Outlook folders do not sync, say "(this computer only)"

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Outlook folders do not sync, say "(this computer only)"

tNEM 1

We moved from Outlook Office 365 email to IMAP on Bluehost servers. Our old email folders synced to the new server, but new folders do not sync. These new folders are labeled with "(this computer only)" and apparently they are not in our .ost file. This does not have to do with Contacts and Calendar items. These folders contain emails.

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Jade Liang-MSFT 9,986 Microsoft Employee

Hi @tNEM ,

but new folders do not sync.

How are these new folders generated(you create in Outlook manually or they are generated by your new server)?

As I know, the issue may occur when your IMAP account couldn't set the correct root folder in Outlook, you could first check the root folder and set it to check if the issue has any difference:
check the root folder: Folder>IMAP folder>Query>the [Name] before your folder name is the root folder.

set the root folder: File>Account settings>Account settings

If the issue has any update, please feel free to post back.

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tNEM 1 Reputation point

2021-09-24T06:15:41.903+00:00

Jade,

These were created manually by my client. I am the administrator.

I will not have access to her PC until Saturday, September 25. However, I have replicated this problem on my own PC. I have discovered how to create new folders that do sync. In addition I can move items in bulk from the this-compute-only folders to the new folders, and these moved items sync too. This is easy to do and does not seem to have much risk of losing items.

Therefore, I believe this is the safest and simplest approach to correcting this issue

I do have one question. If the Root folder path field is left blank, how does Outlook behave?
Jade Liang-MSFT 9,986 Reputation points Microsoft Employee

2021-09-27T07:24:21.723+00:00

Hi @tNEM ,

Thanks for your update. Agree with you, it's a safe and easy way to move the messages directly from this computer only to the normal folder.

If the Root folder path field is left blank, how does Outlook behave?

This depends on your folder structure. According to my experience, if we keep it blank, all folders under your mailbox would shown in your client, and if we set a root folder, only the folders under this root folder would show there, which would avoid the duplicate folders in some cases. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't affect the normal work of mailbox, but for some IMAP mailboxes, it couldn't display/work normally if you didn't set the root folder normally, I think it may be related to the mailbox structure and server settings.
tNEM 1 Reputation point

2021-09-27T08:06:50.57+00:00

Thank you, Jade.

Here is an update .

Two days ago I traveled to the office where this computer is located. The owner is away traveling, and I have limited access to the computer. I did not make screenshots at that time.

The mailbox was arranged such that the folders that did not sync were at the same level as the Inbox. So, they were not inside the Inbox folder but were outside it. Folders inside the Inbox synced correctly.

The folders that did not sync did not appear in Bluehost webmail.

The Outlook version is 2019.

I could not use the move command to move the nonsyncing folders into the Inbox. However, I created folders with the same names inside the Inbox. Then I used the move command to move all email items from the nonsyncing folders outside the Inbox to the folders inside the Inbox. The new folders inside the Inbox now sync correctly.

I have instructed the owner of the computer to always create new folders and subfolders inside the Inbox.

I believe this will fix this problem.
Jade Liang-MSFT 9,986 Reputation points Microsoft Employee

2021-09-27T10:04:35.137+00:00

Hi @tNEM ,

Thanks for your reply.

Looks like the Inbox is the root folder in the mailbox structure, agree with you, we could create the folder under inbox to sync it.

By the way, if there is no required folder outside the inbox, it's recommended to set the Inbox as the root folder in Outlook as we mentioned above to avoid useless folders and keep it more organized.

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Outlook folders do not sync, say "(this computer only)"

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