Workarounds for New Outlook not Downloading Attachments

Question

Does anyone have workarounds for the new outlook not auto downloading attachments.

Our organization regularly drags and drops email attachments from Outlook to the ERP system and this does not work if Outlook does not place a copy of the attachment into the device's directory.

To download and copy to ERP causes unnecessary user friction, that device storage is worth forfeiting for.

This does still work with Outlook classic, but with classic being phased out in 2026, we will need a good solution for this when that comes.

Answer 1

In the new Outlook, attachments are not downloaded automatically to conserve device space, which is a design choice. This means that when you drag and drop attachments from Outlook to another application, such as your ERP system, it may not work as expected if the attachments are not stored locally on your device.

As a workaround, you can manually download the attachments before attempting to drag and drop them. This can be done by tapping on the attachment to download it to your device. Once downloaded, you should be able to drag and drop the attachment into your ERP system successfully.

Additionally, you might consider checking for updates regularly, as Microsoft frequently releases updates that could improve functionality and address issues like this one.

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References:

• Outlook for iOS and Android in Exchange Online: FAQ
• Release notes for Outlook for Windows (new)

Answer 2

Dear @Justin Gingrich, 

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.   

I understand how inconvenient it must be to lose the ability to drag and drop attachments directly from New Outlook to your ERP system.  

Unfortunately, New Outlook doesn’t support automatic downloading of attachments. You only can manually choose “Download” to download the file to your local device and then drag and drop it into your ERP system. 

Thank you again for raising such a thoughtful question. It highlights an important area where New Outlook could improve. 

While this may not be the ideal answer you were hoping for, your feedback is truly valued. As community moderators, our role is to guide users toward helpful resources and support channels, though we don’t have direct influence over product design or access to internal development timelines.   

The most effective way to share your experience and advocate for improvements is through Microsoft’s official feedback channel. You can submit your suggestion to our product team via the Microsoft 365 Feedback Hub > Send Feedback > Describe your proposal in detail.  

 

Sharing your experience through this channel is the most impactful way to advocate for a change that would benefit you and other users.  

Thank you again for your patience and for bringing this to our attention. While I can't change the product's design, please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any other questions about its current functionality.  

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