Attachments not downloading

Question

Attachments not downloading

Sulthan 5

Some users are receiving following message while try to download the attachments

Something went wrong while the document preview was being created. Please try again later." When I try to download the file, I get another error: The request could not be completed. Try again in a little while.

Chris Edwards 0 Reputation points

2026-05-15T01:59:57.5466667+00:00

I am also having this issue, as of 2 days now.

I have cleared cache and all browser settings completely on both Chrome and Edge. Same issue on both persists.

I have updated and rebooted etc. I have tried a different network connection. Happening on both my computer and laptop.

I am using Outlook 365
Liora D 15,800 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-15T13:54:05.6533333+00:00
Hi Chris Edwards,

Thanks for reaching out!

To keep this thread focused on the original poster’s scenario and ensure we can track and resolve your issue efficiently, could you please create a new Q&A thread for your case?

Even when symptoms look similar, the root cause often differs by environment, account type, add-ins, and recent changes. A dedicated thread helps us avoid cross‑signals and accelerate troubleshooting.



When you open the new thread, please consider including the following details so we can jump in right away:

A clear description of your issue.

Account type (Personal or work/school account)

Any error messages or codes you see.

Steps you’ve already tried.

Your environment details (e.g., product version, device type, OS).

To create your thread: go to Microsoft Q&A, click “Ask a question”, select the product/tag, and paste the above details.

Once you post your new topic, I’ll be happy to assist you further and ensure the solution fits your exact case.

Thank you for understanding!
Sulthan 5 Reputation points

2026-05-17T05:22:59.4933333+00:00

Dear @Chris Edwards After Anti-virus update attachment was not downloading. Please check your firewall. Your problem will solve.

Answer recommended by moderator

Sulthan 5

Dear @Liora D Thanks for your on time support. Actually this issue happened after anti-virus update. Now problem solved.

Liora D 15,800 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-18T07:41:23.55+00:00

Hello @Sulthan,

Thank you for coming back to share the update, really appreciate you taking the time to do that

It’s great to hear that you were able to identify the root cause and resolve the issue. The insight about the antivirus update and firewall impact is very helpful and will likely save others a lot of time when facing similar symptoms.

I’ll go ahead and recommend your answer so it’s easier for other users to find and benefit from it as well.

Thanks again for your contribution, and wishing you all the best, have a great day ahead

2 additional answers

Your answer

Chris Edwards 0 Reputation points

2026-05-15T01:59:57.5466667+00:00

I am also having this issue, as of 2 days now.

I have cleared cache and all browser settings completely on both Chrome and Edge. Same issue on both persists.

I have updated and rebooted etc. I have tried a different network connection. Happening on both my computer and laptop.

I am using Outlook 365
Liora D 15,800 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-15T13:54:05.6533333+00:00

Hi Chris Edwards,

Thanks for reaching out!

To keep this thread focused on the original poster’s scenario and ensure we can track and resolve your issue efficiently, could you please create a new Q&A thread for your case?

Even when symptoms look similar, the root cause often differs by environment, account type, add-ins, and recent changes. A dedicated thread helps us avoid cross‑signals and accelerate troubleshooting.

When you open the new thread, please consider including the following details so we can jump in right away:

A clear description of your issue.

Account type (Personal or work/school account)

Any error messages or codes you see.

Steps you’ve already tried.

Your environment details (e.g., product version, device type, OS).

To create your thread: go to Microsoft Q&A, click “Ask a question”, select the product/tag, and paste the above details.

Once you post your new topic, I’ll be happy to assist you further and ensure the solution fits your exact case.

Thank you for understanding!
Sulthan 5 Reputation points

2026-05-17T05:22:59.4933333+00:00

Dear @Chris Edwards After Anti-virus update attachment was not downloading. Please check your firewall. Your problem will solve.
Liora D 15,800 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-18T07:41:23.55+00:00

Hello @Sulthan,

Thank you for coming back to share the update, really appreciate you taking the time to do that

It’s great to hear that you were able to identify the root cause and resolve the issue. The insight about the antivirus update and firewall impact is very helpful and will likely save others a lot of time when facing similar symptoms.

I’ll go ahead and recommend your answer so it’s easier for other users to find and benefit from it as well.

