Exchange 2003 - Offline Address Book Errors

This is for Exchange 2003 ONLY. For the version for Exchange 2007, click here: Offline Address Book Errors - Exchange 2007
With the introduction of cached mode in Outlook 2003 and higher, the Exchange offline address book has become more critical.
This has caused a number of new issues to be seen, or old ones more regularly:

• Changes made to accounts or lists and not being seen in the global address list on the Outlook 2003 clients.
• Error messages being logged in Exchange or Outlook.

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Changes to the GAL not being seen
Verify that the GAL is up to date on the server
Before starting to find out why the GAL updates aren't being seen, you can check on the Exchange 2003 server itself that the GAL is updating correctly.

1. In Exchange System Manager, Go to "Recipients", "All Global Address Lists".
2. Right click on "Default Global Address List" and choose "Properties".
3. On the first tab there is a button marked "Preview". Click that  This will show you the complete address list.

If your updated entry is shown then the GAL on the Exchange is up to date.
Getting those changes to be seen by the client
Outlook 2003 and higher cached mode and Offline Folders in older versions of Outlook use the offline address book (OAB). This is downloaded from the Exchange server.

• If Outlook is running all the time, then it is downloaded every 24 hours. This cannot be changed.
• It is also downloaded when Outlook is started.

If you want the changes to be seen more quickly, then there are two things that you need to do:

1. Rebuild the Address Book
If you have had to make any changes then you need to rebuild the address book. This has also been known to fix some of the problems.

1. Open Exchange System Manager then Expand Recipients, Offline Address Book.
2. Right click on the default and choose Rebuild.
3. Wait. Depending on the size of your GAL, the address book rebuild may take some time. 
    
2. Ask the clients to download their address book again. To manually download the address book:
   1. Tools, Send/Receive
   2. Choose "Download Address Book...".
   3. Click OK to the option. 

Automatically Updating the Offline Address Book
If you make frequent changes to the domain which need to be reflected in the GAL faster than the scheduled update time, then you can change the frequency that the offline address list is updated. While changing rebuild schedule for the OAB isn't recommended by Microsoft, but you may wish to make the change.

1. Start ESM.
2. Open Recipients, then Offline Address Lists.
3. Right click on "Default Offline Address List" and choose "Properties".
4. On the first tab, adjust the "Update Interval" to "Use Custom Schedule".
5. Click on Customize.
6. Select which hours you want the update to run. The frequency should depend on the size of your address book and how frequent the changes are made.
   A good suggestion would be to run the update three times a day - approx 6am to ensure that early starters get their updates - approx middy to catch any changes made in the morning - approx 6pm to catch any changes made during the afternoon.

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Exchange Server Errors:

• Event ID: 9331 - OALGen encountered error 80040107 (internal ID 501023d) accessing the public folder store while generating the offline address list for address list '/' - Default Global Address List
• Event ID: 9335 - OALGen encountered error 80040107 while cleaning the offline address list public folders under /o=<Organization name>/cn=addrlists/cn=oabs/cn=Default Global Address List. Please make sure the public folder store is mounted and replicas exist of the offline address list folders. No offline address lists have been generated

Outlook Errors:

16:00:12 Synchronizer Version 11.0.6352
16:00:12 Synchronizing Mailbox 'John Smith'
16:00:12 Synchronizing Hierarchy
16:00:12 Done
16:00:12 Microsoft Exchange offline address book
16:00:12      0X8004010F

Resolutions
There are a number of resolutions to these problems.
Replicas
The first thing to check is the replicas for the Offline Address Book on the Exchange server itself.

1. Open Exchange System Manager then expand Admin Groups, <your admin group>, Folders, Public Folders.
2. Right click on Public Folders and choose "Show View System Folders".
3. Follow the Instructions below.

Replication Check

1. Find the folder "Offline Address Book".
2. The main folder and each of its sub folders should be checked to ensure that there is at least one server listed. If you only have one Exchange server then there will be just one listed. If you have more then it should be replicated to them all. None of the replica tabs should be blank.
   If there is an invalid server listed, remove it.

Global Address Book Assigned to the Offline Address Book
The Offline Address Book uses the Global Address List (GAL) to build its content. If you have been customising the GAL, then you may have an invalid address book listed.
Exchange 2003

1. Open Exchange System Manager then Expand Recipients, Offline Address Book.
2. Right click on the default and choose Properties.
3. On the first tab (General) make sure that a valid GAL is listed under "Address Lists".

