OLEXP: Unable to use Personal Certificates in Outlook Express (190296)
The information in this article applies to:
- Microsoft Outlook Express 5.0 for Windows NT 4.0
- Microsoft Outlook Express 4.01 for Windows NT 4.0 SP 1
- Microsoft Outlook Express 4.0 for Windows NT 4.0
- Microsoft Outlook Express 5.0 for Windows 98
- Microsoft Outlook Express 5.0 for Windows 95
- Microsoft Outlook Express 4.01 for Windows 95 SP 1
- Microsoft Outlook Express 4.0 for Windows 95
- the operating system: Microsoft Windows 98
This article was previously published under Q190296 SYMPTOMS
When sending digitally-signed mail in Microsoft Outlook Express you may
receive the following message:
The message could not be sent. An error has occurred.
When you receive encrypted mail in Outlook Express, the message may be
incorrectly decrypted.
CAUSE
This behavior can occur if you click Cancel at the Windows Log On. Outlook
Express is unable to locate your personal certificate information and will
therefore be unable to send digitally-signed messages or decrypt messages
received.
This behavior can also occur if the username.pwl file is corrupt, missing, or renamed.
RESOLUTION
To resolve this issue, when you are prompted for user name and password,
enter the correct information and press OK.
You should export the Personal Certificate before renaming or deleting the username.pwl file, and then import the certificate after creating a new .pwl file. If you are unable to export the certificate, you need to obtain another personal certificate.
MORE INFORMATION
The Personal Certificate information used to digitally sign and decrypt
secure messages in Outlook Express is stored in an area of the registry
based on the user who is logged in to Windows. If the user clicks Cancel
at the Windows log in screen, the user is not logged in to Windows and the
system may not be able to determine which Personal Certificate to use for
secure communications. In addition, the user may experience the same
behavior if they had clicked Cancel at the log in screen during the session
when they acquired their Personal Certificate.
| Modification Type: | Minor | Last Reviewed: | 7/13/2004 |
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| Keywords: | kbprb KB190296 |
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