Look what’s back! Microsoft is warning of an issue with search for the Outlook Desktop program on Windows 11. This problem has popped up for the second time in the last year.
The last time this bug reared its face, it was an update for Windows that was the culprit.
No idea what the cause is now.
But like before, the problem is preventing Outlook Search from showing recent emails in results in the latest operating system. A proper fix for the issues does not exist yet, but there is a temporary workaround that might come in handy.
Microsoft acknowledged the issue, explaining:
“When searching in Outlook Desktop on Windows 11 you might not see the most recent emails in the search results. If you check Windows Indexing Options in the Control Panel, the indexing might be running slow or might be paused.”
According to the company, the problem mostly affects users with POP, IMAP, and offline Exchange accounts due to the search feature for these users primarily using the local Windows Search service to index email.
Emails hosted by Microsoft 365 and connected Exchange accounts use Service Search for most search scopes, which the company says are not affected by this issue.
Redmond suggests a temporary workaround while it carries out the investigation. And that involves simply disabling Outlook Search for the time being. The instructions to do so are provided at the support link above.
Interestingly, this is also not the first time Microsoft recommends users disable the Windows Search service to fix problems in the desktop version of Outlook. A similar workaround was proposed last year for those who pulled the trigger and tried out the first preview builds of Windows 11.
The software titan has not indicated when a proper fix will be made available, but expect a solution to this rather severe problem sooner rather than later.
