How to Resolve Entourage “Error 39”?

Entourage email client though discontinued by Microsoft is still what many Mac users use to communicate regularly. But that’s the problem with products that are no longer supported by the developer companies – you can have a real tough time working around nasty errors in such applications especially since there isn’t much help from customer service. This post has been designed to help users who are facing problems with Entourage errors. Herein, we’re shedding light on a particularly obnoxious Entourage error and introducing you to an easy solution.

Well, we will be discussing here to resolve Entourage error 39 – to help some of the users of the application. Do read till the very end to find out about a reliable solution which can eradicate all Entourage errors including the above error for you.

Entourage error 39 – primary causes

When working with Entourage, someday you might come across an unexpected error saying:

ERROR: Failed to open database [Head] ERROR: Corruption opening database [16003:”]

As is pointed out in the error message, the main cause behind this error is a corruption in the Entourage identity database. Trying to work around the error by using the inbuilt Entourage Rebuild utility though recommended can often lead to a more cryptic message that says:

The end of file was reached error -39

This error can occur when you’re trying to send an email or when you’re trying to launch Entourage. However, once it does arise, you won’t be able to continue working on your mailbox without resolving it. The first thing that you should do in case of this error is to stop using your Entourage mailbox and follow the procedure described in the next section.

Manual method to resolve Entourage error 39

Note: These steps will create a new database Identity for your Entourage installation.

Step 1: Exit all applications

Step 2: Hold down the Option key and click the Outlook icon in the dock. This will open the Microsoft Database Utility.

Step 3: Click the plus [+] sign to add a new identity, and then type a name for the new identity.

Step 4: Set the newly created identity as the default. To do this:

1. Select the newly created identity
2. Click the Action button;
3. Select Set as Default

Step 5: Exit the Microsoft Database Utility, and then restart Outlook.

Step 6: Create the rule and see whether the problem is resolved.

Step 7: If this works with the new identity, export the old data as .OLM file and import it into the new Identity.

Once the above procedure has been followed, you shouldn’t face error 39 in Entourage again. However, if it still persists, the corruption in the identity database might be too severe and need more sophisticated repair techniques.

A few final lines

While it is recommended to stop using discontinued applications, sometimes making the switch simply isn’t worth the time and effort involved. Thus, if you’re using an application like Entourage that doesn’t have support from the vendor and you get stuck, remember that there are manual solution to help you out.

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About The Author

Eric Simson

Eric Simson is an Email Platform Consultant and is associated with Stellar Data Recovery from last 6 years. He writes about the latest technology tips and provides custom solutions related to MS Outlook, MS Exchange Server, Office 365, and many other Email Clients & Servers.