Thanks again for your contribution, and wishing you all the best, have a great day ahead

Answer 1

Dear @Sulthan,

I hope you’re having a good day.

Thank you for sharing the details and for including the exact error messages, that really helps narrow things down.

From what you’re seeing, the important point is that both preview and download are failing, and this is affecting multiple users. Based on that, this is very unlikely to be a browser issue, a device issue, or even a problem with specific attachments.

Instead, it typically points to a problem with how attachments are being handled on the service side.

In Outlook on the web, preview and download are processed through backend services. When both fail with messages like “Something went wrong while the document preview was being created” and “The request could not be completed”, it usually means the client cannot properly retrieve or process the file from the service.

This aligns with a known behavior documented by Microsoft, where a backend change or feature interaction can cause attachment preview and download to fail due to how requests are handled internally: Attachments can’t be downloaded or previewed from Outlook Web App - Microsoft Support

So, in your case, this looks much more like an issue with attachment processing/retrieval at the service or environment level

rather than anything individual users can fix.

Given that, there are a couple of focused things worth checking:

Try opening the same emails in the Outlook desktop client, this often works as a temporary workaround when the web service is affected.
If your environment includes additional security or compliance layers (such as DLP or Safe Attachments), those can sometimes interfere with attachment access and may need to be reviewed.

To help narrow it down further, it would be useful to confirm whether this happens:

Across all browsers and devices
and across all attachment types

But based on your description, this is very likely a backend/service-related issue, not something caused by user settings or the files themselves.

If you can share a bit more about your environment (for example, whether you're using Exchange Online only or hybrid), I’d be happy to help you dig deeper

Please understand that our initial response does not always resolve the issue immediately. However, with your help and more detailed information, we can work together to find a solution.

Looking forward to hearing back from you with any updates or additional details.

Warm regards,

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

Liora D 15,800 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-05-14T12:53:03.0566667+00:00

Hi Sulthan,

I just wanted to follow up to see how things are going with the information I shared above. I truly hope it was helpful and brought you closer to resolving the issue.

If you’ve had a chance to review it and have any updates, questions, or if you ran into any difficulties along the way, please don’t hesitate to let me know. I’m more than happy to assist further if needed.

It would be great to hear back from you!

Warm regards,

Liora.

Answer 2

The symptoms match known Outlook on the web (OWA) issues with attachments and document preview.

For on‑premises Exchange Server environments:

If users are accessing an additional mailbox via Open another mailbox in OWA and cannot preview or download attachments (empty page, URL starting with https://outlook.office365.com/owa/...), this is a known issue in:
- Exchange Server 2019 Cumulative Update 7
- Exchange Server 2016 Cumulative Update 18
Fix:
- For Exchange Server 2019, install Cumulative Update 8 or any later cumulative update.
- For Exchange Server 2016, install Cumulative Update 19 or any later cumulative update.
Workarounds until updated:
- Use the full Microsoft Outlook client to open or download attachments from the additional mailbox.
- Use OWA light for the additional mailbox by appending ?layout=light to the mailbox URL, for example:
  - https://owa.contoso.com/owa/******@contoso.com/?layout=light
If the issue occurs when clicking Preview and then Edit and Reply on Office attachments (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) in an Exchange Server 2016 CU8 environment, and the error is:
- “Something went wrong when the document preview was being created. Please try again later.”
Cause: OWA sends the image in the signature instead of the actual attachment to the back‑end server. Fix:
- Install Cumulative Update 10 for Exchange Server 2016 or any later cumulative update.

For Outlook on the web in Microsoft 365 (OWA 365) in a browser (for example, Chrome on macOS) where downloads fail with:

“Error. The request could not be completed. Try again in a little while.”

A reported resolution is to fully reset Chrome settings:

In Chrome:
- Go to Settings → Reset Settings → Restore settings to their original defaults → Reset settings.
Then:
- Go to Chrome → Services → Service Settings → Restore Defaults → Done.

After performing both resets, Outlook on the web attachment downloads started working again for the affected user.

Apply the server‑side cumulative updates if using on‑premises Exchange, and if using OWA 365 in Chrome, try the Chrome reset steps above on an affected client.

References:

Share via

Attachments not downloading

2 additional answers

Your answer