In my last couple posts I addressed the issue of running out of memory and how it affects Outlook and Outlook Express. As an email administrator you will often have various resource issues as you have probably already experienced. Besides finding out that your system is running out of memory the other issues you will probably run into from time to time is that of running out of disk space.

If you’ve received any of the following errors then you have already dealt with these issues. But if not then here are some low disk space scenarios and potential solutions.

One indication that you may have a low disk space problem that adversely affects Outlook Express execution is if you receive the following error:

OLEXP: Error Message If the Folders.dbx File Is Missing or Damaged

Other errors you may receive, after you start Outlook Express or try to send any email messages can include any of the following error messages:

MSIMN caused an invalid page fault in module Msoe.dll
MSIMN caused an invalid page fault in module “unknown”
MSIMN caused an invalid page fault in module Directdb.dll
Msimn caused an exception C0000006h in module Directdb.dll
Outlook Express: The message could not be sent. There is not enough Disk space.
Unknown error has occurred. Protocol: SMTP Port: 0 Secure: No [SSL] Error: 0×800c0131

If you get any of these error messages then it is most likely because your Folders.dbx file has become corrupted or cannot be found for some reason. It is also possible that the read-only attribute has been set for the Folders.dbx file.

At this point it is probably a good place to review how all data related to Outlook Express is stored on the hard drives. Your Outlook Express is your end users conduit to all of their email folders and messages. It contains information about the local IMAP folders and messages and any newsgroups that are subscribed to by your end users. All of this information gets stored in one folder called the store root folder. Some administrators refer to it as the store root. It is also know as the store folder. The bottom line is that this one folder holds everything and sits in the Store root directory located at:

C:WindowsApplication DataOutlook Express<Group Unique ID>
or
C:Documents and Settings<User>Local SettingsApplication DataIdentities<Group Unique ID>MicrosoftOutlook Express

If this were a UNIX system the GUID would refer to a Group User ID.

And of course, you, or a previous email administrator or other system administrator, may have relocated the file or directory to another location more aptly named for your environment. If you inherited this system and need to lookup the current location of your Store folder then you can select Tools, Options, Maintenance, and then Store folder to find its location.

The Folders.dbx file must exist in order for Outlook Express to run correctly. It contains your mail folder and all sub folders, newsgroups and options for synchronization of all subscribed newsgroups and other email folders.

When Outlook Express starts up, it scans for the existence of this file. If it cannot find it then Outlook Express will create a new Folders.dbx. If for whatever reason you wished to start over you could always backup your current Folders.dbx file, and any of your default email folders such as your <dot>dbx files known as Inbox.dbx, Drafts.dbx, Sent Items.dbx and Deleted Items.dbx, rename them, and then restart Outlook Express. That will give you a fresh start. You could always go back and restore those files using an email archiving tool.

You may need to do this if Outlook Express was having trouble starting up or if it begins to run slow. You can fix this by using the above steps. But remember that all of your nested trees, lists of newsgroups and any options such as synchronization will be lost. You may also need to re-edit your email message rules.

Once you restart Outlook Express and after having deleted Folders.dbx, then all of your default email folders previously mentioned that cannot also be found will be created automatically for you.

You can rename the Folders.dbx file by performing the following steps:

1. Click Start, select Find, and then click on Files or Folders.
2. In the Named box, type in folders.dbx.
3. In the Look In box, select your primary hard disk (usually the C drive), and then click Find Now.
4. Right-click the Folders.dbx file, and then click Rename.
5. Type folders.old or follow your own renaming scheme, and then click OK.
6. Start Outlook Express.

This process will create a new Folders.dbx file for you automatically when Outlook Express starts up.