How to Fix “The Set of Folders Cannot Be Opened” Error in Outlook



 
 ⇒ Important Note :  Back up your Outlook data  before pursuing the solutions below.  
 
 
 Launch Outlook in Safe Mode  
 Press the Windows and R keys to launch a new  Run   window . Then type  Outlook.exe /safe , and hit OK.  
 
 
 If the issue is gone in Safe Mode, most likely, your add-ins are to blame. Go to the next step and disable your add-ins.  
 
 Disable Your Add-Ins  
 
 Launch Outlook and go to  File .  
 Select  Options , and click on  Add-ins .  
 Click on  Manage  and hit the  Go  button.

 
 
 
 
 
 Select the add-ins you want to disable and save the changes.  
 
 
 Don’t forget to update your Outlook version. Click on  File , select  Office Account , and go to  Office Update . Click on  Update Options  and select  Update now to update your email client.  
 
 
 
 
 Recreate Your Email Profile  
 
 Some users were able to fix this error by recreating their email profiles.  
 
 Type  regedit  in the Windows Search bar and launch the Registry Editor.  
 Then, navigate to  Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Outlook\Profiles   
 Go ahead and delete all the folders listed under  Profiles .

 
 Note : Depending on your Office version, you may need to navigate to Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\15.  
 
 
 Relaunch Outlook and recreate your email profile.  
 Go to  File , select  Account Settings,  and click on  Manage Profiles. 
 
 
 Then go to  Show Profiles  and hit the  Add  button.  
 Enter all the necessary details in the Profile Name box and save the changes.

 
 
 
 
 Alternatively, if you’re not comfortable using the Registry Editor, you can only follow the steps from 5 to 8 to create a new profile.  
 If you can’t create a new profile using Outlook, go to Control Panel → Mail → Show Profiles → Add.  
 
 
 Repair Office  
 
 Go to Control Panel and select  Programs .  
 Click on  Programs and Features  and select your Office package.  
 Hit the  Change  button and launch the  Quick Repair  tool.  
 If the error persists and you still can’t use Outlook properly, run the  Online Repair  tool as well.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Repair Outlook  
 
 Go to  Settings  and select  Apps .  
 Then click on  Apps and Features  and select  Outlook  (or Outlook Desktop Integration).  
 Go to  Advanced options  and hit the  Repair  option.  
 
 
 
 
 Alternatively, you can repair the Outlook data file (.pst) file directly.  
 
 Close Outlook and navigate to  Outlook 2016/2019: C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\root\Office16  or  Outlook 2013: C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office15  (depending on your Office version).  
 Locate and run  SCANPST.EXE .  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Click on  Browse  to select the Outlook Data File (.pst).  
 Hit the  Start  button and then select the  Repair  option.  
 
 
 Run Microsoft’s Support and Recovery Assistant  
 There’s another handy tool that you can use to repair Outlook. The Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant can quickly find and repair various Office and Outlook issues.  Download the tool from Microsoft , install it on your computer, and follow the on-screen instructions to repair Outlook.  
 
 
 
 Reduce Outlook Data Size  
 Large mailboxes can take an awful lot of time to open. Apart from that, they may also trigger various errors while loading. Reduce the size of your mailbox and Outlook data files and check if the error persists.  
 
 Launch Outlook, click on  File , select  Tools , and click on  Mailbox Cleanup .

 
 
 Select the items you want to remove and confirm your choice.  
 To reduce the size of the data file, empty the  Deleted Items  folder.  
 Then click on  File , and select  Account Settings .  
 Go to the  Data Files  tab, and select the file that you want to compact.  
 Go to  Settings  and hit the  Compact Now  option.

 
 
 
 Exchange and Outlook.com users need to click on  Settings  →  Advanced  →  Outlook Data File Settings .  
 
 
 Reinstall Outlook  
 If you’re using the standalone desktop app, uninstall it and restart your computer. Then download Outlook again (the 64-bit version). If the error persists, go to  Control Panel  and select  Uninstall a program . Then uninstall your Office package, restart your machine again and reinstall Office. Check the results.  
 
 
 Conclusion  
 Microsoft Outlook may sometimes fail to launch with the “ The set of folders cannot be opened ” error. To fix it, launch Outlook in Safe Mode and disable your add-ins. Then repair Office and Outlook, create a new user profile and reinstall the email client. Which of these solutions worked for you?