Outlook express error message 0x800C0133

Thanks Bruce

This still works 5 years later. My inbox had reached 2GB, I guess that's the problem.

John J

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE GUIDELINES. KEEP IT UP !!

Did you replace the Inbox as suggested? Error Number: 0x800C0133 = a corrupt Inbox.

I did not "replace" the inbox,  I deleted it (per the instructions in this thread) and let OE recreated it when opened up.

I did manage to find the problem.  What has not been said in this thread is that the 800C0133 error can also be caused if ANY FOLDER EXCEEDS 2GB!  I am not sure it chokes as soon as the folder reaches that magic limit,  in fact it probably only matters if OE tries to access that folder for some reason as the folder that was causing my grief was an old Inbox folder named 3InBx and I am up to 6Inbx so that 3Inbx was at 2GB a long time ago and it only mattered starting this week.  So the take home lesson from this is that the 800C0133 CAN occur when any folder reaches 2GB.

As a side note,  I have tried several times with different versions of Outlook to try to import OE into Outlook and starting with Office 2003 and then Office 2007 and now Office 2013 Outlook fails to import folders (even though they are now all under 2GB.  That is why I did not stop using OE a long time ago.

Did you replace the Inbox as suggested? Error Number: 0x800C0133 = a corrupt Inbox.

Move any mail you wish to save to a local folder you create. Then delete the problem Inbox as follows.

Tools | Options | Maintenance | Store Folder will reveal the location of your Outlook Express files. Write the location down and navigate to it in Windows Explorer or, copy and paste it into Start | Run.

In WinXP, the OE user files (DBX and WAB) are by default marked as hidden. To view these files in Windows Explorer, you must enable Show Hidden Files and Folders under Start | Control Panel | Folder Options | View.

With OE closed, find the Inbox.dbx and delete it. A new one will be created automatically when you open OE.

General precautions for Outlook Express:

Do not archive mail in the Inbox or Sent Items. Create your own user defined folders and move the messages you wish to save to them. Empty Deleted Items folder daily. Although dbx files have a theoretical capacity of 2GB, I recommend about a 300MB max for less chance of corruption.

After you are done, follow up by compacting your folders manually while working *offline* and do it often.

Click on Outlook Express at the top of the folder tree so no folders are open. Then: File | Work Offline (or double click Working Online in the Status Bar). File | Folder | Compact all folders. Don't touch anything until the compacting is completed.