Techniques to Resolve Exchange Error 0x8004010f and Recover PST from OST File

Error 0x8004010f code is one of the most commonly faced errors when Outlook is used in conjunction with MS Exchange server environment. It is a MAPI error and occurs in several situations such as while downloading the Offline Address Book (OAB) files, while synchronizing OAB, while send/receive execution, corruption in OST file, etc. It is also a commonly encountered error when a new account is created on Exchange server. It has been found that if an organization running Exchange owns an offline list of address generator server, the particular error is usually received. This restricts any further synchronization, send/receive operation and it may also result in inaccessibility of OST file. In such situations, it gets necessary to develop any technique to resolve Exchange error 0x8004010f and recover PST emails from OST file.

Occurrence

• When it is tried to synchronize the offline address list or OST file in Outlook with cache mode in enable state in Exchange, the below mentioned error message occurs in the folder or directory of Sync Issues. The lines of the error are as displayed below:

• When it is endeavored to synchronize the .ost file or offline address book in Outlook with cache mode in disabled state in Exchange, the error message mentioned below is a common one.

Further, even after receiving error 0x8004010f if it is tried to transmit mails, the error: “Task ‘Microsoft Exchange Server’ reported error (0x8004010F): ‘The operation failed. An object could not be found’” occurs. With this, the synchronization between OST and Exchange server stops, restricting connection to Exchange mailbox and further conversion of OST file into PST format on the local/ client machine.

Recommendation

It generally takes about 24 - 48 hours for Exchange to generate the OAB for newly formed accounts. In the mean time, if any Outlook client tries to download the OAB then the error 0x8004010F pops up which indicates the failure of the download process. Therefore, new users should not attempt to download the Offline Address Book manually in Outlook. However, if the problem exists even after 48 hours manual download should be performed.

Resolutions

1. To fix the error users can view the Properties in Address list, check the settings of the Exchange server System Manager and verify the validity of address book. If the list is not valid then a new list should be added. The other way is to view Properties in Offline Address Book list and check the settings of Exchange System Manager. Thereafter, the validity of OAB in the Offline address list can be confirmed.
2. The error 0x8004010f can also occur while offline address list synchronization, if the client PC with Outlook has proxy settings and Internet Explorer browser is utilized. To eradicate the issue, Internet Protocol (IP) address of Exchange server 2007 Client Access Server should be listed in the exclusion list by utilizing the steps given below.

• Open Internet Explorer (IE) web browser
• Click the tab Tools, then click button ‘Internet Options’
• In Internet Options window click Connections tab
• In the LAN settings section, click LAN settings button
• In Proxy Server section of LAN settings window, check ‘Bypass proxy server for local addresses’ box and then click Advanced
• Then enter FQDN of Exchange 2007 CAS server and click OK
• Thereafter restart Outlook program

Some more steps should be executed and are mentioned below:

• On Exchange server, ensure if the offline address list generator server is running or not.
• On the local PC, configure one proxy for and uncheck the box ‘Bypass proxy server for local addresses’.
• Try to download OAB manually because the error occurs while downloading the OAB file also. Then check if the error has been fixed or not.

Most probably, the above mentioned techniques to resolve Exchange error 0x8004010f and recover PST emails from OST file are pertinent enough. But it may not be so and in that case an external recovery tool comes as a solution to the problem.

3. If none of the above recommended methods work out, then the cause of the error points to corruption in OST file. In such situations any professional application should be used to recover data items such as emails, calendars, contacts and others from the damaged and inaccessible .ost file. This is because the built-in OST Integration check tool (scanost.exe) that are present in other releases of Exchange has been removed in 2010 edition of Exchange server. Moreover, if executed in other releases it causes data loss. As a suitable alternative, a third party tool called Exchange OST to PST Recovery solution can be adopted without fear. This is because it recovers data corrupted .ost file and exports them in Outlook PST as well as other formats like EML and MSG. It proves as one of the most appropriate techniques to resolve Exchange error 0x8004010f and recover PST emails from OST file type.