hotmail.com alias is not working despite being listed in my account info page

Question

Hello,

I have just found out by coincidence that my hotmail.com alias (<mod: PII redacted>@hotmail.com) is not working. I have been giving this address to a specific group of people (trades) and today i was expecting a response from someone but never received anything. I tried testing the email address by sending an email from another account and it actually says that the address does not exist. My <mod: PII redacted>@hotmail.com alias is definitely listed in my account info page.260221 vipsee login.jpg

Also, please see below information.

Kind regards,

Vipin.

Diagnostic information for administrators:

Generating server: googlemail.com

<mod: PII redacted>@hotmail.com hotmail-com.olc.protection.outlook.com. (52.101.68.17, the server for the domain hotmail.com.) Remote server returned '554 5.5.0 <hotmail-com.olc.protection.outlook.com. (52.101.68.17, the server for the domain hotmail.com.) #5.5.0 smtp; 550 5.5.0 Requested action not taken: mailbox unavailable (S2017062302). [DB5PEPF00014B8F.eurprd02.prod.outlook.com 2026-02-21T10:35:18.332Z 08DE6C49B54B7AB9]>'

Original message headers:

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        Sat, 21 Feb 2026 02:35:16 -0800 (PST)
Return-Path: <******@gmail.com>
Received: from PAXPR08MB7294.eurprd08.prod.outlook.com ([2603:1026:c0a:95::5])
        by smtp.gmail.com with ESMTPSA id 98e67ed59e1d1-358af93b2bdsm1985398a91.16.2026.02.21.02.35.15
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        Sat, 21 Feb 2026 02:35:15 -0800 (PST)
From:
 PII
 <<mod: PII2 redacted>@gmail.com>
To: "<mod: PII redacted>@hotmail.com" <<mod: PII redacted>@hotmail.com>
Subject: test
Thread-Topic: test
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Date: Sat, 21 Feb 2026 10:35:13 +0000
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Answer 1

Hello Vipin Seetohul, 

Thank you for posting your question to the Microsoft Q&A forum with your detailed message and for sharing the full bounce report — I understand how concerning this must be, especially if you’ve been giving this address out to clients and only discovered the issue when an expected reply didn’t arrive. 

The error: 

550 5.5.0 Requested action not taken: mailbox unavailable (S2017062302) 

means that Microsoft’s mail system is currently not recognizing the @hotmail.com alias as an active mailbox for receiving mail. That is why senders are getting an “address does not exist” response. 

I appreciate that you can clearly see the alias listed in your account information. However, there are a couple of specific areas we should carefully verify.

Step 1: Confirm the alias in the correct location 

Please sign in and go to:  https://account.microsoft.com/names/Manage  (Manage how you sign in to Microsoft) 

On this page, confirm: 

• The @hotmail.com address is listed under Account aliases 
• It has not been removed previously 
• It is available for sign-in 

This page reflects the actual alias configuration used for mail routing — not just profile display information. 

2. Check for Accidental Deletion 

If you do not see the Hotmail address on the specific management page linked above, it may have been accidentally removed at some point. It is very important to know that if a Microsoft domain alias (like @hotmail.com, @live.com, or @outlook.com) is removed from an account, it is permanently deleted. It cannot be recovered, recreated, or used again. 

3. Inactivity Policy

Microsoft's account activity policy requires you to sign in at least once every two years to keep an account active. If this Hotmail address was originally a standalone account that was merged or hasn't been actively signed into, inactivity closures can sometimes cause these specific mailbox errors. 

If you check the management page and your Hotmail alias is definitely still listed as an active alias, and mail is still bouncing back with that 550 5.5.0 error, this points to a server-side routing issue. Because community agents cannot access the backend of your account to fix server sync errors, you will need account-level support. 

You can contact them by: 

1. Visit the Contact - Microsoft Support website.
2. Type "emails don't send" in the search box.
3. Click Get Help, scroll to the bottom, and select Contact Support.
   • Note: You will be asked to sign in to your personal Microsoft account.
4. Under Products & Services, select Other Products.
5. Under Category, select Microsoft 365 & Office.
6. Click Confirm.
7. Select Chat with a support agent in your web browser.

When contacting them, include the full bounce message and reference the error code S2017062302, as you’ve shared here. 

I understand this situation can be stressful, particularly if you rely on this alias for communication. Please check the alias management page and let me know what you find — I’ll be glad to continue assisting you. 

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