Outlook search function is only showing old emails (pre-2018!)

Question

Following a recent update, my Outlook (former Hotmail) account search function is no longer identifying any emails newer than 2018. This obviously renders the search function essentially useless. How can I fix this so that when I search it captures newer emails?

Answer 1

It appears that you might be experiencing issues with the indexing of your emails in Outlook. Here are a few steps you can take to troubleshoot and potentially resolve the problem:

1. Check Indexing Status: Ensure that Outlook is indexing your emails correctly. You can do this by going to the Indexing Status dialog in Outlook. If it shows that no items are indexed or that indexing is incomplete, this could be the issue.
2. Repair Office Installation: If the indexing status is not updating or if the search function is still not working, you may want to repair your Office installation. To do this:
   • Open Control Panel.
   • Go to Programs > Uninstall a program.
   • Select your Office installation and click on Change.
   • Choose Repair and follow the prompts.
3. Disable Interaction with Desktop: If the Windows Search service is set to interact with the desktop, it can cause issues with Outlook's search functionality. You can disable this option by:
   • Running services.msc.
   • Right-clicking on the Windows Search service and selecting Properties.
   • Stopping the service, clearing the Allow service to interact with desktop option, and then restarting the service.
4. Check for Updates: Ensure that your Outlook application is up to date, as updates can often fix bugs and improve functionality.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, you may want to consider reaching out to Microsoft support for further assistance.

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References:

• Windows Search service setting results in no matches found in Outlook
• Search results in Outlook are incorrect because MapiPH.dll is missing