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Scenario: Outlook Scan

Note

Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant scenarios aren't available for new Outlook for Windows.

The Outlook Scan scenario scans your device and creates a detailed report about Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Office, Windows, and mailbox configurations.

In the full version of Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant, the equivalent entry point for the scenario is Advanced diagnostics \ Outlook \ Create a detailed report of my Outlook, Office, Windows, and mailbox configuration.

Note: This scenario doesn't require that you use an elevated Command Prompt window.

Download the Enterprise version of the Assistant

Select the following button:

For complete details about how to run the Enterprise version of the Assistant, see Enterprise version of Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant.

Script the Outlook Scan scenario

You can automate some of the tasks to run the scenario. The following sample Windows PowerShell script can help you get started. You can also edit it to better fit your requirements.

Note: Detailed instructions for the script are provided in the included comments.

Download the Outlook Scan scenario script

The script performs the following basic tasks.

  1. Copy the files for the Enterprise version of the Assistant to the client from the location specified in the script.

    The default download location that's referenced in the script is https://aka.ms/SaRA_EnterpriseVersionFiles. This is the internet download location for the Assistant. However, you can modify the script to use either a path to the .zip file for the Assistant download or a folder location that contains the files that are extracted from the Assistant download.

  2. Start SaraCmd.exe to run the Outlook Scan scenario by using the required switches and parameters.

  3. Gather the log files generated when the scenario runs.

    The script collects all the log files that are generated by the Assistant.

  4. Create a consolidated .zip file that includes all the logs.

    All the log files that are generated by the Assistant are compressed into a .zip file. The name of this .zip file is customizable.

Available switches for the Outlook Scan scenario

The following switches are available for this scenario. They aren't case-sensitive. Unless noted as optional, the switches are required to run the scenario. You can use more than one optional switch.

Switch <parameter> Details Required/Optional
-S <scenarioname> Specify this switch and ExpertExperienceAdminTask as the value for the scenarioname parameter to run this scenario. Required
-AcceptEula Specify this switch to accept the End User License Agreement (EULA) and to run this scenario. Required
-LogFolder <Output Path> Specify this switch to force SaraCmd.exe to output scenario-specific logs to the folder that's specified by the <Output Path> parameter. Optional
-HideProgress Specify this switch to hide the progress display for this scenario. By default, the Assistant always displays the progress of tasks in the console. Optional
-OfflineScan Specify this switch to run an offline scan of Outlook while the Outlook application is running. Optional

Sample commands

Here are some sample combinations of switches to run this scenario.

  • Sample 1

    To scan Outlook, run the following command in a non-elevated Command Prompt window.

    SaRAcmd.exe -S ExpertExperienceAdminTask -AcceptEula
    
  • Sample 2

    To scan Outlook in an offline mode when the Outlook application is running, and hide the progress display in the console, run the following command in a non-elevated Command Prompt window.

    SaRAcmd.exe -S ExpertExperienceAdminTask -AcceptEula -OfflineScan -HideProgress
    
  • Sample 3

    To scan Outlook and output the log files to the C:\temp folder, run the following command in a non-elevated Command Prompt window.

    Note: The folder that's specified by the -LogFolder switch must exist and be writeable.

    SaRAcmd.exe -S ExpertExperienceAdminTask -AcceptEula -LogFolder C:\temp
    
  • Sample 4

    To run an offline scan of Outlook, output the log files to the C:\temp folder, and hide the progress display in the console, run the following command in a non-elevated Command Prompt window.

    SaRAcmd.exe -S ExpertExperienceAdminTask -AcceptEula -LogFolder C:\temp -HideProgress -OfflineScan
    

Detected conditions and results

When you run the Outlook Scan scenario by using the Enterprise version of the Assistant, you don't receive any prompts. This is a different experience from the full version of the Assistant. The following table describes the actions that the Enterprise version of the Assistant takes for each condition that's encountered by this scenario, and the corresponding output that's displayed.

Condition Action taken by the Enterprise version Output shown in the Command Prompt window
Outlook isn't running Run an Offline scan of Outlook 01: An Offline scan was performed because Outlook is either not running or it is running elevated (as Administrator). See <filename> in %localappdata%\saralogs\UploadLogs.
Outlook is running Run a full scan of Outlook 02: A Full scan was performed. See <filename> in %localappdata%\saralogs\UploadLogs.
More than one Outlook version is detected Run a scan of the latest version of Outlook (Depending on the situation, this output could be 01, 02, 04, or 05)
Both Outlook and the Assistant's Command Prompt window are elevated Run a full scan of Outlook 02: A Full scan was performed. See <filename> in %localappdata%\saralogs\UploadLogs.
Outlook is running as elevated but the Assistant's Command Prompt window isn't elevated Run an offline scan of Outlook 01: An Offline scan was performed because Outlook is either not running or it's running as elevated. See <filename> in %localappdata%\saralogs\UploadLogs.
Outlook isn't running as elevated but the Assistant's Command Prompt window is elevated None 04: Outlook isn't running elevated. Don't use an elevated command-prompt.
Failure to run a scan for reasons such as:
  • Outlook isn't installed.
  • The Outlook version detected is older than 2007.
  • An exception occurs during the scan.
Scan initiated but not completed 05: An error occurred while performing a scan of Outlook. You might be able to perform an Offline scan if you exit Outlook and rerun this scenario. You can also try using the full SaRA version.