Unable to stop Outlook 2019 syncing with Gmail account

Question

I have added our 3 gmail accounts to Outlook 2019 but Outlook is constantly "syncing". I have followed various guidance from the internet, and checked the settings eg IMAP etc but cannot solve the problem. I have deleted the accounts from Outlook , cleared temp folders , restarted the computer but still no solution to the problem. When I re-add the accounts they appear automatically so I have no chance to try different settings. I have not used Outlook 2019 properly yet there is no data etc that we need to keep as we have been using Outlook 2010 up until now, so would it be worth uninstall MS Office 2019 and re-installing it to try to clear whatever is wrong in the software?

Answer 1

If Outlook 2019 is constantly syncing with your Gmail accounts, there are a few troubleshooting steps you can try before considering a complete uninstall and reinstall of the software:

1. Check IMAP Settings: Ensure that IMAP is enabled in your Gmail settings. Go to your Gmail account settings, navigate to the "Forwarding and POP/IMAP" tab, and confirm that IMAP is enabled.
2. Remove and Re-add Accounts: Since you mentioned that you've already deleted the accounts, try re-adding them one at a time. This can sometimes help in identifying if a specific account is causing the issue.
3. Clear Cached Data: You can try deleting the Outlook Cached Mode OST file. This can help resolve syncing issues. To do this, follow these steps:
   • Close Outlook.
   • Navigate to the location of the OST file (found in Account Settings under Data Files).
   • Delete the OST file and restart Outlook to allow a new OST file to be created.
4. Create a New Outlook Profile: If the problem persists, consider creating a new Outlook profile. This can help if there are issues with the current profile settings. You can do this through the Control Panel under Mail settings.
5. Check for Updates: Ensure that your Outlook 2019 is fully updated. Sometimes, updates can resolve underlying issues.

If none of these steps work, uninstalling and reinstalling Office 2019 may be a last resort, but it should not be necessary if the above steps resolve the syncing issue.

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References:

• Terminated in error found in Outlook Sync Issues log files
• The operation failed error when you send email messages in Outlook

Answer 2

Thank you.

I had previously tried all your suggestions up to setting up a new profile, so I have now tried that. Unfortunately this didn't solve the problem as no connection could be made. So it looks as if I will have to try uninstalling MS Office, although I've read on previous internet sites that this doesn't always work either.

Answer 3

Hi, I get why this is confusing because Outlook keeps syncing when the IMAP connection isn’t fully closing or when cached account data forces auto-setup.

Removing accounts alone doesn’t clear the underlying profile or stored credentials, so Outlook just re-adds them and resumes syncing.

The easiest fix is to start fresh by creating a new Outlook profile and clearing saved credentials so nothing auto-loads.

You can do this by going to Control Panel > Mail > Show Profiles, adding a new one, and then setting up your Gmail accounts manually.

Before that, open Windows Credential Manager and remove any stored Gmail or Outlook entries and also check under Settings > Accounts > Email & accounts to sign out any linked accounts.

Once done, re-add Gmail using IMAP but disable automatic send/receive for those accounts under File > Options > Advanced > Send/Receive if you want to stop constant syncing.

Quick question, do you want Gmail to stay connected but sync less often, or do you want Outlook to stop syncing Gmail completely?

Regards,
Aron