Unable to successfully publish the form because of a MAPI error.

[CMorse]

Please, I'm pulling my hair out trying to fix this. I'm getting the following
message when I try to change and then re-publish an outlook contact form I
have designed:

"Unable to successfully publish the form because of a MAPI error. The object
could not be found."

I was able to publish and use it initially, but not after I made changes
(assigned field names, etc.). Simply saving my changes doesn't seem to update
it. I tried saving the form to my desktop and publishing it from there with a
different name, but no dice. Any ideas? It would help if I knew exactly what
the error message meant. What is MAPI?

 

[Raylene]

We're in the same boat it seems!!! I'm going bald over my forms too!!! I'm
watching to see if you find a solution!!!! And i too would love to know what
a MAPI is - it came up for me too!

 

[Matt Dwyer]

Ok, I guess this is a bug? Yoo hoo! Sue Mosher??!!

I sure get it too. Just to document my woes.....

1) I can create and publish new custom forms to the Organizational Forms
library using Outlook 2003.
2) I can then edit the forms, and republish them (open them, change them and
then click Tools > Forms > Publish Form).
3) If I then go to use the forms, they have not changed
4) If I then go back to edit the form again, it pulls up the original
version of the form.
5) If I publish to Personal Forms, the edit is correctly saved. If I repeat
step 2 again, changes are not saved (again).
6) On the server (Exch Enterprise 2003), under Public Folders > Eforms
Registry > Organizational Forms, I am an OWNER.
7) If I click try to Publish the forms with a new name under Organizational
Forms (Tools > Forms > Publish Form As.. ), it works just fine. Of course,
that is a pretty feeble workaround since it leaves a pile of incorrect forms
in place, that I then need to delete.

Is there somewhere I have made a setting to make these forms uneditable once
published to the public folder? Yes, I am a newbie, and perhaps confused
somewhere, but I see no one helped CMorse etc etc, so I maybe this is a
bug....

MD

 

[jdd2]

When using forms, Outlook looks at your Forms Cache, Personal Folder
and THEN Organizational Folder (in that order). If you publish a for
with the same name to both folders, update the organizational, an
attempt to open it, it is actually opening the form in the Persona
Folder. Never name the forms the same; I name mine with an 0
afterwards in my Personal. Also, each time you make a change t
organizational, make sure to update the version number. If you don't
you and your users will open the older version because it is stored i
your forms cache. To clear your cache, go to Tool, Options, Other
Advanced Options, Custom Forms, Manage Forms, and Clear Cache. If yo
always update your version number, though, Outlook will automaticall
install the new version.

In answer to what a MAPI is, it is a Messaging Application Programmin
Interface (it is what allows different e-mail systems to speak to eac
other.) This error sometimes comes from insufficient rights. I've als
seen where someone with correct rights assignments has gotten thi
error. By the way, I don't know if this helps, but our Network Admi
had told me that on the server the correct folder was name
"Organization Forms" and not Organizational for some reason.... don'
know if this may help

 

[Hollis D. Paul]

2) I can then edit the forms, and republish them (open them, change them and
then click Tools > Forms > Publish Form).
3) If I then go to use the forms, they have not changed

The rule is to include the version indicator in the name field--use
MyFormName_V00X. That is the only way to force the OS to load the correct form
when you ask for it.

I always us PublishAs, rather than publish, so that one can select the proper
location in which to put the form.

7) If I click try to Publish the forms with a new name under Organizational
Forms (Tools > Forms > Publish Form As.. ), it works just fine. Of course,
that is a pretty feeble workaround since it leaves a pile of incorrect forms
in place, that I then need to delete.

I don't know what world you live in, but I've always had to clean up the messes
I've made. I will admit that the Outlook MVP howled just as you are about the
stupidity of having to have the version indicator in the name. And for exactly
the same reasons. But, we have all adjusted to the practice. In time you will
also. But there are some advantages to the system. It forces you to save
generations of your form as you develop it. When you do finally do something
that one-offs your form, you will not have to start all over again. I try to
keep at least three generations of the form, Son, Father, and ... I move them
to different .pst files so that if the one I am working on gets corrupted, I
don't lose them.

Hollis D. Paul [MVP - Outlook]
(e-mail address removed)
Mukilteo, WA USA

 

[Hollis D. Paul]

In answer to what a MAPI is, it is a Messaging Application Programming
Interface (it is what allows different e-mail systems to speak to each
other.) This error sometimes comes from insufficient rights. I've also
seen where someone with correct rights assignments has gotten this
error. By the way, I don't know if this helps, but our Network Admin
had told me that on the server the correct folder was named
"Organization Forms" and not Organizational for some reason.... don't
know if this may help.

If they have their Exchange account defined through the usual Exchange
RPC system, this problem does not occur. There is really no reason to
use MAPI to use Exchange.

Your post was really a great answer to the questions posed. I was just
beginning to rack my brains to find something to say, when I read yours.
Thanks much for helping out.

