PST repair tool for corrupt Outlook PST file

Abnormal behavior of Outlook can occur due to many reasons and Outlook stops responding. Also overall data of Outlook becomes totally inaccessible. Behind such problematic behavior of Outlook, number of factors are responsible. Some of these factors include file conflicts and corruption of PST file. Outlook shows corruption due to many reasons, such as unexpected system shutdown, malicious virus, operating system crash, and more. Well, file conflicts can be solved by taking appropriate inbuilt measures. Additionally, corruption of Outlook PST file can also be solved by an inbuilt Inbox repair tool. A third party PST repair software can also be used to handle severe corruption.

Consider a real case. Suppose, you make an attempt to open a Microsoft Outlook 2007. While opening Outlook, you receive the following error message on the screen that utters:

"A recently installed program may cause Microsoft Office or other e-mail-enabled programs to function improperly. Outlook can resolve this conflict without affecting the program that originally caused the problem. Do you want Outlook to resolve this problem?"


Once you get the above error message, data of Outlook cannot be accessed.

Cause:

Above erroneous situation occurs if there is a file problem with the MAPI core files. Problematic file is the Mapi32.dll file. Other reason might be the corrupt Outlook PST file.

Solution:

For troubleshooting above error message, and to access data of Outlook. You have to rename the Mapi32.dll file. After renaming the file, start the Fixmapi.exe program:

1. Select Start >> Search >> All files and folders.
2. Enter mapi32.dll in the All or part of the file name box, and then select Search.
3. After completing the search process, do a right click on the Mapi32.dll file, and then select Rename.
4. Enter Mapi32.old, and then select ENTER.
5. Select Start a new search, and then select All files and folders.
6. Enter fixmapi.exe in the All or part of the file name box, and then select Search.
7. After completion of search, do a click twice on Fixmapi.exe to start the repair process.
8. Follow the instructions and complete the repair process.

However, if the problem still persists, even after performing above steps, then it means that PST file is corrupt. To repair PST file, you can use an inbuilt Inbox repair tool. If no proper results get found, then it is better to go for a third party PST repair software. Such tools enable you to perform PST repair and recover all the corrupt data of Outlook easily in its original form.

Get worried because Scanpst.exe is not working

A number of files are used for the overall working of MS-Outlook application. MS-Outlook application uses an inbuilt tool named as Scanpst.exe to repair PST file. The internal structure of the tool comprises a substantial number of files that make it ready to repair PST file. Scanpst uses OLMAPI32.dll file. If OLMAPI32.dll file gets corrupt, it creates problem situation for you. First of all, PST file cannot be repaired and to access data from a corrupt PST file is not possible unless you repair it. To handle such cases, a commercial Outlook PST repair tool is required. These commercial tools repair PST files and give better results than Scanpst tool.

To elaborate the above issue let's consider a practical case. Sometimes, when you try to run Scanpst.exe utility, MS-Outlook throws an error message. In the error message, following words are written:

"SCANPST.EXE- Unable To Locate Component; This application has failed to start because OLMAPI32.dll was not found. Reinstalling the application may fix this problem."

The result of this error message will be that your corrupt Outlook PST file will not be repaired by the Scanpst.exe utility, which has failed to execute. You cannot access data because of corrupt PST file.

Cause:

The reason for the occurrence of the above error message is the absence of OLMAPI32.dll file. There is a possibility that you did not install MS-Outlook properly, or a corrupt installation of MS-Outlook has been done by you. In rare cases, presence of two or more copies of scanpst.exe file also is the reason for the above error message.

Resolution:

Listed below are the measures that will help you sort out the above error message and make Scanpst.exe to execute. Follow these measures:

(1) Start your system in safe mode.

(2) Intall MS-Outlook application again. This measure is suggested because OLMAPI32.dll will be installed again, when you do fresh installation of Outlook.

(3) If this measure does not help you, reinstall the entire MS-Office application on your system.

If all else fails, then there is a possibility that the Outlook PST file itself is corrupt. It is well known fact that badly damaged Outlook PST file is not repaired by the Scanpst tool. To handle such cases, a commercial Outlook PST Recovery tool is required. These tools repair PST file and solve all the problems that occur in Outlook application because of corruption.

Recovering PST file in Outlook 2007 when the Send/Receive option fails to respond

Most of you would be using Microsoft Outlook in your organization as the email application. It stores all its information about various objects such as emails, contacts, notes, calendar entries, etc in the Personal Storage Table (.pst) file. Also, there is the Send/Receive feature that forces Outlook to check for new messages every time the application is launched. You can use this feature later on as well. However, sometimes this feature may not work sometimes because of PST corruption. There may be chances that the PST file has become corrupted due to miscellaneous reasons. In such cases, you should use the Inbox Repair (Scanpst.exe) tool to repair the corrupted PST file. However, if you are unable to do so then you should use a third-party PST recovery software to Scanpst file.

