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Outlook 2010 Dialog: "The file does not exist"

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› Outlook › Outlook 2010 › Outlook 2010 Dialog: “The file does not exist”

Last reviewed on December 15, 2017     12 Comments

Applies to: Outlook 2010

Sometimes the most annoying errors are impossible to figure out, unless it happens to you. In that case, you probably solved it by happenchance. That's how it is with this annoyance.

File does not existEvery time I tried close the Options dialog after making changes, a (very useless and unhelpful) warning dialog came up that simply said "The file does not exist". The only way to close the Options dialog was by cancelling it. The warning message is useless since it doesn't tell me *what file* is missing.

This is caused by a missing reminder sound file on the Advanced page. I've since discovered that changing Windows themes can cause the reminder to go missing. Choosing a sound file for the reminder fixes the problem. Or you can uncheck the Play reminder sound option.

Outlook's Options dialog

If you get this error and a sound file is listed, check each page of the Options dialog and see if any other files are missing.

Outlook 2010 Dialog: "The file does not exist" was last modified: December 15th, 2017 by Diane Poremsky

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About Diane Poremsky

A Microsoft Outlook Most Valuable Professional (MVP) since 1999, Diane is the author of several books, including Outlook 2013 Absolute Beginners Book. She also created video training CDs and online training classes for Microsoft Outlook. You can find her helping people online in Outlook Forums as well as in the Microsoft Answers and TechNet forums.

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Martin
July 8, 2015 5:27 am

Impressive Diane.
Tried to change the timezone.
Had clicked play "reminder sound" several weeks ago.
Would have never linked the two items

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T
April 30, 2015 1:10 pm

THANK YOU!!!!!!

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Gayla Franklin
October 30, 2014 4:05 pm

Thank you, thank you, thank you. It was driving me crazy. I even reinstalled outlook and that didn't work. I can't believe it was so simple. Kudos to you.

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Aimee
August 1, 2014 12:31 pm

THANK YOU! That was the perfect fix!

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TC
September 27, 2013 9:18 am

Thank you!

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Jacques
April 18, 2013 11:57 am

Diane,
I send you a special thank from France.
Your answer on Outlook 2010 Dialog: "The file does not exist" helped me.
Thank again,
Jacques

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Michael
March 24, 2013 6:25 am

Thank a whole lot! Your solution really works. I had exactly the same problem but after following your instruction, everything now works.

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Happy Me!
August 27, 2012 8:35 am

Finally fixed...should have searched for this much earlier. Sigh. What an odd-ball error!

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