Outlook Not Working - How To Fix Outlook Problems?

Outlook Express is a discontinued email client that was developed by Microsoft. It is used to be immensely popular as it was included in the Windows XP package. Later, it was replaced by Windows Mail in the later versions of windows. However, there are a few users who are still using Outlook express as their primary email client. As the software is quite old and discontinued, many users find it very difficult to fix Outlook Express in case of an issue. If you are also using Outlook Express as your primary email client and facing problems then this post is going to help you significantly.

Here we will discuss the most apparent reasons why Outlook Express not working for you and what steps you should take in order to fix it.

Possible reasons why Outlook Express isn’t working

The outlook express is a highly technical software program. It includes enormous possibilities of a technical glitch which may result in various types of problems. We have compiled a list of most probable reasons due to which the problems like Outlook Express not working are reported.

  1. Improper Configuration of email account: If you are not able to send/ receive email on Outlook Express then it is very much possible that your email account is not configured properly.
  2. Plugins and Extensions in Outlook Express: Generally, the users add extensions and plug-ins to outlook express in order to make emailing much easier. However, some extensions can also be very problematic as well. In case your Outlook Express not opening emails or facing some other issues then the extensions might be the culprit.
  3. A Software program conflict with Outlook Express: Sometimes, Outlook Express can have software conflict with other installed programmes as well. To fix such problems you need to identify and remove such programs.
  4. Malware Infection: If your computer has a virus or malware infection then it can hinder the workflow of Outlook express as well.
  5. Internet Connectivity: To send and receive emails on outlook express it is necessary to have a good internet connection.

Outlook Express not working on Windows

The last version of Outlook Express i.e. Outlook Express 6 was developed for Windows XP. Here are the solutions that you should try in case Outlook Express 6 not working on a Windows XP PC.

Solution 1: Restart your Computer

  • The first thing you should do when Outlook doesn’t work is restarting your PC. For many users, the problem gets fixed just by a simple restart.

Solution 2: Close down all the running programs

  • Close all the applications running except Outlook Express along with the Internet Explorer.

Solution 3: Delete all the temporary files

  • The problems like Outlook Express running slow can be caused due to the accumulation of temporary files in Internet Explorer.
  • Here are the steps to delete temporary files in Internet Explorer 6.
    • Run “Internet Explorer” and then open the “Tools” option.
    • Select “Internet Option”.
    • Finally, click on the “Delete all offline content” button followed by “OK”.

Solution 4: Compact all the folders within Outlook Express

The problems like Outlook express not responding can also be fixed by compacting OE folders.

  • Run Outlook Express and then you should open the “File” menu.
  • After that, you need to select the “Work Offline” option and ensure that every folder is closed in the folder list.
  • Again, go back to the “File” menu after closing the folder list. Click the “Folder” option and then “Compact All Folders”.

Solution 5: Mark Outlook Express as your default email client

If Outlook Express stopped working all of a sudden then you may try to fix it by making it as your default email client. Here is how you can do it.

  • Open “Run” window by pressing “Windows + R” simultaneously on your keyboard.
  • Enter “msimn/reg” in the window and press “Enter” key.
  • Open Internet Explorer and click on the “Tools” button that will appear on the top menu.
  • Then, Click on the “options” button, this will open a new window straightaway.
  • After that, you have to select the “Programs” tab and choose the options to make Outlook Express your default email client.

Solution 6: Create new Outlook Express Identity

  • In case of Outlook Express still not working properly then you should make a new OE identity.
  • You can find the option to make a new OE identity under the file menu.
  • Don’t forget to switch to the new identity after creating it.

Solution 7: Reinstall Internet Explorer

  • If the issues persist even after creating a new identity then you may reinstall the Internet Explorer.
  • Don’t forget to restart your PC after reinstalling Internet Explorer.

Solution 8: Reinstall Windows

  • In case all the steps fail to fix the Outlook Express then only option you have is to reinstall the operating system i.e. Windows XP

Outlook Express for Windows 7, 8 and 10

Here are the general things that you should know about using Outlook Express on Windows 7, 8 and 10.

  • The Outlook Express was never developed for Window 7, 8 or 10. Microsoft replaced OE with Windows Mail in Windows 7.
  • You can download Outlook Express in window 7, 8 or 10 from unofficial sources but it is not recommended because it may cause problems on your PC.
  • For best user experience we recommend you to download the compatible version of MS outlook from the official page –products.office.com/en-us/outlook/email-and-calendar-software-microsoft-outlook

Now, let’s move on to the solutions to some specific problems related to the Outlook Express email client.

How to fix Outlook Express not sending Email?

There are many things that you can try if you are unable to send email from Outlook Express.

  • First and the foremost thing that you should check is “Outgoing Mail Server Settings”. Run OE and open “tools” followed by “Accounts” (you will find these options under menu).
  • Select the desired account and click on the “Properties” button.
  • After that, you need to check the Outgoing Mail (SMTP) server hostname and port as per your email client.
  • Ensure that the size of your “Sent Items” folder is not bigger than 2 GB. In case the size of this folder is reaching 2 GB then you should move some emails to another folder.
  • If the problem continues then you should rename the corrupt “Outbox.dbx” file.
    1. With Outlook Express remained closed, you need to locate and open the “Outlook express store folder”
    2. In this folder, you will find a file with the name “Outbox.dbx”. You just need to rename this file to “Outlook.old.”

Note: Please note that after renaming “Outbox.dbx” file, you will no longer be able to access email from the “Old” outbox folder.

Outlook Express not receiving Emails

If you are not receiving emails on Outlook Express then you should try the basic steps as given below:

  • Look for the missing email in the “Junk Email” folder because many a time, emails can also land in this folder as well.
  • Verify that your inbox folder is not full. If it so then you may delete some older emails.
  • Check and ensure that you haven’t created any filter that is blocking email from landing in your inbox.
  • Make sure that the sender is not in your blocked senders’ list.
  • Check the email forwarding options to ensure that your emails are not being forwarded to another email address.
  • If you still can’t receive emails then you may contact the sender and ensure that the email is actually sent.