XCLN: Configuring Outlook 98 Profile Settings in the ODW

ID: Q187808

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Outlook Windows NT client, version 8.5
Microsoft Outlook Windows 95/98 client, version 8.5

SUMMARY

After installing Microsoft Outlook version 8.5 from an installation point created using the Microsoft Outlook Deployment Wizard (ODW), Outlook may fail to start successfully and you get the following error message:

Unable to open your default e-mail folders. Outlook could not start
because a location to send and receive mail could not be found. To add a
location, such as a personal folder file, double-click the Mail icon in
Windows Control Panel.

This may be due to incorrect settings for the following services:

Microsoft Exchange Server
Personal Address Book
Personal Folders

This article discusses how to configure the services listed above to ensure that the user's profile is created successfully when the user runs Outlook for the first time.

MORE INFORMATION

If the above services are not configured properly, they may be created with unexpected settings or not at all. Under these circumstances, the user may receive one or more error messages when attempting to start Outlook for the first time.

The settings discussed below are configured in step 5 (User Settings Customization) of the ODW under Outlook Profile Settings. During Outlook setup, these settings are added to the following registry key on the user's workstation:


   \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Outlook\Setup\PRF

The first time Outlook is run, an instance of Newprof is started to create a new profile. Newprof checks for the following two registry values:


   \HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Outlook\Setup

      Value Name: First-Run
      Value Name: UpdateProfiles

If they do not exist and there is no current profile, Newprof will create a new profile based on settings in the \Setup\PRF key. The Newprof utility is located in the \Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office folder. A new command-line parameter (-R) specifies that Newprof should first attempt to use settings in the registry. If the PRF key does not exist, it will attempt to use a .PRF file that you specify.

Microsoft Exchange Settings

The Microsoft Exchange Settings allow you to configure the user's mailbox name, the Microsoft Exchange Server name, and the path and file name of the Offline Folder (OST) file. These values are located under the following registry key:


   \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Outlook\Setup\PRF
   \Service2

      Value Name: MailboxName
      Value Name: HomeServer
      Value Name: OfflineFolderPath

OST File Location

If the OfflineFolderPath value is left blank or you specify only a filename, then the OST file will be created in the following folder:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office

HomeServer and MailboxName

When configuring the HomeServer and MailboxName values, the following scenarios are possible:

Scenario 1 If either the HomeServer or MailboxName entry is left blank, the Microsoft Exchange Server service will not be created. Also, if no Personal Folders (PST) service has been specified or created in the profile, the following error message may be displayed when starting Outlook:

Unable to open your default e-mail folders. Outlook could not start
because a location to send and receive mail could not be found. To
add a location, such as a personal folder file, double-click the Mail
icon in Windows Control Panel.

To correct this behavior, the user should add either the Microsoft Exchange Server service, or a PST service.

Scenario 2 Specify a valid Microsoft Exchange Server name for HomeServer and prompt for a MailboxName. For example:
<ENTER MAILBOX NAME HERE>
When the user starts Outlook, the following error message is displayed:

The name could not be matched to a name in the address list.

When you click OK, the Microsoft Exchange Server dialog box is displayed. The Mailbox field will contain the above text. Since the server name is already entered, the user enters his or her name in the Mailbox field and clicks Check Name to resolve the name to the appropriate server and mailbox.

Scenario 3 In this scenario, you specify a prompt for user input for both HomeServer and MailboxName, as follows:
HomeServer: <ENTER SERVER NAME HERE>
MailboxName: <ENTER MAILBOX NAME HERE>
When the user starts Outlook, the following error message is displayed because the server name cannot be found. This is expected, but annoying:

Network problems are preventing connection to the Microsoft Exchange
Server computer. Contact your system administrator if this condition
persists.

When the user clicks OK, the following error message is displayed:

The action could not be completed.

Clicking OK again causes the Microsoft Exchange Server dialog box to appear and prompt the user for the required information.

Scenario 4

Create or use a custom utility that automatically determines the current user's logon name and populates the MailboxName value in the registry or in a custom .PRF file. This option is more dynamic and allows for less user interaction. For example, you could create a batch file to retrieve the user's logon name. This batch file could then be set up as a Microsoft Internet Express component in step 2 of the ODW, which would run at the end of the installation.

Personal Folder Settings

The Personal Folder Settings allow you to specify the default path and filename for the user's Personal Folder (PST) file. The path and file name are stored in the PathToPersonalFolders value in the following registry key:


   \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Outlook\Setup\ 
   PRF\Service4

If this value is left blank or does not refer to a valid path on the local computer, the service will not be created. If you specify only a file name, the file is automatically created in the following folder:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office

Personal Address Book (PAB) Settings

The PAB Settings allow you to specify the default path and filename for the user's Personal Address Book file. The path and file name are stored in the PathToPersonalAddressBoook value in the following registry key:


   \HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Outlook\Setup\PRF
   \Service6

If this value is left blank or does not refer to a valid path on the local computer, then the service will not be created. If you specify only a file name, the file is automatically created in the following folder

\Windows\Profiles\<username>\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook

where <username> is the current user's logon name.

Additional query words: exfclnfaq ol98 ODK


Keywords          : 
Version           : WINDOWS:8.5
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbinfo

Last Reviewed: April 12, 1999