I use an Outlook 2010 add-in called Bettasoft Mail Alert to display a mail icon in the task bar when new mail arrives. A couple of days ago the add-in caused an error and Outlook disabled it. I initially thought I could just go into the Options and put a check back into the add-in checkbox however that did not work. After more investigation I figured out that you have to enable the add-in in the Disabled Add-Ins window first and the put a check in the add-in check box for the disabled add-in to work again. Below I describe the error in more detail and the steps taken to resolve the error.
Bettasoft Mail Alert Add-In For Outlook 2010 Not Working Properly:
Notice the add-in in question, which is the Bettasoft Mail Alert add-in, is highlighted so you can see more details in the lower portion of the window. Notice the notes after Compatibility which points out the issue at hand as noted below.
Compatibility: Add-in was disabled by the user after a Data Execution Prevention failure
DEP or Data Execution Prevention is a security feature that was released in later versions of Windows XP and Windows 2003 Server. The basis of DEP is that is is an added layer of security that attempts to stop malicious code from being executed through Windows applications.
Resolve Outlook Add-In Disabled Error: Enable Bettasoft Mail Alert Add-In
- Open Outlook Options: First open Outlook options which should launch a configuration window similar to the below example image.
- Outlook Add-In Options: In the left hand navigation click on Add-Ins which will display a window similar to the below.
- Manage Disabled Add-Ins: Near the bottom of the Add-Ins configuration window click on the drop down next to Manage and select Disabled Items as shown in the below image.
Once you click the Go button it will pop up the Outlook Add-Ins Disabled Items window as shown below.
Once the Disabled Items configuration window is up proceed to the next step.
- Enable Add-In Disabled By DEP: In this example the add-in disabled by Data Execution Prevention is Bettasoft’s Mail Alert add-in for Outlook. So highlight the add-in as shown below and click the Enable button to remove it from the Disabled Items list.
- Configure Add-In To Load Automatically: Now after removing the add-in from the Disabled Items list you will be back on the Add-In Options window within Outlook. Click on the Manage drop down again but this time select COM Add-Ins and click the Go button to open the COM Add-Ins configuration window as shown below. Notice in the first image the Bettasoft Mail Alert add-in does not have a check in the check box but in the second window it does. Click OK once you have added the check and your Add-In should begin normal operation again.
The Outlook add-in that was disabled by Data Execution Prevention or DEP should now be enabled and operating as expected.