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Command-line switches for MS Outlook

Outlook - Common Outlook Start Up Command Line Switches

There are a number of command line switches for Outlook. These can be run either from a Command Prompt, or via the Run box. In all cases you need to ensure that Outlook is not running - use Task Manager to ensure that outlook.exe or anything "MAPI" is not listed. These are the most commonly used command line switches:
outlook.exe /CleanFinders
Sets Outlook 2003 Search Folders back to the default state (deletes custom Search Folders)
outlook.exe /CleanFreeBusy
Cleans and regenerates free/busy information.
outlook.exe /CleanReminders Cleans and regenerates reminders.
outlook.exe /CleanRules Cleans and removes both server side and client side rules. Used to clear Out of the Office rules.
outlook.exe /CleanServerRules Cleans and removes server side rules only.
outlook.exe /CleanSchedPlus
Deletes all Schedule+ data (free/busy, permissions, and .cal file) from the server.
outlook.exe /CleanViews
Restores default views.
outlook.exe /ResetFolderNames
Resets the language of the default folders to the language of the Outlook client.
outlook.exe /ResetFolders
Restores missing folders for the default delivery location.
outlook.exe /ResetOutlookBar
Rebuilds the Outlook Bar.
outlook.exe /ResetWunderBar
Rebuilds the new Outlook Control Bar in Outlook 2003
outlook.exe /RPCDIAG
Starts Outlook with an additional window that shows the connection status of Outlook, useful for diagnosing issues with RPC over HTTPS/Outlook Anywhere. Can also be accessed after Outlook has started by holding down CTRL while right clicking on the Outlook icon in the system tray and choosing Connection Status.
Safe Mode Rules
Useful for getting Outlook to start when there are problems. Not all variants apply to all versions.
outlook.exe /safe Starts Outlook without extensions, the Reading Pane, or any toolbar customization.
outlook.exe /safe:1 Starts Outlook with the just the Reading Pane off.
outlook.exe /safe:2 Starts Outlook without checking for mail at startup (good if you have a bad message in the mailbox) - also /nopollmail
outlook.exe /safe:3 Starts Outlook with extensions turned off, but listed in the Add-In Manager (usually addins aren't listed)
outlook.exe /safe:4 Starts Outlook without loading Outcmd.dat (customized toolbars) and *.fav file.

he command that starts Microsoft Outlook is Outlook.exe. A command-line switch is the addition of a forward slash (/) followed by the switch name and any parameters the switch has.
How to use switches

1. Search for the Microsoft Outlook executable file, Outlook.exe, and make a note of the path to Outlook.exe. For example, the path might be C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office11\Outlook.exe.
2. Click Start, and then click Run.
3. In the Open box, type the complete path you noted in step 1, including the file name. Press the SPACEBAR once, and then type a forward slash mark (/) followed by the switch.

For example, if you want to use the CleanReminders switch, the command you type in the Open box should look like this:"C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office11\Outlook.exe" /Cleanreminders

 NOTE   Paths that include spaces between words must be enclosed in quotation marks (") and are case sensitive.

