Is the “Outlook error data file cannot be accessed” troubling you?

For Outlook users, it is quite natural to get this clueless error. The main reason behind this error is the corrupted Outlook profile.

At Bobcares, we often receive requests to resolve this error as part of our Server Management Services.

Today, let’s discuss this error in detail and see how our Support Engineers fix it for our customers.

Why “Outlook error data file cannot be accessed”?

As we all know, Microsoft Office Outlook is a much-preferred email client. It comes with solid, effective spam filtering and blocks phishing attempts.

But, it also has errors that pause difficulty in email communications.

The data file cannot be accessed is one such tricky error. The corruption of the Outlook profile causes this error.

This profile contains configuration information for email accounts, data files, and information about where the email items have been saved.

How we fix this error?

So, how can we fix this error? Creating a new Outlook profile will resolve this error to a great extent.

Let’s now check how we can create the new profile.

1. Locate the default Outlook data file

Initially, we need to find the location of the current data file and then create a new Outlook profile. For that, we recommend the below steps:

1. Firstly, open the Control Panel and click Mail.
2. Then, navigate to Mail Setup – Outlook>>Profiles.
3. There, select the current Outlook profile and then click on Properties.
4. Again, in the Mail Setup – Outlook dialog box, click on Data Files.
5. Next, in the Account Settings dialog box, we choose the Data Files tab and note the name and location of the default Outlook profile.
6. Finally, we choose Close.

2. Create a new Outlook profile

The next step is to create a new profile. Below steps will help to create it easily.

1. Firstly, open the Control Panel.
2. Then on the ‘Mail Setup – Outlook’ dialog box, click Show Profiles.
3. Next, select the current Outlook profile and then click on Add.
4. After that, give the name for the new profile in the New Profile dialog box and click OK.
5. Then in Add New Account, give the email information and then click on Next.
6. Finally, after the configuration completes, click on Finish.

After all, as a final step, it is necessary to configure the new outlook profile as the default profile.

For that, move to Mail Setup – Outlook>> Show Profiles in the control panel. Then, select the option ‘Always use this profile’ and choose the new profile from the drop-down under it.

This will resolve the error and Outlook will work fine then on.

[Need more help to fix this error?- We’ll help you.]

Conclusion

In short, the “Outlook error data file cannot be accessed” occurs due to corrupted Outlook profile. In today’s writeup, we have discussed this error and its suitable fixes in detail.