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Outlook Classic hanging with Gmail Accounts

Dave Cope 25 Reputation points
2026-05-25T06:59:08.63+00:00

I am have trouble (again) with Outlook Classic hanging with Gmail accounts. I have tried the documented workarounds:

  • Force close Outlook, then remove reference to Gmail account
  • Removing MS app security in Google Manage my Account
  • Removing OAUTH2 entries in Credential Manager
  • Re-adding accounts in Outlook

But the problem persists

I am on Office 365 Insider. Outlook version 2606 Build 20120.20000

Microsoft 365 Insider | Outlook | Windows
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Dave Cope 25 Reputation points
2026-05-25T12:50:26.9+00:00

As noted above, the usual actions for this did not work.

But, moving back to standard Office 365 (not Insider) did the trick. Outlook Classic now working with Gmail accounts.

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  1. AI answer

    2026-05-25T06:59:24.9333333+00:00

    Classic Outlook hanging with Gmail accounts is a known recent issue related to Gmail authentication and IMAP/OAuth in classic Outlook. Since the standard steps already tried (removing the account, revoking Google access, deleting OAUTH2 credentials, and re‑adding the account) match the documented manual workaround, focus on confirming build status and then fully redoing the Gmail/Outlook trust path in the documented order.

    1. Confirm Outlook is on a fixed build
      • The Gmail sign‑in/add issues are marked as fixed in recent builds of classic Outlook.
      • For Gmail sign‑in/add problems, the fix is available starting with:
        • Current Channel: Version 2404 (Build 17531.10000) and later.
      • For the specific “unable to add Gmail”/IMAP OAuth issue, another fix is called out starting with Current Channel Version 2412 Build 18324.20168.
      • As an Insider (build 2606.20120), ensure updates are fully applied:
        • In Outlook: File → Office Account → Update Options → Update Now.
      • If the Insider build is unstable with Gmail, consider switching back to Current Channel using the documented registry‑based channel switch, then updating again.
    2. Revoke Microsoft access in Google (in the documented sequence) Since this was already attempted, redo it in the exact order used in the workaround:
      1. Close Outlook completely.
      2. Sign in to the Google account at https://www.google.com.
      3. Select the profile picture → Manage your Google Account.
      4. Go to Security.
      5. Under “Your connections to third‑party apps & services”, select Microsoft apps & services.
      6. Under “Access you've given to Microsoft apps & services”, select Remove all access → Confirm.
    3. Remove only the Gmail IMAP OAuth credentials from Credential Manager The key is to remove the specific Gmail OAuth entries so Outlook is forced to re‑negotiate permissions:
      1. Open Credential Manager (Start → search “Credential Manager”; on some systems via Control Panel).
      2. Select Windows Credentials.
      3. Under Generic Credentials, find entries starting with MicrosoftOffice16_Data:OAUTH2.
      4. Expand each and hover over the name until the full value shows, including tp_google_imap_oauth2.
      5. Remove each credential that includes tp_google_imap_oauth2. There are two per Gmail account; remove both for each affected Gmail account.
      6. If multiple Gmail accounts exist and only specific ones should be cleared, map credentials to identities using the registry path:
        • Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Common\Identity\Identities
        • Match the numeric prefix in the identity subkeys to the corresponding credentials in Credential Manager.
    4. Re‑add/sign in to Gmail from Outlook using browser sign‑in After revoking access and clearing credentials, let Outlook rebuild the connection:
      • If the Gmail account is still in the profile but not syncing:
        1. Start Outlook.
        2. Use the “Sign in via browser” bar or Retry link when prompted.
        3. In the Google sign‑in window, when asked to grant access, ensure the checkbox is selected for:
          • “Read, compose, send, and permanently delete all your email from Gmail.” under Microsoft apps & services can access.
      • If the Gmail account was removed from the profile:
        1. In Outlook, go to File → Add account.
        2. Enter the Gmail address and follow the browser sign‑in.
        3. Again, ensure the Microsoft apps & services permission box is checked.
    5. Verify IMAP and account type settings
      • For Gmail accounts, ensure they are added as Gmail/IMAP accounts, not as generic Exchange/Microsoft 365 accounts.
      • If classic Outlook is not prompting for a password or appears stuck during setup, verify that “Require logon using Secure Password Authentication (SPA)” is unchecked on the IMAP details page.
    6. If hangs persist after fixes and cleanup
      • Because the Gmail issues are explicitly listed as fixed in recent classic Outlook builds, persistent hangs after applying the above steps usually indicate either:
        • Residual/incorrect credentials not fully removed, or
        • A regression/bug in the Insider build.
      • In that case, switching from Insider back to Current Channel using the documented registry method, updating Office, and then repeating steps 2–4 is the recommended path.

    References:

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