5 Quick Ways To Fix scanpst.exe Error

5 Quick Ways To Fix scanpst.exe Error

Are you getting Microsoft Outlook scanpst.exe error while trying to use this inbuilt-utility tool to fix Outlook pst file problems? Well, it’s a very cumbersome situation for any Outlook user because most of us rely on this Scanpst.exe tool to fix common Outlook issues.

If your scanpst.exe not responding, scanpst.exe not found, scanpst.exe not working or throwing “scanpst.exe an error has occurred” like messages then it’s a very serious issue to fix out immediately.

Hence in our today’s topic, we have listed down some best fixes to deal with above mentioned scanpst.exe errors.

What Is Scanpst.Exe?

This section is for my beginner readers, those who don’t know what this Scanpst.Exe is?

Basically Scanpst.exe is inbuilt utility tool of Microsoft Outlook and it is also known as Inbox Repair tool. It tool ensures easy diagnosis of problematic Outlook PST and OST files.

You can easily get the setup of this inbuilt utility tool within your Outlook application.

ScanPST.exe mainly identifies the spot of the error in your PC for minimizing the workload of searching the complete mailbox. So, it goes through the personal folder files to find whether the data has been damaged or some error has occurred.

Now, let’s discover out some most certain causes of scanpst.exe error.

What Are The Causes Of Scanpst.Exe Error?

There are many reasons where MS Outlook inbox repair tool fails to work and starts displaying scanpst.exe error. Let’s discuss them all:

1#PST Files severely got Damaged:

Sometimes Outlook data files severely got damaged which can’t be diagnosed or repaired using the scanpst.exe tool. As repairing the severely corrupted PST file is beyond the limitation of this inbuilt tool.

2#File size limit issue:

Scanpst.exe can only recover files of 2 GB or lesser than it. Just because of this file size limitation many of the larger PST files start showing sacnpst.exe not working or Outlook out of memory error.

Scanpst.exe not found:

Maybe you are searching this Outlook utility tool in the search bar and thus you are getting Scanpst.exe not found error.

 So let me clear this to you that the exact location of this scanpst.exe is:

  • In MS Outlook 2013: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office15
  • MS Outlook 2010: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office14
  • In MS Outlook 2007: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12
  • MS Outlook 2003: C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MSMAPI\<locale ID>
  • In MS Outlook 2002/XP: C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MAPI\<locale ID>\scanpst.exe
  • MS Outlook 2000: C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\MAPI\<locale ID>\NT\scanpst.exe
  • In MS Outlook 97/98: C:\Program Files\Common Files\Windows Messaging\scanpst.exe

3#Unreadable Contents are Deleted:

Even after making several attempts if the sacnpst.exe tool is not able to read your Outlook file content then it means the contents are been deleted.

It is also considered that your complete content has somehow got corrupted and thus the important PST data files are deleted.

4#Error While Repairing the PST File:

Well, the main downside of this scanpst tool is that it only focuses on repairing low-level corrupted files.

However, if your PST file’s body section is damaged then instead of repairing the whole PST file; this tool will only repair the header part.

5#Unable to Repair Protected PST File:

Another very obvious reason of scanpst.exe not working or not responding is that you are using it to repair password protected Outlook file.

Apart from the above-mentioned reason for scanpst.exe error. Some more common reasons can be the accidental shut down of the application, incomplete set up of Outlook, virus attack which we all don’t even notice. But it needs to be considered always.

How To Fix Scanpst.Exe Error?

If your scanpst.exe tool not working or showing several Scanpst.Exe error then try out the following fixes.

Fix 1# Run Scandisk Utility

You need to know where the exact problem is, whether it occurred in your PC or specifically in this utility tool. For this run the Scandisk Utility in your command prompt:

  • Go to the start menu and choose the Command prompt.
  • Now make a right-click on this Command prompt app and choose the “Run administrator” option.
  • In the opened window of command prompt just type the ‘chkdsk /f’ and hit enter button from your keyboard.
  • Now just follow the instructions coming on your screen to start the scanning process.

Fix 2# Issue Scanning Process In Drive

Chances are also that your system drive is facing some issue meanwhile scanning process and thus you are getting scanpst.exe error. So follow the below steps to fix this:

  • Follow the path Start>Computer>C: drive>Properties

scan the drive 1

  • Go to the “Properties” window and then to the “Tools”. Now hit the“Check now”
  • In the next opened dialogue box, choose both the options and tap to the Start

scan the drive 2

Fix 3# Move PST File To Another Computer

In this solution, you need to move your Outlook PST file to some other PC. Remember both PC must have installed with the same version of Outlook.

Now move your PST file to this PC. After that run scanpst.exe tool in your new PC to check whether the error is been fixed or not.

If it doesn’t show any error then immediately run inbox repair tool to repair corrupt Outlook file.

Fix 4# Open Scanpst.Exe Via Another Office App

You can try this amazing trick of running the sacnpst.exe tool via another MS office app. Here are steps that you need to perform:

  1. In your MS Word application open the file browsing dialog box.
    suppose;
  • File-> Open-> Browse
  • Insert-> Pictures
  1. In the browse to box: C:\Program Files\WindowsApps
  2. Now open the folder named: Office.Desktop.Outlook_####.####.####.#_x86__8wekyb3d8bbwe
    • Here this “#” used for the Outlook version number.
    • Don’t choose the Outlook folder having “neutral” in its name. after opening this if you only see the “AppxMetadata” then it means you have picked the wrong folder
  3. Open Office16
  4. In the bottom-right corner don’t forget to set the dropdown filter of the dialog to All Files (*.*)
  5. Now Scroll down and make a right-click on the exe.
  6. After then choose the Open option.

Open scanpst via another Office app 1

It’s quite an unconventional method to open scanpst.exe via word but not the impossible one. Once the scanpst.exe gets open in MS word it will work the same as the normal one.

Open scanpst.exe via another Office app 2

Fix 5# Software To Fix Scanpst.Exe Error

Even if your scanpst.exe tool not responding meanwhile the repairing process or the above methods fails to work. You have the option to repair your damaged Outlook data file using the trusted utility Outlook PST Recovery Software.


It is one of the trusted repair tools to fix corrupt/damaged PST file that happens because of any reason. This tool is capable of fixing any error issues and also it automatically recovers all the deleted emails, contacts, and other related elements from it while repairing the PST file.

Steps For Using Outlook Repair Tool Are Shown Below:

Step 1: You need to download, install, and run the outlook PST repair tool. Then click on ‘select Outlook file’ to choose the PST file where you want to work or you may find the specific PST file also.

outlookpsterror1

Step 2: Press “start” to begin scanning, once you have selected the PST file.

outlookpsterror2

Step 3: After completion of scanning, all recovered mailbox folders and other data appear on the left side of the window. You can select the files of your choice from those.

outlookpsterror3

Step 4: After selecting items of your choice you can press “save recovered file” to recover the files on your PC.

outlookpsterror4

Step 5: When your files are saved, a dialogue box appears that confirms that files are saved and also shows the “recovered file size” and “destination path”.

outlookpsterror5

Final Words:

Through this post, I have shared all the possible ways to fix Scanpst.exe errors and problems. So if by trying the manual fixes the problem of Scanpst.exe not responding won’t resolve then don’t waste time. Immediately approach for the recommended software solution.