the problem, please post
back with the information (either reply to this thread or put my name in the
subject and I'll pick it up). It would us figure out what's happening - as
I say, the data on the crash don't really tell me much...

--
Jeff Stephenson
Outlook Development
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

No doubt, the new code must be having heartburn with "the baggage I am
trying to bring in to the relationship"! I mean, I actually try to use
the feature of Outlook to my advantage ... I create form letters so I
don't have to retype, I use lots of rules to automate processes, I
bought a good spam checker to filter some of the 500+ junk mails I get
each day (no exaggeration - and you don't just go changing accounts
when you have lots of important business tied to that email account)

Since I have totally stripped it of all usefulness - no rules, no old
emails, none of my 500+ contacts, I have only had to rebuild once. So
it seems the rule of thumb might be, if it's useful it's broken.

At any rate, Jeff, I do thank you for trying. Funny, I solve computer
problems all day long for others with ease, but always manage to get
ones that neither I nor any one else can figure out.


"Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]" <[email protected]> wrote in

Looking at the information for that bucket, it's clear that there's a bug in
the code (duh - Outlook wouldn't crash otherwise...), but I don't see
anything that would indicate how you could avoid it. I think your best bet
is to start with a new profile (see
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;829918), which will
give you a new PST, no rules, etc., and start adding things back one at a
time.

Sure wish I could be more helpful...

 

[larry r]

I had a simliar problem.,..had to reformat my hard drive so I saved my ost
files to a cd and then transferred them to my hard drive...i have used
everything under the sun to get them readable but I continue to geta message
that they arent good .pst files. I have used both microsoft and thris party
repair programs and they still wont read. The specific message is that they
are not personal file folders

Well, lots of people use Outlook as (if not more) strenuously as you and
don't have this sort of problem. The question is: what is different about
your setup/usage/hardware/whatever that is causing this to happen? I'm
afraid I don't really have a clue, and the only suggestion I can make is
what I said below - try starting with a new profile and slowly add things
back in. If you ever figure out what's causing the problem, please post
back with the information (either reply to this thread or put my name in the
subject and I'll pick it up). It would us figure out what's happening - as
I say, the data on the crash don't really tell me much...

--
Jeff Stephenson
Outlook Development
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

No doubt, the new code must be having heartburn with "the baggage I am
trying to bring in to the relationship"! I mean, I actually try to use
the feature of Outlook to my advantage ... I create form letters so I
don't have to retype, I use lots of rules to automate processes, I
bought a good spam checker to filter some of the 500+ junk mails I get
each day (no exaggeration - and you don't just go changing accounts
when you have lots of important business tied to that email account)

Since I have totally stripped it of all usefulness - no rules, no old
emails, none of my 500+ contacts, I have only had to rebuild once. So
it seems the rule of thumb might be, if it's useful it's broken.

At any rate, Jeff, I do thank you for trying. Funny, I solve computer
problems all day long for others with ease, but always manage to get
ones that neither I nor any one else can figure out.


"Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]" <[email protected]> wrote in

Looking at the information for that bucket, it's clear that there's a bug in
the code (duh - Outlook wouldn't crash otherwise...), but I don't see
anything that would indicate how you could avoid it. I think your best bet
is to start with a new profile (see
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;829918), which will
give you a new PST, no rules, etc., and start adding things back one at a
time.

Sure wish I could be more helpful...

 

[YBOTI]

To follow up,

Since my last post I
- performed a Detect and Repair
- Created a new PST and a new profile

This time, I did not try to bring in any old data. I left my spam
checker UNINSTALLED, and turned off Microsoft's spam checker

I ran this way for nearly a week. I had fewer problems, but even at
this I had to rebuild this new PST several times.

Finally I could not do without my contacts, but realizing corrupt
contacts could cause problems with the PST, I exported the contacts
form my old PST file into a MDB, imported the MDB, and went on.

Since then Outlook has locked up my PC several times. After rebooting
there are NO new error messages in the event logs, and no screen
errors appear. The computer freezes and must be hard-booted.

Also, I notice that the imported contacts are corrupted. It would
appear that outlook thinks my contacts are reminders, not contacts.

At this point I am not asking what to do, simply trying to add to the
knowledge base. Since Outlook corrupted the new PST without any help
from any of my old items, it seems fairly obvious there are some
pretty major bugs, and some untaped errors that are definitely new to
2003.

Additionally, since every attempt to import any information from my
old PST leads to disaster 100% of the time, it appears OL 2003 is not
too stable when it comes to dealing with anything from an old PST
file. I do not doubt that there may be some corruptions in some of the
old items, but since none of the available tools deal effectively with
those corruptions (assuming they are there) one is quite stuck if
trying to create continuity from version to version.

At this juncture the only practical upgrade is to uninstall 2003 and
go to 2002, which did not once display any of these issues.

Well, lots of people use Outlook as (if not more) strenuously as you and
don't have this sort of problem. The question is: what is different about
your setup/usage/hardware/whatever that is causing this to happen? I'm
afraid I don't really have a clue, and the only suggestion I can make is
what I said below - try starting with a new profile and slowly add things
back in. If you ever figure out what's causing the problem, please post
back with the information (either reply to this thread or put my name in the
subject and I'll pick it up). It would us figure out what's happening - as
I say, the data on the crash don't really tell me much...

