How to troubleshoot Outlook 2000 configuration problems

This article describes how to troubleshoot common Microsoft Outlook 2000 configuration problems for Internet, Microsoft Mail, Exchange, Microsoft Fax, and Online services. You should begin your troubleshooting with the section "General Configuration Troubleshooting" and then proceed to the section for your particular service type.

This article discusses the following topics:

Services

General Configuration Troubleshooting

Internet Configurations

• Checking Your Internet Connection
• Setting TCP/IP as Default Protocol
• Other Internet Connection Issues

Microsoft Mail Configurations

• Create a Test Postoffice
• Other Microsoft Mail Issues

Exchange Server Configurations

Lotus Notes

Lotus cc:Mail

Installing Microsoft Fax

Transport Services

This list shows available Outlook services. Other transport services are untested and may not work properly with Outlook.

• Internet E-mail
• Microsoft Mail
• Microsoft Exchange Server
• Personal Address Book
• Outlook Address Book
• Personal Folders
• Microsoft Fax (Windows 95/98 Setup)
  
  NOTE: Microsoft Fax is not available with Windows Millennium Edition (Me).
• Outlook Support for Lotus cc:Mail (installed with standard setup)
• Lotus cc:Mail(Installed by Lotus cc:Mail client)

General Configuration Troubleshooting

Outlook creates a default profile called Microsoft Outlook. Most users will either add services to this profile or create a new profile with new services. The first troubleshooting step for configuration issues is to create a new profile that includes only the service with which you are having problems. When this is working, you can add additional services, checking each one.

NOTE: With respect to Mail services, you can only add one of each service into a single profile. That is, you can not add two CompuServe Mail services, or two MSN services into a single profile. You can, however add one Internet E-mail service, one MSN service, and one CompuServe Mail service into a single profile. The Internet E-mail service is an exception as it allows for multiple Internet Mail accounts.

Create a New Profile

To create a new profile from Control Panel, follow these steps:

1. On the toolbar click Start, point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double-click Mail And Fax or Mail.
2. On the Services tab, click Show Profiles to list your profiles.
3. Click Add to open the Inbox Setup Wizard.
4. Make sure that the default is set to Use the following information services.
5. Clear all services except the one you are troubleshooting. For troubleshooting purposes, add only one service at a time.
6. Click Next.
7. In Profile Name, type a name for the new profile.
8. Follow the Inbox Setup Wizard prompts, answering the questions for your service until you finish.

Checking Your Internet Connection

To make sure your Internet connection is working properly, log on to your Internet connection and ping a known Internet Protocol (IP) address by typing the following command at an MS-DOS prompt: where <IP address> is the IP address of an Internet server.

If you can ping a known IP address successfully, basic TCP/IP connectivity is functioning properly. Next, try to ping the Internet server using "servername.com" instead of the IP address. At an MS-DOS prompt type the following command: If this works, your Domain Name Server (DNS) settings are functioning properly.

A DNS maintains a database for resolving host names and IP addresses, allowing users of computers configured to query the DNS to specify remote computers by friendly host names rather than IP addresses. DNS domains are not the same as Windows NT networking domains.

For example, issuing the "ping ftp.microsoft.com" command goes to the DNS server you specified for your internet connection, looks up the IP address for the site, and then pings that IP address.

For more information on connecting to the Internet, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Setting TCP/IP as Default Protocol

Once you know that your Internet connection is working, you should check that TCP/IP is set as the default protocol. These steps do not apply for Windows 2000. To make sure that TCP/IP is your default protocol, on the Windows desktop, right-click Network Neighborhood (For Windows Me, right-click My Network Places) and then follow the steps below for the operating system you are using:

For Windows 95/98/Me

1. On the Configuration tab, click TCP/IP, and click Properties to open the TCP/IP Properties.
2. Click the Advanced tab, select the Set this protocol to be the default protocol option, and then click OK.

For Windows NT

1. Click the Bindings tab.
2. In the Show Binding For list, click All Services.
3. Expand the list for all services and use the Move Up and Move Down buttons to position the TCP/IP protocol at the top of each list, and then click OK.

NOTE: In each of the above series of steps, you should verify that all Internet configuration information is correct. If you are in doubt about any setting, contact your Internet Service Provider (ISP).

