How to fix Outlook KERNELBASE.DLL Issue?

If you have used Outlook for long enough, you might be well aware of problems that cause the application to crash. This post will discuss KERNELBASE.dll error that results in Microsoft Outlook crash. It will outline the reasons behind such errors and solutions to fix the problem.

Outlook APPCRASH KERNELBASE.dll Error

Outlook users have reported experiencing Outlook crash with ‘KERNELBASE.dll error’. The error usually occurs within a few seconds of opening the application, or when attempting to open an email. The error message reads as:

 Problem Event Name: APPCRASH
 Application Name: OUTLOOK.EXE
Application Version: 15.0.4505.1002
 Application Timestamp: 51484151
 Fault Module Name KERNELBASE.dll
 Fault Module Version: 6.1.7601.18015
 Fault Module Timestamp: 50b8479b
 Exception Code: 80000003
 Exception Offset: 0000000000033c72
 OS Version: 6.1.7601.2.1.0.256.48
 Locale ID: 1033
 Additional Information 1: 97ce
 Additional Information 2: 97cef396b9da8b378d002a19c005f89a
 Additional Information 3: 792e
 Additional Information 4: 792e8204391652399627c59105931d35

Outlook crashes because of a faulty module called KERNELBASE.DLL, as is evident from the “Problem Signature” (which can be found by clicking on “Show Problem Details” at the bottom of the error pop-up). As a result, the most obvious and immediate problem that users face is mailbox inaccessibility.

How to fix Outlook Error KERNELBASE.dll?

Following are some of the plausible causes behind the Outlook error (after reading through multiple forums), and solutions:

Cause 1 – Faulty Outlook Add-ins

Faulty or damaged add-ins can also cause KERNELBASE.dll issue.

Solution – Disable Add-ins

Follow the below-listed steps to disable Outlook add-ins:

If Outlook is Accessible

If you can access Outlook, try finding the problematic add-ins and disable them by using the following steps:

Step 1: Launch Outlook, go to File > Options > Add-Ins

Step 2: In the window that appears, at the bottom and in front of the Manage section click the Go button.

Step 3: In COM Add-Ins window, uncheck the boxes for all add-ins, and then click OK.

To check which add-in caused the problem, enable the disabled add-ins one by one and verify the effect at each step. You will eventually find the faulty add-in this way. Remove it and enable everything else to resume your work.

If you are unable to launch Outlook

If Outlook is not opening, try the following steps to disable all add-ins:

Step 1: Open Windows Run dialog.

Step 2: Type ‘outlook /safe’.

Step 3: Hit Enter.

This will launch Outlook without add-ins and give you an opportunity to enable each one-by-one to find the faulty one. If this fix doesn’t work, the problem might not be with add-ins.

Cause 2 – Problem with User Profile

If you can open Outlook application and access its data file by logging to a different profile, then likely a corrupt Outlook (user) profile may be causing the error. The profile can become corrupt due to Outlook Data File (PST) corruption.

Solution – Create a New Outlook Profile

Follow these steps to create a new Outlook profile:

NOTES:

• Make sure to quit all running instances of Outlook.
• Create backup of PST file on local drive.

Step 1: Launch Control Panel, and click Mail.

Step 2: In Mail Setup dialog box, click Show Profiles.

Step 3: In Mail dialog box, click Add.

Step 4: Specify a name to the new profile, and then click OK.

Step 5: In the Add New Account dialogue box, enter your account details, and then click Next.

Step 6: Click Finish.

Step 7: In the dialogue box that appears, choose the Always to use this profile option, and then select the newly created profile from the dropdown.

Step 7: Click Apply, and then hit OK.

Restart Outlook and check if the issue is resolved.

If creating a new profile doesn’t solve the issue, try repairing the data file by using Microsoft’s inbuilt Inbox Repair Utility, also called ScanPST.exe. The utility can detect and fix minor issues within the Outlook PST file and make it usable again. The steps to repair PST file with ‘ScanPST.exe’ are listed below:

How to Run SCANPST.EXE?

Step 1: Navigate to Outlook installation folder and locate ScanPST.exe file.

NOTE: The file is usually located at the path ‘C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\OFFICE’. However, the location will vary depending on the Outlook version you are using.

Step 2: Double-click the ScanPST.exe file to launch it.

Step 3: In the window that appears, click Browse to select the corrupt PST file.

Step 4: Click Start to begin the scanning process.

Step 5: If errors are found after the scan process, click Repair to fix the corrupt file.

ScanPST.exe can only handle minor corruption errors in the PST file, and cannot repair the severely corrupt files. But, you can handle severe corruption errors in Outlook Data File by using a specialized PST repair tool such as Stellar Repair for Outlook. Armed with highly advanced scanning and repair algorithms, the Stellar PST file repair tool can easily and quickly fix PST file corruption and restore Outlook mailbox data.

Conclusion

The solutions given in this post will help you save time in finding out ways to fix Microsoft Outlook ‘KERNELBASE.dll error’. However, to avoid such a situation in the future, keep a backup of your Outlook PST file. This can help you avoid the last-minute panic of recovering mailbox data. If you don’t have the backup and need quick access to data from Outlook Data File, there are tools like Stellar Repair for Outlook that can help you retrieve mailbox data, with integrity.

Also Read:

Outlook not working

How to fix Outlook Search not working?

Outlook Stopped Working

How to fix Outlook Slow?

mspst32.dll Issue

Was this article helpful?

YES0

NO

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.