auto complete is not working

Question

Auto complete is not working.

Answer 1

Hi DSGN Cabinet Makers, 

I completely understand your frustration. Having the Auto-Complete feature stop working can significantly disrupt your workflow, especially when you rely on it to send emails quickly. It is indeed annoying when you have to type out full addresses manually. 

Please try the following troubleshooting steps to resolve this issue: 

Check Auto-Complete Settings & Clear Cache: First, ensure the feature is actually enabled and try resetting the cache: 

1. Go to File > Options > Mail. 

2. Scroll down to the Send messages section. 

3. Ensure the box "Use Auto-Complete List to suggest names when typing in the To, Cc, and Bcc lines" is checked. 

4. If it is already checked, please click the "Empty Auto-Complete List" button next to it to clear any corrupted data.  

Note: After emptying the list, Outlook will need to "re-learn" your contacts. It will start saving suggestions again as you send new emails. 

Test Outlook in Safe Mode: To rule out any issues caused by add-ins, please try opening Outlook in Safe Mode: 

1. Press Windows + R on your keyboard to open the Run dialog box. 

2. Type outlook.exe /safe and press Enter. 

3. If Auto-Complete works correctly in Safe Mode, return to normal mode and try disabling or removing unnecessary add-ins. 

Repair Your Office Installation: If the issue is specific to the desktop app, a repair might be needed: 

• Close Outlook and go to Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features. 
• Find Microsoft Office in the list, right-click it, and choose Change or Repair. 
• Start with Quick Repair. If that doesn’t resolve the issue, try Online Repair (which is more comprehensive but may take longer). 

Reference: Repair an Office application

Create a New Outlook Profile: If none of the above steps resolve the issue, please consider creating a new Outlook profile. Sometimes a corrupted profile can cause data retrieval problems. 

Detailed steps are available here: Create a new Outlook profile - Microsoft Support. 

Check on Outlook on the Web (OWA) or New Outlook: Have you had a chance to try this on the New Outlook for Windows or Outlook on the Web (OWA)? 

• Please log in to your email via a web browser or switch to the New Outlook to see if the issue persists there. 
• Does everything work correctly on those platforms? Knowing this helps us determine if the issue is specific to the Classic Outlook client or related to your account settings. 

I hope this helps get your Outlook back to normal! If you have any concerns or updates, or if I misunderstood anything, please feel free to reach out anytime. 

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Answer 2

Follow these steps to fix AutoComplete not working in classic Outlook for Windows:

1. Confirm AutoComplete is enabled
   1. In Outlook, select File > Options.
   2. Select the Mail tab.
   3. Scroll to Send messages.
   4. Make sure Use AutoComplete List to suggest names when typing in the To, Cc, and Bcc lines is checked.
   5. If it is already checked, select Empty AutoComplete List, confirm with Yes, then send a few test emails to rebuild the list.
2. If using a Microsoft Exchange Server account
   1. In Outlook, select File > Info > Account Settings.
   2. In Account Settings, verify the account Type shows Microsoft Exchange.
   3. Prepare Outlook to run without Cached Exchange Mode:
      • Select File > Account Settings > Account Settings.
      • Select the Exchange account and choose Change.
      • Clear Use Cached Exchange Mode, select Next, then Finish, then Close.
   4. Exit Outlook.
   5. On Windows, select Start, then type or paste: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Outlook and open the Outlook folder from the results.
   6. Right‑click the RoamCache folder, select Rename, and change the name to old_RoamCache. Warning: this deletes all existing AutoComplete entries; the list will be rebuilt from new messages.
   7. Start Outlook; a new RoamCache folder is created automatically.
   8. Turn Cached Exchange Mode back on:
      • Select File > Account Settings > Account Settings.
      • Select the Exchange account, choose Change, and re‑enable Use Cached Exchange Mode.
3. If using a home (non‑Exchange) email account
   1. In Outlook, select File > Info > Account Settings.
   2. If the Type column does not say Microsoft Exchange, close Outlook.
   3. On Windows, select Start, then type or paste: %LOCALAPPDATA%\Microsoft\Outlook and open the Outlook folder.
   4. Right‑click the RoamCache folder, select Rename, and change the name to old_RoamCache. Warning: this deletes all existing AutoComplete entries; the list will be rebuilt from new messages.
   5. Restart Outlook; a new RoamCache folder is created automatically.
4. Check for iTunes Outlook Change Notifier add‑in (if iTunes is installed)
   1. In Outlook, select File > Options > Add‑Ins.
   2. At the bottom, next to Manage COM Add‑ins, select Go….
   3. Find Outlook Change Notifier.
      • Either update iTunes to version 10.1.0.56 or newer, or
      • Clear the checkbox for Outlook Change Notifier to disable it.
   4. Select OK and restart Outlook.

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References:

• AutoComplete not working correctly in Outlook 2010