Microsoft Knowledge Base

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     This article discusses a Beta release of a Microsoft 
     product. The information in this article is provided as-is
     and is subject to change without notice. 

     No formal product support is available from Microsoft for 
     this Beta product. For information about obtaining support
     for a Beta release, please see the documentation included 
     with the Beta product files, or check the Web location 
     from which you downloaded the release.

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The information in this article applies to:

• Microsoft Outlook Express version 4.0 for Windows 95
• Microsoft Outlook Express version 4.0 for Windows NT 4.0

IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, you should first make a backup copy of the registry files (System.dat and User.dat). Both are hidden files in the Windows folder.

SYMPTOMS

When you try to start Outlook Express, you may receive one of the following error messages:

• There was an error starting Microsoft Outlook Express.
• The ordinal 508 could not be located in the dynamic link library Rasapi32.dll.

CAUSE

Possible causes for these error messages include:

• The friendly name of a news server is invalid. For example, there is a space at the beginning of the name or the name contains only spaces.
• An Internet Connection Wizard file is missing or is not the correct version.
• A registry key is damaged.

RESOLUTION

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall Windows 95. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the Changing Keys And Values online Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe). Note that you should make a backup copy of the registry files (System.dat and User.dat) before you edit the registry.

Correct Friendly Names

To correct an invalid friendly name for a news server, use Registry Editor to check each key under the following key:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Account Manager\ 
   Accounts

Verify Internet Connection Wizard Files

The Icwconn1.exe file should be located in the Program Files\Internet Explorer\Connection Wizard folder, and should be version 4.71.0.7629. Note that if you installed Microsoft Internet Explorer in a different folder, the file should be in the Connection Wizard folder in the folder in which you installed Internet Explorer.

The following files should be located in the Windows\System or Winnt\System32 folder:

   File          Platform                    Version
   -----------------------------------------------------
   Inetcfg.dll   Windows 95 and Windows NT   4.71.0.7629
   Icfg95.dll    Windows 95 only             4.71.0.7629
   Inet16.dll    Windows 95 only             4.71.0.7628
   Icfgnt.dll    Windows NT only             5.00.1476.1

Note that you cannot selectively remove or reinstall Outlook Express using the Add/Remove Programs tool in Control Panel. You can reinstall all of Internet Explorer 4.0, or you can download the Outlook Express component from the Internet Explorer 4.0 Components Download page.

Correct Damaged Registry Key

If the Internet Account Manager key is damaged, you need to re-create it. Note that using this method causes you to lose existing account information. You may want to record your account information before deleting the key.

Use Registry Editor to delete the following key:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Account Manager

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Internet Explorer 4.0 Platform Preview 1. This problem does not occur with Internet Explorer 4.0 Platform Preview 2. To obtain Internet Explorer 4.0 Platform Preview 2, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

   http://www.microsoft.com/ie/ie40/

MORE INFORMATION

For information about a tool to back up the Windows 95 registry files, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

   ARTICLE-ID: Q139437
   TITLE     : Windows 95 Emergency Recovery Utility