Consider a scenario wherein you use Outlook 2007 on your Windows XP system. When you clicked on Send/Receive option, it fails to operate. An error message is displayed, which can be either of the following messages:

“An unknown error has occurred. 0X80040119”

“An unknown error has occurred. 0x80040600”

Cause:

The most possible cause of the aforementioned error message is that the PST file has corrupted. The reason behind corruption could be power outages, abruptly exiting Outlook, virus infections, CRC errors, etc.

Resolution:

To resolve the error message and access Outlook, you should run the Inbox Repair (Scanpst.exe) tool. This tool is able to Scan PST file and repair its file structure. To do this, you need to perform the following steps:

(1) Exit Outlook 2007.

(2) Find Outlook.pst file by following Control Panel | User Accounts | Mail | Data Files | Personal Folders | Settings.

(3) Note the text in the Filename box. This is the name of the PST file.

(4) Search for the Scanpst.exe file and double-click it to start the Inbox Repair tool.

(5) Browse and select the PST file that you want to repair and click Start.

Once the repair is complete, open Outlook and click the Send/Receive button and check whether the problem is resolved. However, if the problem is not solved then you should use a third-party PST recovery tool to recover the corrupted PST file. Such read-only tools use fast yet sophisticated scanning algorithms to Scan PST file and repair it without overwriting the original data.

Repairing CRC error in MS Outlook 2007

A Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) is a method used to detect changes to a raw computer data in various types of storage devices. It takes data streams as input and produces a fixed length code. These are simple to operate and are quite efficient in finding errors that are caused by interruptions in data transfer. Similarly, sometimes the CRC errors are detected while downloading emails in Microsoft Outlook. Because of the CRC errors, PST file may get corrupted and may lead to further damages. In such cases, you should repair the PST file using the in-built Scanpst.exe file. However, if you are not able to solve the issue even after using the Scanpst file then you should use a third-party PST repair software to do the needful.

Consider a scenario wherein you have downloaded some emails in Outlook 2007, but unable to view them. An error message is displayed, that is:

“File xxxx.pst could not be accessed. Data error. Cyclic redundancy check.”

And when you try to access the Deleted Items folder, you may not be able to open it. An error message is displayed, that is:

“Error 0x80040116”
Cause:

The most possible cause of this error message is that the PST file has corrupted because of CRC errors. Other reasons for PST corruption could be virus infections, abrupt system shutdown, human errors, PST size exceeding 2 GB, etc.

Resolution:

To resolve the issue, you should repair the PST file using the Inbox Repair Tool. This tool is used to Scan PST file and repair the internal structure of the PST file. To do this, you can perform the following steps:

(1) Run the Inbox Repair (Scanpst.exe) tool.
(2) Repair the recovered items.
(3) Recover additional repaired items from the backup personal folder. Now, check Inbox and other folders that were not working properly. It should be resolved now.

However, if the problem is not yet resolved then you should use a third-party PST repair software to repair the PST file. These tools are able to repair the PST file from such issues which the Inbox Repair (Scanpst.exe) tool is not able to rectify.

Tips to Solve 'Scanpst.exe - entry point not found...' Error

Scanpst.exe is the primary executable file that can run Inbox Repair Tool - a utility that can repair corrupted Microsoft Outlook PST file. When run, this tool examines the PST item headers and directory structure and tries to recover content of the PST within the file. Since the PST file is automatically installed with MS Outlook, application installation has a great impact on the working of Inbox Repair Tool. If Outlook installation is damaged or incomplete, you sometimes fail to run the tool also.

The following illustration and error message will help you clarify the problem to a further extent.

Consider a weird scenario when your Outlook PST is damaged and in order to repair it, you try to run the Scanpst program. But unlike to what you expected, the tool doesn't work and returns the below or similar error message:

Scanpst.exe - entry point not found

The procedure entry point RCVR_Scan32@28 could not be located in the dynamic link library SCNPST32.dll

As a result of this error, the tool is unable to proceed with the repair of corrupted PST. Such errors are most likely to occur because of an incomplete or damaged Outlook installation. The file specified in the error statement might be missing or facing some issues that Outlook is incompetent to deal with. Consequently, it cannot repair the file.

