How to Solve Cannot Display The Folder Outlook?

Have you ever encountered an error saying, “Cannot display the folder? Microsoft Outlook cannot access the specified folder location”?  Don’t worry, This article helps you resolve the Microsoft Outlook cannot display the folder error in no time.

When the “Microsoft Outlook cannot display the folder” error occurs, your Outlook might not work properly. Sometimes, all the folders might disappear, and when you try to open any folder in Outlook, you get an error message saying “Cannot display the folder”.

This error can happen due to a corrupt Outlook profile or other issues in Outlook. Stick to the end of this article to troubleshoot. Outlook cannot display the folder error.

Why Does Outlook Say “Cannot Display The Folder”?

Below are the common reasons for the error “Outlook cannot display the folder”.

•     Exchange Cache mode is on
•     Corrupt Outlook profile
•     OST/PST file corruption
•     Issues in Microsoft application
•     Folder visible permission is not set
•     Add the cause related to memory

How to Fix Microsoft Outlook Cannot Display The Folder Error?

Here are a few tried and tested methods to fix the “Microsoft Outlook Cannot Access The Specific Folder Location” error:

1. Rename Or Delete An OST File
2. Disable the Cached Mode
3. Disable Outlook Add-ins
4. Open Outlook in Safe Mode
5. Create a New Outlook Profile
6. Repair Data Files in Outlook [Most Preferred]

Note: You might get Outlook and cannot display the folder error due to a damaged or corrupt PST file. In that case, you can make use of the Yodot Outlook PST Repair tool to fix this error. This tool repairs the corrupted PST file and helps you fix Outlook that cannot display the folder error and also other PST-related issues.

Solution 1: Rename Or Delete An OST File

If you are an OST file user encountering cannot display a folder error, this could be due to the synchronization issues. To fix this issue, you need to rename or delete the OST file.

• Open Outlook, click on File and Click on Account Settings.
• Select data files to find the location of your OST file.
• Go to the path of the OST file, rename or delete the OST file.
• Restart your Outlook; a new OST file will be created.

Note: Usually, the .ost file is located in C:\Users\YOURNAME\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Outlook. 

If you are unable to fix the issue by deleting the OST file, try the methods below to fix the error.  

Solution 2: Disable the Cached Mode

If an Outlook error occurs in a shared mailbox or on an exchange account, turn off the Cache Mode. It will help you fix shared mailbox folders that do not display errors in Outlook. Follow the steps to disable the Cache Mode in Outlook.

• Click on the File menu.
• Click on Account Settings and select Account Settings from the drop-down.
• Uncheck Use cached exchange mode.
• Now, restart the Microsoft Outlook application.

If you are still unable to fix the error, there might be an issue with your Outlook add-ins. Proceed to the next method to verify them.

Solution 3: Disable Outlook Add-ins

Restart the Microsoft Outlook Application and then try opening the folder.

Solution 4: Open Outlook in Safe Mode

1. Press the Windows + R keys to open the Run dialogue.
2. Type exe /safe and click OK.

Safe Mode will start Outlook with a minimal set of features and without any add-ins. Outlook starting normally in Safe Mode indicates that your Outlook is OK, but the trouble may be due to add-ins. To further examine the problem and identify which add-in is causing trouble, start Outlook in normal mode and disable add-ins one at a time. To do so,

1. Open Outlook and click on File > Options.
2. Select Add-ins > COM Add-ins and click Go.

Select an add-in from the list and click Remove. Restart Outlook and repeat these steps for all the add-ins in the list until you have tracked down the add-ins causing the trouble.

Solution 5: Create a New Outlook Profile

If none of the above solutions helps you resolve the error, you can create a new profile for use with Outlook. To create a new profile, follow the steps below.

1. Click on the Start button and type Control Panel.
2. Open the Control Panel and search for Mail.
3. Open Mail and click on Show Profiles when the setup dialogue appears.
4. Then click on Add and assign a name for the profile. Then, follow the instructions to finish setting up the profile.

Once you set up a new profile, delete the old one by following the steps below.

1. Follow the same steps as above and open the Mail in Control Panel.
2. In the dialogue that appears, click on Show Profiles.
3. Choose the profile you wish to remove and click on Remove.

Now, you will have a new profile set up, which is known to resolve the issue in most cases. However, if you are still facing this issue, the problem can be a damaged PST file.  

Solution 6: Repair Data Files in Outlook

If the above method doesn’t help resolve the issue, let’s check if corrupt PST files are causing issues. A PST file is a data file in Outlook that stores all your data, such as emails, contacts, appointments, calendars, etc, on your computer. Corruption in these files may cause Outlook to behave abnormally, leading to errors such as the one described in this article. To resolve such issues, you can make use of Yodot Outlook PST repair software. This is a dedicated tool for PST repair that can solve all kinds of corruption issues in PST files. 

Fix Outlook Cannot display the folder Using Yodot Outlook PST Repair

Yodot Outlook PST Repair tool is made of a unique set of algorithms that can easily repair corrupted PST files. This tool can solve many errors associated with Outlook PST files. It works with a read-only mode interface to safely repair the PST file. Once the repairing process is done, all your Outlook data will be restored, and you can also regain access to a specific folder.

Steps to Repair Corrupted PST Files Using Yodot

Firstly, you need to download the tool, install it on your computer, and follow the below-mentioned steps to fix PST file corruption.             

1: Download and install the Yodot Outlook PST Repair tool on your computer.

2: After launching the tool, you will have three options to locate your PST file. Choose according to your requirements.

• Open PST File – If you know where your Outlook PST file is stored.
• Find PST File – If you want to search for the location of the PST file in a particular drive.
• Select Outlook Profile – If you want to select any particular Outlook profile to repair corrupt PST files (in case you have many).

3: Browse the destination location to store the Outlook PST file after repair.

4: Select between Normal Scan (to fix trivial Outlook issues) and Smart Scan (to repair severely corrupted PST files).

5: Click on the Repair button.

Select between Normal Scan (to fix trivial Outlook issues) and Smart Scan (to repair severely corrupted PST files).

Also Read: Outlook does not recognize PST file

Tips to avoid Outlook showing cannot display the folder error

• Do not overload the PST file because the latest version allows a PST file size limit of up to only 50 GB. If the file becomes large, Outlook can encounter the error folder not showing up.
• Do not shut down the computer when Outlook is in use.