Resolve Outlook for Windows issues with automated troubleshooting tools
A damaged or corrupted Outlook user profile is a common reason for "Outlook won’t open" errors. Creating a fresh profile can provide a clean slate for Outlook to start. Outlook stores all your email messages, meetings and events, contacts, and tasks in data files. You can run the Inbox Repair Tool (scanpst.exe) to scan your Outlook data files and repair errors. Are you having trouble starting Outlook or receiving step-by-step Outlook troubleshooting "Cannot start Microsoft Outlook. Cannot open the Outlook window" error messages?
Some users may not be able to empty their Deleted Items folder. We will update this article as soon as we have more information on a fix. Some Safari users are unable to add email addresses in the To section, or cannot point the cursor in the To field.
A corrupted new profile or Outlook profile can lead to delays, crashing, step-by-step Outlook troubleshooting or the Outlook not responding error. If creating a new profile solves your issue, you can return to the Show Profiles dialog and delete your old profile. Your profile stores a variety of settings that control how Outlook looks and feels. You can create a new profile and then add your email accounts to the new profile.
I usually disable them one-by-one, closing Outlook with each change. This helps to pin down the culprit that causes Outlook to freeze. A conflict with step-by-step Outlook troubleshooting Outlook may occur with applications like desktop search, PDF software, or other Microsoft 365 tools that interact with your email account.
If it never worked before or if you are starting Outlook for the very first time, it could very well be that you have not configured your mail account correctly. A common mistake is choosing for an Exchange account while in fact you are using a POP3 or IMAP account. Just to make sure you are not step-by-step Outlook troubleshooting trying to troubleshoot an issue which has already been solved, before you begin verify that you have installed all updates for your version of Outlook. I’m not certain to which post you’re referring, but everything that’s been mentioned so far can be done directly by the user. No elevated permissions are required to do any of these steps.
There are quite a few different causes for this, but one of the most common is a defective add-in. Here’s how to disable add-ins in Outlook even when it keeps crashing. If Outlook Desktop fails to connect, try these steps before escalating the issue to the ET&S Help Desk.
For a complete list of articles, browse the navigation pane on the left, or use the search box above the pane to filter by keywords and find help with a specific issue. If classic Outlook repeatedly prompts you step-by-step Outlook troubleshooting for a password during setup, make sure that your caps lock isn't turned on. This can also happen if you've entered your username incorrectly.
If the network is performing slowly, Outlook must wait for read and write operations to the AppData directory to finish. To manage your mailbox by using the AutoArchive feature, see AutoArchive settings explained. We recommend that you move several items in your larger folders to separate folders, or that you archive those items by using the AutoArchive feature. Make sure that the latest updates for Outlook are installed.
There is currently no option to revert to the prior behavior, but we would love to hear your feedback to help us with future designs. To learn more about how to send us feedback, please see How do I give feedback on Microsoft Office. Note that you can quickly tell how your mail is currently sorted, by the presence of a small triangle on the field headers. You may notice that All, Unread , Mentioned and other sort and filtering options, such as By date, and Newest are missing in Outlook above your email list. Please install the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update to fix this issue. Outlook 2016 freezes when you try to preview an Excel file that's attached to an email.
To sum up, we explored several methods to fix "Outlook won’t open" errors. Whether it’s a profile issue, a corrupted PST file, or faulty add-ins, the methods above can help you get Outlook running again. When Microsoft Outlook refuses to open, it’s incredibly frustrating. This issue often stems from common culprits like a corrupted user profile, a damaged data file (PST or OST), or even a minor conflict within its settings or add-ins.
Having too many shared mailboxes and step-by-step Outlook troubleshooting folders can cause slow performance in Outlook. The limit will depend on the size of the mailboxes and folders. It is recommended to remove any mailboxes that don’t need to be open. You can also add the secondary connected accounts (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) in Outlook.com as additional accounts in the Outlook profile.
Give Outlook a few minutes to finish the process and it should start to work again. I decided to try and fix it by uninstalling and reinstalling. I also removed some old add-ins and an old, inactive account (but Outlook worked no problem with these for a long time).
Until you can install the Windows Update fix release, you can set a registry key that will cause Outlook to stop using the local Windows Search service. When this registry key is set, Outlook will use its own built-in search engine. The built-in search will display the message below to indicate it is not using the Windows Search service. The issues documented in this section have been reported after installing the recent updates listed below. We're investigating the issues and will update this page when a fix is available.