You receive a "The operation failed" error message when you click a Search Folder in Outlook 2003 (823127)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Office Outlook 2003

SYMPTOMS

When you click a Search Folder in Microsoft Office Outlook 2003, you receive the following error message:
The operation failed. The object could not be found.

CAUSE

This issue occurs because a folder that has been excluded in the search criteria does not exist in the online Exchange store. Many default Search folders exclude special folders, including the Drafts folder, the Junk E-mail folder, the Outbox folder, and the Deleted Items folder. Typically, because of permissions, you cannot delete special folders. However, if one of these folders is deleted, you receive the error message described earlier in the "Symptoms" section of this article.

Note The same issue also occurs in cached mode Offline Folder Stores (.ost) and Personal Folder files (.pst).

WORKAROUND

To work around this issue, use one of the following methods:
  • Create a folder that uses the same name as the missing folder.
  • Create a new user profile to restore all the correct special folders.
  • Delete the Search folder, and then create a new custom Search folder that performs the same search as the original Search folder.
  • Create a folder that uses the same name as the missing folder and add your criteria.
  • Start Outlook with the /resetfolders command-line switch to restore missing folders to the default delivery location. To do this, follow these steps:
    1. Click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then click OK.
    2. Locate the folder where Outlook.exe is located (typically, C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE11\Outlook.exe), and then type the following command:

      Outlook.exe /resetfolders

    When Outlook starts, the missing folders are restored to the default locations.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about Search Folders, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

817890 You Can Only Create a Search Folder for an E-mail Folder

Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:7/27/2006
Keywords:kbnofix kbBug KB823127 kbAudEndUser kbAudITPRO
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