Other Internet Connection Issues

• Most Internet addresses and connection settings are case sensitive. Check for correct capitalization.
• Make sure your profile does not include multiple services that require a modem connection. For example, Internet and fax services in the same profile may cause modem conflicts within Outlook.
• Establish your Internet connection, and then start Outlook. If you receive an error trying to send or receive mail, confirm all of your Internet Mail settings with your Internet service provider. You may have entered a domain name server or news server address instead of the mail server.
• Remote Mail configurations may cause unexpected results. If you configured a service for Remote Mail, you may lose connections, or mail may not be sent or received as expected.

For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Create a Microsoft Mail Test Postoffice

When you troubleshoot Microsoft Mail problems, you must first determine if Outlook or the MSMail Postoffice is the cause. The easiest way to do this is to create a test Postoffice.

To create a test Postoffice, follow these steps:

1. From the toolbar click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click Microsoft Mail Post Office to open the Microsoft Workgroup Postoffice Admin Wizard.
3. Click Create a new Workgroup Postoffice.
4. In Postoffice Location, type a location to c:\ or a local Drive, and then click Next.
   
   NOTE: By default the Admin Wizard creates a folder called Wgpo0000. This folder derives its name from Work Group Post Office.
5. Confirm the location and click Next.
6. Fill in Administrator Account Information and click OK.

This completes the Postoffice creation. To add users, go to Control Panel, Microsoft Mail Postoffice, and select the Administer an Existing Post Office option.

Create a new profile with Microsoft Mail service and point to the test Postoffice you just created. If this profile works, your original Postoffice is the problem. Check with the original Postoffice administrator to verify that the configuration information is correct.

Other Microsoft Mail Issues

• Microsoft Mail connection information is case-sensitive. Check for correct capitalization.
• Remote Mail configurations may cause unexpected results. If you configured a service for Remote Mail, you may lose connections or mail may not send or receive as expected.

For more information about Remote Mail, type remote mail in Office Assistant, click Search, and then click Use Remote Mail.

Exchange Server Configurations

The problem may be with Outlook or one of its associated files. You may have to remove and re-install Outlook using Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel.

If you suspect a server or profile issue, use the following steps to continue troubleshooting:

Server or Profile Troubleshooting

To troubleshoot server or profile problems, follow these steps:

1. Resolve your mailbox name with the server by clicking Check Names in the Properties Sheet for Exchange Server.
2. If possible, configure a profile without the Exchange Server and see if the problem persists.
3. If possible, change the delivery location and see if the problem persists.
   
   NOTE: Before you change the delivery from a Mailbox location to a Personal Folder, make sure you move any existing mail messages from the Inbox folder.

Lotus Notes

Outlook does not support Lotus Notes services.

For more information about transitioning from Lotus Notes to Outlook, Click Microsoft Outlook Help on the Help menu, type lotus notes in the Office Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topics returned.

Lotus cc:Mail

Outlook provides Lotus cc:Mail service as part of the standard installation. Follow these steps to troubleshoot cc:Mail configuration problems:

1. Start by mapping a drive to your cc:Mail folder and creating a new cc:Mail only profile.
2. Outlook does not support the Lotus provided cc:Mail transport service; you must use the Microsoft provided cc:Mail transport service as installed with Outlook. If you suspect that the files are damaged run the Repair Office option in the setup program.
3. Verify with your cc:Mail administrator that your cc:Mail service properties are correct. Use these steps to determine the cc:Mail post office settings:
   1. On the Outlook Tools menu, click Services to open the Services dialog box.
   2. Click Properties and check all settings under the Logon, Delivery, and Addressing tabs.

For more information about Lotus cc:Mail, Click Microsoft Outlook Help on the Help menu, type use Lotus cc:Mail in the Office Assistant or Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topics returned.

Microsoft Fax

Microsoft Fax, also known as At Work Fax, is installed from the Windows 95 setup, in the Add/Remove Programs control panel. For Windows 98, locate the following file in the Windows 98 CD-ROM: Double-click awfax.exe to install the fax and answer the Setup Wizard questions.

After you have installed Microsoft FAX, run the Fixmapi.exe utility to update the MAPI files otherwise when you start Outlook you will get prompted with the following error message:

Click OK to this message and shutdown Outlook.

To run the Fixmapi.exe utility, follow these steps:

1. On the Start menu, point to Find, and then click Files or Folders.
2. Type Fixmapi.exe, click the Look In List, select the entire hard drive(s), and then click Find Now.
3. In the items found window, double-click Fixmapi.exe.

Add Microsoft Fax to your mail profile.

For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

For more information about configuring services, click Microsoft Outlook Help on the Help menu, type configuring services in the Office Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topics returned.

The third-party products that this article discusses are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.