Hollis D. Paul [MVP - Outlook]
(e-mail address removed)
Mukilteo, WA USA

 

[jdd2]

no problem in helping; I just started learning about Forms a coupl
months ago and had to learn very quickly (through personal trial an
error, and a reference book.) I also made mistakes very quickly, so
learned what to avoid, and how to avoid it! I've been searching fo
classes over Custom Forms, but can't find ANYTHING!!! an
suggestions

 

[Rich P.]

Paul,

To clarify I am getting the same error since I started using Outlook 2003 so
you are saying to rename all my forms with MyFormName_V00X. I am using
version 11.0 so would I name my forms MyFormName_V0011. or
MyFormName_V0011.0 I am a little confused here. This is going to involve me
making a lot of changes because I use the forms launcher in public folders
and will have to make changes to alot of folders. Will this also correct the
problem where all my new Outlook 2003 users are getting errors trying to open
forms from the forms launcher(error Microssoft cannot open the custom form..)
but are able to open forms from Tools > Forms > Choose Forms? Outlook XP
users have no problems.

exchange 2000 soon to be exchange 2003
Outlook XP and 2003

2) I can then edit the forms, and republish them (open them, change them and
then click Tools > Forms > Publish Form).
3) If I then go to use the forms, they have not changed

The rule is to include the version indicator in the name field--use
MyFormName_V00X. That is the only way to force the OS to load the correct form
when you ask for it.

I always us PublishAs, rather than publish, so that one can select the proper
location in which to put the form.

7) If I click try to Publish the forms with a new name under Organizational
Forms (Tools > Forms > Publish Form As.. ), it works just fine. Of course,
that is a pretty feeble workaround since it leaves a pile of incorrect forms
in place, that I then need to delete.

I don't know what world you live in, but I've always had to clean up the messes
I've made. I will admit that the Outlook MVP howled just as you are about the
stupidity of having to have the version indicator in the name. And for exactly
the same reasons. But, we have all adjusted to the practice. In time you will
also. But there are some advantages to the system. It forces you to save
generations of your form as you develop it. When you do finally do something
that one-offs your form, you will not have to start all over again. I try to
keep at least three generations of the form, Son, Father, and ... I move them
to different .pst files so that if the one I am working on gets corrupted, I
don't lose them.

Hollis D. Paul [MVP - Outlook]
(e-mail address removed)
Mukilteo, WA USA

2) I can then edit the forms, and republish them (open them, change them and
then click Tools > Forms > Publish Form).
3) If I then go to use the forms, they have not changed

The rule is to include the version indicator in the name field--use
MyFormName_V00X. That is the only way to force the OS to load the correct form
when you ask for it.

I always us PublishAs, rather than publish, so that one can select the proper
location in which to put the form.

7) If I click try to Publish the forms with a new name under Organizational
Forms (Tools > Forms > Publish Form As.. ), it works just fine. Of course,
that is a pretty feeble workaround since it leaves a pile of incorrect forms
in place, that I then need to delete.

I don't know what world you live in, but I've always had to clean up the messes
I've made. I will admit that the Outlook MVP howled just as you are about the
stupidity of having to have the version indicator in the name. And for exactly
the same reasons. But, we have all adjusted to the practice. In time you will
also. But there are some advantages to the system. It forces you to save
generations of your form as you develop it. When you do finally do something
that one-offs your form, you will not have to start all over again. I try to
keep at least three generations of the form, Son, Father, and ... I move them
to different .pst files so that if the one I am working on gets corrupted, I
don't lose them.

Hollis D. Paul [MVP - Outlook]
(e-mail address removed)
Mukilteo, WA USA

 

[Hollis D. Paul]

To clarify I am getting the same error since I started using Outlook 2003 so
you are saying to rename all my forms with MyFormName_V00X.

You only do this when you are in the development stage of a form. If you have
been working on a form, published it to the Exchange Forms Library, as MyForm,
and now you reopened the form in design mode to make a change, when you publish
the form with your changes, you should use MyForm_V1. That way, you will never
have a cache problem in which you think you are opening the latest version of
your form, but wind up getting an older version of your form. The exact
characters you choose in your version indicator are unimportant. It could be
V1, v001, or just 01. You just want to make sure that the name fields are
different.

Now, when development is done, you can move all the developmental versions out
of the Exchange Forms Library and move them to an archival .pst on your
development machine, and just publish the latest version as MyForm, which all
the users will access. When you go through another development cycle, you
remove the old form from the Exchange library and publish the new version with
a slightly changed name, and tell your users about it.


Hollis D. Paul [MVP - Outlook]
(e-mail address removed)
Mukilteo, WA USA

 

[Rich]

I had the same exact problem and tried everything, including removing and
re-installing Outlook. I realized that no matter what I tried, the Standard
Forms Library would always appear empty. Since all custom forms are based on
standard forms, it stands to reason that the object that Outlook couldn't
find was the standard form object that is the precedent for the custom form.
I also noticed that the standard forms would appear when I logged onto a
different user name on the same workstation. That led me to a problem file
in my Documents and Settings:
"C:\Documents and Settings\*UserThatHasTheOutlookProblem*\Local
Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\FORMS\FRMCACHE.DAT" With Outlook closed,
I renamed the file to FRMCACHE.DAT.OLD. When I restarted Outlook, the
problem was completely gone. Hope this helps!!