Outlook for Mac Crashes After Working Offline, Then Fails with Error Message

I’m getting frustrated because this is the second time this has happened in the last two weeks. I’ve made a video to show what’s happening. It occurred last week while I was working offline on a plane, and again today when I went back online. Last time, I had to uninstall and reinstall Outlook, which made me lose my draft emails that I needed to send. I can’t afford to lose those emails again.

Here’s the error log:

Microsoft Error Reporting log version: 2.0

Error Signature:
Exception: EXC_BAD_ACCESS
ExceptionEnumString: 1
Exception Code: KERN_INVALID_ADDRESS (0x0000000000000008)
Date/Time: 2024-06-24 02:49:14 +0000
Application Name: Microsoft Outlook
Application Bundle ID: com.microsoft.Outlook
Application Signature: OPIM
Application Bitness: x64
Application Version: 16.86.1.24061443
Crashed Module Name: HxCore
Crashed Module Version: 16.0.17712.33805
Crashed Module Offset: 0x00000000003c076c
Blame Module Name: HxCore
Blame Module Version: 16.0.17712.33805
UnsymbolicatedChecksum: 044C3BD022A549E0333E31C383B31A3A
Blame Module Offset: 0x00000000003c076c
StackHash: 571589dad51b746d_1_0x00000000003c076c_bk_phx_arm
Application LCID: 2057
Extra app info: Reg=en Loc=0x0809
Build Type: Release
Crashed thread Stack Pointer: 0x_0000000175162650
Crashed thread: 9

You can watch the video summary here: Issues with Outlook

Hey there, fellow Outlook user!

I totally understand how frustrating it can be to deal with frequent crashes and lost data. I’ll do my best to help you troubleshoot and potentially solve the issue without having to uninstall and reinstall Outlook again.

Initial Analysis

From the provided error log, it’s clear that the crash is related to HxCore, a module within the Outlook application. Specifically, the error code KERN_INVALID_ADDRESS suggests that Outlook is trying to access an invalid memory location. This could be caused by various factors, including corrupted data, incorrect setup, or version conflicts.

Recommendations

To troubleshoot this issue, please follow these steps:

  1. Repair Outlook: Before attempting anything else, let’s try to repair Outlook. Go to Finder > Applications > Right-click (or Control-click) on Microsoft Outlook > Show Package Contents. Then, navigate to Contents > Resources > Outlook Repair.app. Run this app, and it might resolve any internal issues.
  2. Check for Updates: Ensure you are running the latest version of Outlook. Open Outlook, and go to Outlook > Check for Updates. If an update is available, install it and restart Outlook.
  3. Offline Mode Issues: Given your offline work scenario, let’s try disabling and re-enabling Offline Mode. Go to Outlook > Connections > Work Offline. Toggle it off and then back on to see if this resolves the issue.
  4. Setup Sync: Verify that your data is properly synced. Go to Outlook > Sync Settings, and check if everything is enabled and synced successfully.
  5. Email Drafts Recovery: Since you mentioned losing draft emails, here’s a potential recovery method:
    a. Open Finder and navigate to Library > Containers > com.microsoft.Outlook.
    b. Look for files named Drafts or Draftmessages and transfer them to a safe location.
    c. If you find any recoverable drafts, move them to the Drafts folder within your Outlook data.
  6. Clean Startup: Sometimes, unnecessary add-ins can cause issues. Try a clean Outlook startup by holding the “Option” (⌥) key while opening Outlook. This will disable all add-ins. If Outlook operates smoothly without them, you can re-enable them one by one to identify any problematic ones.

If none of these steps resolve the issue or provide more clarity on the cause, it might be worth resetting Outlook to its default settings or seeking further support from Microsoft Support or a Mac specialist.

Additional Request

If you can, provide more details about your setup, such as:

  • Your Mac model and macOS version
  • Your Exchange or email service provider
  • Any recent software changes or updates
  • Any additional add-ins or plugins you have installed

This information will help me better understand your specific situation and offer more targeted advice.