4. To run the command, click OK.

Switch reference

SWITCH	DESCRIPTION
/a	Creates an item with the specified file as an attachment. Example: "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office11\Outlook.exe" /a "C:\My Documents\labels.doc" If no item type is specified, IPM.Note is assumed. Cannot be used with message classes that aren't based on Outlook.
/altvbaotmfilename	Opens the VBA program specified in otmfilename, rather than %appdata%\Microsoft\Outlook\VbaProject.OTM.
/c messageclass	Creates a new item of the specified message class (Outlook forms or any other valid MAPI form). Examples: /c ipm.activity creates a Journal entry /c ipm.appointment creates an appointment /c ipm.contact creates a contact /c ipm.note creates an e-mail message /c ipm.stickynote creates a note /c ipm.task creates a task
/checkclient	Prompts for the default manager of e-mail, news, and contacts.
/cleanclientrules	Starts Outlook and deletes client-based rules.
/cleandmrecords	Deletes the logging records saved when a manager or a delegate declines a meeting.
/cleanfinders	Removes Search Folders from the Microsoft Exchange server store.
/cleanfreebusy	Clears and regenerates free/busy information. This switch can only be used when you are able to connect to your Microsoft Exchange server.
/cleanprofile	Removes invalid profile keys and recreates default registry keys where applicable.
/cleanpst	Launches Outlook with a clean Personal Folders file (.pst).
/cleanreminders	Clears and regenerates reminders.
/cleanrules	Starts Outlook and deletes client- and server-based rules.
/cleanschedplus	Deletes all Schedule+ data (free/busy, permissions, and .cal file) from the server and enables the free/busy information from the Outlook Calendar to be used and viewed by all Schedule+ 1.0 users.
/cleanserverrules	Starts Outlook and deletes server-based rules.
/cleansniff	Deletes duplicate reminder messages.
/cleansubscriptions	Deletes the subscription messages and properties for subscription features.
/cleanviews	Restores default views. All custom views you created are lost.
/designer	Starts Outlook without figuring out if Outlook should be the default client in the first run.
/embedding	Opens the specified message file (.msg) as an OLE embedding. Also used without command-line parameters for standard OLE co-create.
/f msgfilename	Opens the specified message file (.msg) or Microsoft Office saved search (.oss).
/firstrun	Starts Outlook as if it were run for the first time.
/hol holfilename	Opens the specified .hol file.
/ical icsfilename	Opens the specified .ics file.
/importprfprffilename	Launches Outlook and opens/imports the defined MAPI profile (*.prf). If Outlook is already open, queues the profile to be imported on the next clean launch.
/l olkfilename	Opens the specified .olk file.
/launchtraininghelpassetid	Opens a Help window with the Help topic specified in assetid.
/m emailname	Provides a way for the user to add an e-mail name to the item. Only works in conjunction with the /c command-line parameter. Example: Outlook.exe /c ipm.note /m emailname
/nocustomize	Starts Outlook without loading outcmd.dat (customized toolbars) and *.fav file.
/noextensions	Starts Outlook with extensions turned off, but listed in the Add-In Manager.
/nopollmail	Starts Outlook without checking mail at startup.
/nopreview	Starts Outlook with the Reading Pane off.
/p msgfilename	Prints the specified message (.msg). Does not work with HTML.
/profile profilename	Loads the specified profile. If your profile name contains a space, enclose the profile name in quotation marks (").
/profiles	Opens the Choose Profile dialog box regardless of the Options setting on the Tools menu.
/recycle	Starts Outlook using an existing Outlook window, if one exists. Used in combination with /explorer or /folder.
/resetfoldernames	Resets default folder names (such as Inbox or Sent Items) to default names in the current Office user interface language. For example, if you first connect to your mailbox Outlook using a Russian user interface, the Russian default folder names cannot be renamed. To change the default folder names to another language such as Japanese or English, you can use this switch to reset the default folder names after changing the user interface language or installing a different language version of Outlook.
/resetfolders	Restores missing folders for the default delivery location.
/resetnavpane	Clears and regenerates the Navigation Pane for the current profile.
/rpcdiag	Opens Outlook and displays the remote procedure call (RPC) connection status dialog.
/s filename	Loads the specified shortcuts file (.fav).
/safe	Starts Outlook without extensions, Reading Pane, or toolbar customization.
/safe:1	Starts Outlook with the Reading Pane off.
/safe:2	Starts Outlook without checking mail at startup.
/safe:3	Starts Outlook with extensions turned off, but listed in the Add-In Manager.
/safe:4	Starts Outlook without loading Outcmd.dat (customized toolbars) and *.fav file.
/selectfoldername	Starts Outlook and opens the specified folder in a new window. For example, to open Outlook and display the default calendar use: "c:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office11\Outlook.exe" /select outlook:calendar
/sniff	Starts Outlook and forces a detection of new meeting requests in the Inbox, and then adds them to the calendar.
/t oftfilename	Opens the specified .oft file.
/v vcffilename	Opens the specified .vcf file.
/vcal vcsfilename	Opens the specified .vcs file.
/x xnkfilename	Opens the specified .xnk file.

Outlook doesn’t start

Getting Outlook to work again properly when receiving startup errors often is not that hard but does require some specific knowledge about the inner workings of Outlook. This guide explains all you need to know about that in order to get your Outlook to start without errors again.

Note: This guide can also be used as a base to troubleshoot other common Outlook issues.

We'll start off this guide with 3 easy questions. Depending on the answers, you could possibly skip large portions of this guide or even directly get a solution to your startup issue.

• Is Outlook up-to-date?
• Did Outlook ever work?
• Does Outlook still work for other users on the computer?

• Safe Mode
• Reset dat-files
• Cannot open the Outlook window
• Disable add-ins
• Use scanpst.exe to fix Outlook Data File errors
• Recreate your mail profile
• Run a Repair, Office Diagnostics or reinstall Office/Outlook
• Check the Event Viewer and post in the Outlook newsgroup for further help

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Is Outlook up-to-date?