--
Jeff Stephenson
Outlook Development
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

No doubt, the new code must be having heartburn with "the baggage I am
trying to bring in to the relationship"! I mean, I actually try to use
the feature of Outlook to my advantage ... I create form letters so I
don't have to retype, I use lots of rules to automate processes, I
bought a good spam checker to filter some of the 500+ junk mails I get
each day (no exaggeration - and you don't just go changing accounts
when you have lots of important business tied to that email account)

Since I have totally stripped it of all usefulness - no rules, no old
emails, none of my 500+ contacts, I have only had to rebuild once. So
it seems the rule of thumb might be, if it's useful it's broken.

At any rate, Jeff, I do thank you for trying. Funny, I solve computer
problems all day long for others with ease, but always manage to get
ones that neither I nor any one else can figure out.


"Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]" <[email protected]> wrote in

Looking at the information for that bucket, it's clear that there's a bug in
the code (duh - Outlook wouldn't crash otherwise...), but I don't see
anything that would indicate how you could avoid it. I think your best bet
is to start with a new profile (see
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;829918), which will
give you a new PST, no rules, etc., and start adding things back one at a
time.

Sure wish I could be more helpful...

 

[Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]]

Where are your PST files stored? A configuration in which a PST is on a
network drive is not supported, and could well lead to the sorts of problems
you're experiencing.

--
Jeff Stephenson
Outlook Development
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

To follow up,

Since my last post I
- performed a Detect and Repair
- Created a new PST and a new profile

This time, I did not try to bring in any old data. I left my spam
checker UNINSTALLED, and turned off Microsoft's spam checker

I ran this way for nearly a week. I had fewer problems, but even at
this I had to rebuild this new PST several times.

Finally I could not do without my contacts, but realizing corrupt
contacts could cause problems with the PST, I exported the contacts
form my old PST file into a MDB, imported the MDB, and went on.

Since then Outlook has locked up my PC several times. After rebooting
there are NO new error messages in the event logs, and no screen
errors appear. The computer freezes and must be hard-booted.

Also, I notice that the imported contacts are corrupted. It would
appear that outlook thinks my contacts are reminders, not contacts.

At this point I am not asking what to do, simply trying to add to the
knowledge base. Since Outlook corrupted the new PST without any help
from any of my old items, it seems fairly obvious there are some
pretty major bugs, and some untaped errors that are definitely new to
2003.

Additionally, since every attempt to import any information from my
old PST leads to disaster 100% of the time, it appears OL 2003 is not
too stable when it comes to dealing with anything from an old PST
file. I do not doubt that there may be some corruptions in some of the
old items, but since none of the available tools deal effectively with
those corruptions (assuming they are there) one is quite stuck if
trying to create continuity from version to version.

At this juncture the only practical upgrade is to uninstall 2003 and
go to 2002, which did not once display any of these issues.

"Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]" <[email protected]> wrote in

Well, lots of people use Outlook as (if not more) strenuously as you and
don't have this sort of problem. The question is: what is different about
your setup/usage/hardware/whatever that is causing this to happen? I'm
afraid I don't really have a clue, and the only suggestion I can make is
what I said below - try starting with a new profile and slowly add things
back in. If you ever figure out what's causing the problem, please post
back with the information (either reply to this thread or put my name in the
subject and I'll pick it up). It would us figure out what's happening - as
I say, the data on the crash don't really tell me much...

--
Jeff Stephenson
Outlook Development
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights

No doubt, the new code must be having heartburn with "the baggage I am
trying to bring in to the relationship"! I mean, I actually try to use
the feature of Outlook to my advantage ... I create form letters so I
don't have to retype, I use lots of rules to automate processes, I
bought a good spam checker to filter some of the 500+ junk mails I get
each day (no exaggeration - and you don't just go changing accounts
when you have lots of important business tied to that email account)

Since I have totally stripped it of all usefulness - no rules, no old
emails, none of my 500+ contacts, I have only had to rebuild once. So
it seems the rule of thumb might be, if it's useful it's broken.

At any rate, Jeff, I do thank you for trying. Funny, I solve computer
problems all day long for others with ease, but always manage to get
ones that neither I nor any one else can figure out.


"Jeff Stephenson [MSFT]" <[email protected]> wrote in

Looking at the information for that bucket, it's clear that there's

a
bug in

the code (duh - Outlook wouldn't crash otherwise...), but I don't see
anything that would indicate how you could avoid it. I think your

best
bet

is to start with a new profile (see
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;829918),

which
will

give you a new PST, no rules, etc., and start adding things back one

at
a

time.

Sure wish I could be more helpful...

 

[YBOTI]

Jeff,

I am sure you, in your position could not possibly keep up with all
the posts you have to go through, and I don't intend to slam anyone
trying to help, and you have tried nobly ... but we are now repeating
territory already covered in this thread. My PST files are stored in
the default folder where the Office install puts them, not on a
network.

The bottom line here is that, at least in some circumstances, Outlook
2003 will severely corrupt its own PST files, and any that you try to
bring with you from the past in a way in which previous versions never
did, and to an extent which previous versions never did.

My problem is that I have not been able to find the circumstance in
which 2003 does NOT corrupt the files, and have been severely
handicapped because of it. Dealing with what Outlook had done easily
consumes 2-4 hours of every week, and more when I really try to attack
the problem. The 2-4 hours is just creating new PST files and
profiles, copying things from recovered folders (and sometimes Outlook
refuses to copy it), reestablishing my contact, custom forms (template
emails I create), etc.

But I stand ready to do anything I can - to cooperate in any way I can
to find and resolve the problem, not just for my sake but for others
who I am sure are experiencing similar problems.

Unfortunately, when these problems occur there is rarely anything in
the event log related to it. For now I have all spam checking turned
off since file operations increase the incident of problems. I have no
add-ons installed. I am running as vanilla as possible, and still
fight the battle daily.