How to resolve a general MAPI failure error message in DMS

This article explains how to resolve the following error when trying to send an email from Document Management System (DMS):

"Unable to Send E-mail: General MAPI Failure."

• By design, Microsoft Outlook won't send emails with very large attachments.
• A "General MAPI Failure" error signals the attachment may be larger than Outlook's 20 megabyte (MB) limit.

Check if either DMS or Outlook is running under an admin account

The error can occur when Outlook is running under one user account and DMS is running under a different user account, usually an admin account.

• DMS may be trying to open Outlook a second time, which is prohibited. 

To make sure DMS isn't set to run as an administrator account:

1. Close DMS.
2. On the Desktop, right-click on the DMS icon and select Properties.
3. Select the Shortcut tab then click the Advanced button.
4. Uncheck Run as Administrator and click OK.
5. Open DMS and create the email again.

To make sure Outlook isn't set to run as an administrator account:

1. Close Outlook.
2. On the Desktop, right-click on the Outlook icon and select Properties.
3. Select the Shortcut tab, then click the Advanced button.
4. Uncheck Run as Administrator and click OK.
5. Open DMS and create the email again.

Test MAPI outside of DMS

The next step is to check whether the issue affects your email application as a whole. These steps may vary slightly depending on your version of Office but all versions should include this functionality.

1. Open another Office application (such as Word or Excel).
2. Create a New Document.
3. Open the File menu, and choose Share.
4. Select Email and select Send as Attachment.

If any issues occur during these steps, the issue isn't isolated to your accounting software. The next step is to make sure your email application is MAPI compliant.

• Outlook, Express, and Mozilla Thunderbird are MAPI compliant.
• Gmail requires a MAPI file extension.