Unable to import the DBF file in MS Outlook 2000: Causes and the possible resolutions

DBF is a standard database file format used by dBase database management system. Later, other subsequent versions of dBase were introduced in the market, dBase V being the latest DOS version. dBase is widely used for developing various Windows, Web, and middleware applications. dBase includes several advanced database management features and a rich set of GUI tools. Other variations of the product were developed by some companies which included FoxPro and Clipper/Harbour, together known as xBase. The dBase files can be opened up and understood by several other database-related products. Sometimes, we require data in our DBF file to be exported to other applications for useful purposes. While performing such an operation, we may face issues that relate to DBF file corruption. In such cases, it is better to find the real cause behind the problem or go for DBF recovery through a reliable third party utility.



For instance, you may receive the following error message when you try to import a DBF file in MS Outlook 2000,



"An error has occurred in the dBase translator while getting the contents of a file system.

The file "\.dbf" was not recognized. The dBase translator was unable to recognize this file. It could be the wrong file, a version of the file type which is not supported by this translator, or the file might be corrupt."





Cause:

The following reasons may have caused the above error-



The ‘Last Updated’ field in the DBF file header contains a value that is greater than 99. The new application is unable to read this value because Visual FoxPro and some versions of dBase do not increment the year count after reaching the ‘99’ value while Microsoft Office applications generally do so.



The DBF file is corrupt.



In both cases, you may not be able to access the contents of your DBF file. Here, you can use a backup to restore data from the corrupt file. If the backup is not there, you should follow the below mentioned resolution steps to repair corrupt DBF file.





Resolution:

You may try resolving the problem by following the given steps-



Try installing Microsoft Office 2000 Service Release 1/1a (SR-1/SR-1a) on your system.

Try importing the DBF file in a different format such as, .mdb (Microsoft Access), .xls (Microsoft Excel), CSV (Comma Separated Values).



If the problem still persists, you should take help of an efficient recover dbf software. These software provide you substantial easy-to-use features that help to repair and restore DBF files in any situation of DBF file corruption. They can restore almost all the dBase file components, such as table name, column name, indexes, primary keys etc.



Stellar Phoenix DBF Recovery Software is a comprehensive tool that recovers data from corrupt DBF files created in dBase (III-V) and MS Visual FoxPro (6.0-9.0) versions. It is compatible with Windows 7, Vista, Server 2003, XP, and 2000. It facilitates previewing of recoverable objects before performing the actual recovery.