Hi Nigel,

Thanks for that. I just ran it and it stopped saying there was an error encountered and nothing was changed in the file.

I've got 99% of my stuff back - everything except what I sent today - but I still have quite a mess... extra duplicate-named folders.

The stupid (make that STUPID) "backup" facility that I downloaded from MS a good while back operates, apparently, in a most silly way...

when restoring it simply puts new same-named folders into the list of folders and invites you to copy what you need into the real folders. But it doesn't allow deleteion of the same-named folders that are the same as the 'protected' folders.

Anyway, I simply couldn't open any real folder, always getting an error message to close the other program that was using the .pst file. There was none other!@#@!@
So I exported each backup folder to a directory. Then I made a totally new Outlook.pst folder for it, using proper method. Then damned thing carried forward all the non-deleteable same-named folders too!@#@!@

All this, by the way, after running REPAIR, and when that didn't work, REINSTALLING!

Anyway, my messages are back and I have a little in the way of garbage folder names, not deleteable and not renameable.

Outlook is good when it works, but it is CRAP when it has a problem.

cheers

>Jim,
>
>there's an 'inbox repair tool' called scanpst.exe in 'C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\1033'. Try running that.
>
>hth
>
>Nigel