The general solutions to the above and alike problems when Scanpst.exe fails to repair the corrupted PST are as below:

(1) Try to repair MS Office installation. If it doesn't work, reinstall MS Outlook and try to repair the file again. In case the problem continues, consider performing the next step.

(2) Move the PST file to another computer with the same version of MS Outlook that has been used to create the original, damaged PST file.

(3) Use a third-party PST file repair application that can use more efficient algorithms to repair and restore the corrupted PST file. These software are specifically programmed to analyze a corrupted PST file, irrespective of the cause of corruption, and restore the file data to a destination that is generally specified by the user.

One of the best products to repair a corrupted PST is Stellar PST Repair software. Supporting MS Outlook 2007, 2003, 2002, and 2000, the tool enables error-free recovery of inaccessible PST items (including e-mails, notes, contacts, etc.) in a new PST file, even when MS Scanpst tool has failed.

Running Scanpst for a PST over 2 GB Fails

Most of the PST corruption issues in Outlook 2003 (only HTTP and POP3 accounts), Outlook 2002 and its earlier versions result because of 2 GB file size limitation. If the file grows beyond this limit, its chances of getting corrupted also grow. Irrespective of this fact, Microsoft doesn't provide any utility that might repair corrupted ANSI PST of size greater than 2GB. The existing Scanpst.exe tool works only when you truncate the oversized PST to a size below 2 GB. Since PST truncation can delete your important e-mails, this method of repairing a corrupted PST, which is above 2 GB in size, is less recommended.

To further clarify such problems, let's analyze a realistic problem of an oversized PST, which gets corrupted because of PST 2 GB problem. The file contains information that you cannot lose. Thus, in order to repair the file, you locate the Scanpst file and launch it to start Inbox Repair Tool, but repair cannot be succeeded. You observe one of the following symptoms when trying to repair the oversized, corrupted PST:

(1) Inbox Repair Tool exits without notifying the cause.

(2) When you click 'Repair' after specifying the PST file name and path, it prompts the below or similar error message:

“Fatal Error: 80040900”

A corrupted PST cannot be repaired using Inbox Repair after you observe any of the above symptoms.

Outlook's Inbox Repair Tool has been so designed that it cannot repair an ANSI PST that is above 2 GB in size. However, it has Outlook 2003 or Outlook 2007 default file format, which is Unicode, these issues are rare.

To resolve these problems and to repair an ANSI PST that is above 2 GB, the possible solutions are listed below:

(1) Use PST 2 GB truncation utility to truncate the file and later repair it using Scanpst.exe tool. Keep in mind to backup your PST before applying the truncation utility as this can delete some of your most important data.

(2) Use a third-party PST file repair utility to repair and restore a corrupted PST. These are special tools that can fix PST file corruption, irrespective of the root of damage.

Internal Error when Running Scanpst

An Outlook PST can get corrupted for several number of reasons. Not all, but most of these problems can be resolved by running Outlook's built-in utility called Scanpst.exe (also known as Inbox Repair Tool). This is actually a hidden program file that starts the PST file repair utility and removes most of the file corruption issues. But in worst cases, this utility may fail and you may encounter data loss. Following is one such problem that might occur due to the failure of this tool.

Suppose you have a corrupted PST file that you decide to repair using Inbox Repair Tool. But each time you try to run this utility, it gives the following error message:

“Internal errors were found in this file. They must be repaired for this file to work correctly.”

As a result, the PST file cannot be repaired and the corruption remains.

Explanation

At times, the same error can falsely occur if you run the Inbox Repair Tool on a Microsoft SharePoint Team Services folder that is being synchronized with the default PST file of MS Outlook. This occurs because the tool checks for a 'Deleted Items' folder, which is not present in Microsoft SharePoint Team Services folder. In such cases, the above error occurs even if the file is not corrupted.

However, when the PST file is corrupted and Scanpst is unable to repair the file, it could be because the extent of damage is too high or the file size is above 2 GB. To resolve this, you need to first check the file size and crop it using PST 2 GB crop utility if its size is more than 2 GB. But if this is not the case, you need a third-party PST file repair solution.

Note: Make sure that you backup your PST file before running the PST crop utility, as this tool can delete your important e-mails while cropping.

The third-party PST file repair applications can work better than conventional Scanpst.exe program. Moreover, they are easy to use and implement.

One of the best PST file repair utilities is Stellar PST Repair. It is a safe tool designed specifically for non-destructive scanning of corrupted PST. You can use this software in any case of corruption. It can be used when the Scanpst tool has failed. It supports MS Outlook 2007, 2003, 2002, and 2000.