Just to make sure you are not trying to troubleshoot an issue which has already been solved, make sure that before you begin you have installed all updates for your version of Outlook. For instance, Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007 have known compatibility issues with Windows 7 which can be fixed by installing their latest Service Packs

Solution:Use Microsoft Update to install the latest updates for both Windows and Office. Make sure that you have Microsoft Update configured to also check for Office updates.

Did it ever work?

Did Outlook still work correctly the last time you used it? If so, you probably can skip this solution. If it never worked before or if you are starting Outlook for the very first time, it could very well be that you have not configured your mail account correctly. A common mistake is choosing for an Exchange account while in fact you are using a POP3, IMAP of Live Hotmail account.

Solution:
At this point, it is often easiest to recreate your mail profile via the Mail applet in Control Panel. When recreating the mail profile, make sure you're using the correct server settings provided by your ISP or corporate email administrator. An overview of the settings from some of the largest free email account providers can be found here.

Does Outlook still work for other users on the computer?

If you share this computer with another user, you can ask this other user to logon and ask to verify if Outlook is still working for him or her. If you are the only user of this computer, then you could also add another user to Windows just for testing purposes via the User Accounts applet in Control Panel.

Solution:
If it doesn't work for another user on the computer either, then the issue is most likely caused by a faulty add-in or a damaged Outlook/Office installation.
If it works for another user on the computer or you have no way to check this, continue to the next step in this guide.

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Safe Mode

If Outlook worked correctly the last time and nothing has changed about your account configuration, then checking if things work correctly in Safe Mode is a good first step. Starting Outlook in Safe Mode will prevent some or all add-ins from being loaded, prevents several settings files from being loaded and turns off the Reading Pane.

To start Outlook in Safe Mode you'll need to start Outlook with the "safe" switch;

• Windows XP
  Start-> Run; outlook.exe /safe
• Windows Vista and Windows 7
  Start-> type; outlook.exe /safe

When typing, please note the space between outlook.exe and /safe.
For alternative methods of starting Outlook in Safe Mode see this Quick Tip.

Starting Outlook in Safe Mode from the Start Menu in Windows 7.

Solution:
If it works in Outlook Safe Mode, the issue is most likely caused by an add-in, a corrupted settings file or the first message that is being displayed when Outlook is started. See the next 3 troubleshooting steps below for further analysis of the issue. If it doesn't work in Safe Mode either, the next 3 steps will probably not help you either to solve it and you can continue with scanning your pst-file for errors.

Reset dat-files

If you are using Outlook 2007 or previous, Outlook stores several settings in dat-files which get loaded upon startup. These files sometimes get corrupted and renaming them to .old could get you back into Outlook then. Outlook 2010 does no longer use these files so if you are using Outlook 2010, you can skip this step.

Solution:Reset extend.dat and outcmd.dat by renaming them to .old when Outlook is closed. You can find the locations below;

extend.dat: This file keeps the settings of installed Exchange Client Extensions add-ins and their status.

• Windows XP
  C:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\
• Windows Vista and Windows 7
  C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook\

outcmd.dat: This file contains your Toolbar customizations.

• Windows XP
  C:\Documents and Settings\%username%\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\
• Windows Vista and Windows 7
  C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Outlook\

Tip!If you are having trouble locating these folders you can also use OutlookTools (free!)

Cannot open the Outlook window

If you get the error "Cannot open the Outlook window" when trying to start Outlook, you are probably running Outlook 2007 or Outlook 2010. In this case the error usually indicates that your Navigation Pane settings holds a corruption.

Solution:
Start Outlook with the resetnavpane switch;

• Windows XP
  Start-> Run; outlook.exe /resetnavpane
• Windows Vista and Windows 7
  Start-> type; outlook.exe /resetnavpane

When typing, please note the space between outlook.exe and /resetnavpane.
If you encounter this issue more often, see this Quick Tip to find a more definitive solution.

The "Cannot open the Outlook window" error can be fixed quite easily.

Disable add-ins

If Outlook works in Outlook Safe Mode but resetting your dat-files did not help, then the issue is most likely caused by an add-in. Often, but not always, this is accompanied by an error similar to:
"The add-in <reference to add-in> could not be installed or loaded. This problem may be resolved by using Detect and Repair on the Help menu. Unable to load <reference to add-in dll>."

