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How to troubleshoot 'Outlook.pst can not be accessed' error while starting Outlook 2000

Encountering problems while trying to open a PST file in Outlook 2000? You can experience issues with your Outlook account when your PST file gets corrupt. PST file corruption is the worst thing an Outlook user can ever face. In such situations, you lose access to the information stored in the PST file and your work is severely hampered. One of the possible causes of PST corruption in Outlook 2000 is PST exceeding the allowable limit of 2 GB. However, you can use appropriate remedial actions including using 2 GB truncation tool and Inbox repair tool to eliminate the problem from its root. Moreover, a safe and easy way lies in obtaining a third-party PST repair toolsoftware. It is as simple as 123. You just have to download the application and install it on your machine to start the repair process.

Let's us take a scenario, wherein, you open your Outlook 2000 account and when you attempt to open a vital PST file, you might come across the following error message:

"Outlook.pst can not be accessed - 0x80040116."

In this situation, if you straightly go for Inbox Repair Tool, you might not be able to resolve the problem. Additionally, the inbuilt repair utility might not report any errors. To approach Outlook PST repair in a correct way, let's first zero in on the possible causes and then chalk out a list of appropriate resolutions.

Causes

The above error message in Outlook 2000 is an indication towards a corrupt PST file.

Resolution

You must execute the following steps in order to repair a corrupt PST file:
  1. Employ 2GB Truncation Tool: This tool can be downloaded from the Microsoft Download Center. This tool has its own share of drawbacks. Firstly, you should have 2GB of free hard disk space available on your machine. Secondly, since this tool cuts short a PST file under 2GB, it might remove some of your e-mail messages or other data randomly.
  2. Use Inbox Repair Tool (Scanpst.exe) on the truncated PST: This utility helps you diagnose and repair errors in your PST file. It scans the file structure of a PST file to see whether it is intact.

If you cannot afford to lose some e-mails or other content from your PST file by using the 2GB truncation tool, then you must opt for a third-party PST repair application.

An easy-to-use and reliable application is Stellar Phoenix Outlook PST Repair. The application repairs corrupt PST files and supports MS Outlook 2010, 2007, 2003, 2002 and 2000 versions. This Outlook PST repair software also recovers deleted e-mail messages and performs recovery from corrupt encrypted PST files.

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