Resolving ‘Errors have been detected in the file xxxx.pst.’ Error

Microsoft Office Outlook creates and uses a single file called PST to store all its e-mails, attachments, calendars, contacts, and other items. PST is a database and can get corrupt for numerous of reasons, which includes storing the file on LAN/WAN link, PST 2 GB file size limitation, virus infection, unexpected power outage, and more. As symptoms, you might observe that Outlook fails to send and receive e-mail messages or starts behaving abruptly. However, to Repair PST file, you need to take aid of certain utilities built specifically to fix the corruption.

To further clarify these issues, let’s consider the case when you try to open an Outlook PST file. In this case, you might fail in your attempts and receive the below mentioned error message on screen:

“Errors have been detected in the file xxxx.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.”

On encountering this error message, you cannot send and receive more e-mails from this PST.

Explanation

An Outlook PST is consisted of two main parts, which are file header and data. The PST file header is further consisted of important file attributes like, file size, file signature, etc. When you try to open the PST file, it first checks the file header and then reads its data. Any error while this process results in issues, such as mentioned above.

Outlook Inbox Repair Tool (Scanpst.exe) can repair the corrupted PST, if corruption exists in file header but not in data part. In other words, scanpst.exe will be unable to resolve file corruption if file data is inconsistent or in a state that Outlook cannot read. To resolve this type of corruption, you need to take aid of third-party products. However, you should first backup your PST file and run Outlook Inbox Repair Tool to Repair PST File.

The third-party software to Repair PST files are exclusive tools that can repair your corrupted PST using powerful plus effective scanning algorithms. Also, these software can be easily operated with the interactive user interface.

One of the best utilities to Repair PST File is Stellar Phoenix Outlook PST Repair. Supporting Microsoft Outlook 2007, 2003, 2002, and 2000, the tool can restore all e-mails, calendars, contacts, notes, and other file components. In addition, the software can also recover deleted emails.

PST Corrupted after Installing Windows Vista 64

Windows Vista provides 64-bit processor support in all available editions except for Windows Vista Starter. The 64-editions of Windows Vista are installed to gain high-performance and reliability on a computer running with a 64-bit processor. However, it is highly recommended to backup all the important data, emails and files before installing any Windows Vista 64-bit edition. This ensures prevention against any post-crash consequences and data loss. The same goes with Outlook data that is stored in a local file called PST. The PST can get corrupt after you install the 64-bit edition of Windows Vista. If this occurs, you should immediately restore the lost emails from the previous backup. For any reason, if a valid backup is not available, you should use a suitable PST Repair Tool.For example, suppose you install a Windows Vista 64-bit edition on your computer that runs Microsoft Outlook with a PST as its default mail delivery location. The next time, when you try to open your PST, you fail with an error similar to below:

“FileName.pst file could not be opened.”

Cause

Following are the possible cases that can cause this issue:

You are trying to open directly without the aid of Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook is not correctly configured
PST is corrupted. This can occur due to certain incompatibility or interruption issues.

Solution

You should find out the root cause and apply these fixes:

You cannot open the PST simply by double-clicking the file. You should open in Outlook as File → Open Outlook Data File.
You should make sure Outlook is correctly configured in your newly installed system
You need to repair the corrupted PST by running Inbox Repair Tool (Scanpst.exe). It is a hidden file. So, make sure you enable the view for hidden files and folders.

The Scanpst.exe tool works with limited capabilities to repair the corrupted PST and thus, the file may remain corrupted. In such situations, you should either replace the file by a worth backup or use a PST Repair utility that could efficiently repair the corrupted Outlook data file. PST Repair Tool are scanning-based products with high competency to result repair safely and easily.

Stellar Phoenix Outlook PST Repair is an advanced PST Recovery that repairs a damaged PST created with Outlook 2007, 2003, 2002 and 2000. The safe PST Repair utility uses high-end scanning algorithms while maintaining data intact. The tool is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, XP, 2003 and 2000. The software provides a graphically rich interface that resembles that of MS Outlook.