The instructions given in the error will seldom actually fix this issue as the issue is more likely to be caused by the add-in itself, rather then by an Outlook installation issue.

Solution:
Start Outlook in Safe Mode again and disable all your add-ins. After this, you can start Outlook normally again and see if it works now. If so, you can enable them one by one until Outlook fails to load again. The add-in you last enabled is most likely the cause of your issue. Uninstall or reinstall this add-in or check with the vendor for updates or contact them for further troubleshooting their add-in.

You can enable/disable Outlook add-ins in the following locations;

• Outlook 2003 and previous
  Tools-> Options-> tab Other-> button Advanced E-mail Options…-> button Add-In Manager…/COM Add-ins…
• Outlook 2007
  Tools-> Trust Center…-> section Add-Ins
• Outlook 2010
  File-> Options-> section Add-Ins

For more detailed instruction on how to enable or disable add-ins see this Quick Tip.
If you you get an error that you cannot disable the add-in see this Quick Tip instead.

Tip!Virus scanners which integrate themselves with Outlook are known to cause a lot of issues. Uninstalling this part of your virus scanner is strongly advised; you'd still be sufficiently protected by your on-access scanner part of the virus scanner. For more details see this Quick Tip.

Use scanpst.exe to fix Outlook Data File errors

When you use a pst-file, it could be that an issue with that pst-file is preventing Outlook from starting correctly. Often this issue is accompanied by the message;
"Errors have been detected in the file <path to pst-file>. Quit all mail-enabled applications, and then use the Inbox Repair Tool."

Solution:
Use scanpst.exe to scan the mentioned pst-file for errors. The location of scanpst.exe depends on your version and language of Outlook.

• Outlook 2007 and Outlook 2010
  32-bit Windows; C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12 
  64-bit Windows; C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office12
• Outlook 2003 
  32-bit Windows; C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\<locale ID>\scanpst.exe 
  64-bit Windows; C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\<locale ID>\scanpst.exe
• Outlook 2002/XP 
  C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MAPI\<locale ID>\scanpst.exe
• Outlook 2000 
  C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MAPI\<locale ID>\NT\scanpst.exe
• Outlook 97 and Outlook 98 
  C:\Program Files\Common Files\Windows Messaging\scanpst.exe

When the scan is done and errors have been fixed, run scanpst.exe again until no errors are found anymore. If after scanning the file more than 3 or 4 times errors are still found, you might want tocopy over your data in a new pst-file.

Use the Inbox Repair Tool (scanpst.exe) to scan your pst-file for errors.

Tip!If you are having trouble locating scanpst.exe you can also use OutlookTools (free!).

Recreate your mail profile

When your mail profile is damaged, Outlook often fails to start as well or you'll find yourself encountering one error after the other.

Solution:
Recreate you mail profile via the Mail applet in Control Panel. You can first add a new mail profile without deleting or otherwise affecting your current configuration just to see if it will indeed solve your issue. If so, you can easily migrate your Outlook data file from the broken mail profile to the newly created one. This process is described in detail in this guide.

It's quite normal to only have 1 mail profile for Outlook 

Run a Repair, Office Diagnostics or reinstall Office/Outlook

When reaching this point of the guide, the issue most likely also occurs for other users on the computer. This means that the issue is not caused by a configuration setting but by an installation error.

Solution:By running a Repair, Office Diagnostics or by reinstalling Office/Outlook you can probably resolve this issue. Note that during this process no files or settings of Outlook or other applications will be removed but it will never hurt of course making a backup of your Outlook data before you continue.

Depending on your version of Office/Outlook and/or Windows, you'll have several of the following options available to you to start one of the above processes;

• Help-> Detect and Repair…
• Help-> Office Diagnostics…
• Control Panel-> Add/Remove Programs…
• Control Panel-> Uninstall a Program
• Insert the Office CD/DVD-> run Setup.exe-> choose Repair or uninstall Office completely and then install it again.

Tip!After running any of the above processes, make sure you visit Microsoft Updateagain to verify that all updates have been installed.

Check the Event Viewer and post in the Outlook newsgroup for further help

If, after trying all of the above solutions, Outlook still doesn't start, it seems that common troubleshooting steps do not apply to your system and more information about your configuration and issue is needed.

Solution:Open the Event Viewer and look at the Application Log for any error events that are registered by Outlook or happened at the time that you tried to open Outlook. Copy this error message and post it together with a short description of your system (think about; Outlook version, Windows version, type of e-mail account and add-ins you are using) in one of the Outlook newsgroups.