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Can I have help solving a mystery with duplicate Contacts in my iPhone that has Outlook for iOS on it?

Anonymous
2022-04-23T18:33:14+00:00

I find what look like duplicates of SOME of the Contacts in my iPhone and yet they don't seem to be connected.

I've noticed that if I make a change in one, it doesn't change the other. That's a big problem since then I don't where to find the most recent stuff. I keep lots of Notes in the Notes section of my Contacts & I add to them or edit them frequently, so that's why this is a really big deal.Here's some important info for you to know:

  1. My iPhone has Outlook for iOS on it & it has since the very beginning of my switching from using Windows phones to iPhones.
  2. I now have this iPhone set to only use my Outlook Contacts from the Outlook 2016 that's on my PC that logs in with the same email address but I think it was set at one time a few months ago to use iCloud Contacts or maybe both if that's even possible. I know that it's always had all of my Outlook Contacts in it & probably these dups. I've never used iCloud and I never will. I only got an iPhone since Microsoft put my Nokia Lumias in hospice & then let them die. I think that these Contacts are all just the many Contacts that are in my PC's Outlook. I have a bunch.
  3. You'll notice that some of the Contacts below don't have duplicates but many of them do. I've no idea why that would be. How odd.

I see that it says Contacts after iCloud Drive in the PrintScreen of my Settings below. Should I just turn that OFF? If I should, I'd need help doing that since I tapped on it and I couldn't figure out what I would do there.

Outlook | Outlook for mobile | Outlook for iOS | For business

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  1. Anonymous
    2022-04-26T15:17:01+00:00

    turn off save contacts in outlook for iOS

    then go to settings in outlook for iOS, help and feedback, and delete all saved contacts

    This will removed all duplicates from icloud, then turn on save contacts in app again to resolve

    Implemented this fix when we removed users from mobile iron onto intune app

    2 people found this answer helpful.
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  1. Anonymous
    2022-04-24T04:49:32+00:00

    Thanks Kevin. Can you help me do this? I have been able to login to iCloud, even with that TFA, Two Factor Authentication, on my Windows pc but I don't understand what you're suggesting that I do there.

    I'll try whatever you say. 👍

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  2. Anonymous
    2022-04-24T04:31:51+00:00

    Hello Jeff,

    Thanks for your update. It is mainly a data problem between iCloud and Microsoft servers, iCloud does not automatically recognize changes synced to microsoft Exchange servers contacts, if you could find this link separately in iCloud, it seems more concise and convenient. I think it could achieve your effect too.

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  3. Anonymous
    2022-04-24T04:12:43+00:00

    Thanks Kevin. This stuff is way over my head. I don't know anything about iCloud account or Apple Support, iCloud & Microsoft Exchange server syncing, iTunes period, or Contact Groups.

    Would it make any sense for me to just set my iPhone to only use Outlook Contacts and then Uninstall & Reinstall it, and then immediately go back into Settings and make sure to set it again to only use Outlook Contacts?

    Am I dreaming that maybe something this easy could fix it?

    Before I did all of that I could scroll down the list of People in the phone app icon and I've noticed that I could just open any that are displayed without a duplicate and there's a Share link at the bottom that I could use to send it to my outlook.com email address, open it and Save the attached Contact.

    That seems like it could get me any Contacts that are only on iCloud.

    What do you think?

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  4. Anonymous
    2022-04-24T03:25:17+00:00

    Hello Jeff,

    Welcome to Microsoft Community and appreciate your time taken for sharing detailed information. I could share with you some of my thoughts on this issue.

    There are three situations that can cause duplicate contacts on your iPhone.

    1. iCloud Problem

    Due to iCloud server issues, iCloud may copy your contacts. So, just log in to your iCloud account and see if there are duplicate contacts. If so, you will have to contact Apple support to resolve the issue.

    1. Microsoft Exchange Servers Issues

    iCloud doesn't change the data that syncs with Microsoft Exchange servers. So, you may find yourself having duplicate contacts on your iPhone. Unless you set one of them to sync with your iPhone, the chances of repeating your contacts are high.

    1. Syncing both iTunes and iCloud

    If your device is set up to sync with both iTunes and iCloud, the issue of duplicate contacts can occur. This problem is only possible if you are using versions of iTunes before iTunes 11. The solution here is simple, just upgrade your iTunes to the latest version.

    Judging from your description, it is very likely that the first two situations are causing your problem. If you want to fix this, you may need to go to groups and then just select a feed to sync your contacts. (Click Contacts > Groups > Select one of the contact source options given: “All iCloud,” and “All Exchange/O365”.)

    Feel free to post back if you need any further assistance.

    Best Regard,

    Kevin | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

    *Beware of scammers posting fake support numbers here."

    *Kindly Mark and Vote this reply if it helps, as it will be beneficial to more community members reading here.

    *If your problem is not solved, you could reply to the post again and we would continue to provide technical support for you.

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