The e-mail program Outlook is used by many companies and private individuals to help organize messages and appointments in an Outlook calendar. Outlook’s search function is indispensable to people who receive and answer many e-mails daily. The advantage is that you do not have to search through all folders, but instead can view a filtered section of relevant messages by entering a search term.
What kind of folders or time you want to filter can be set up with just a few clicks before hitting search. This makes it easier for both private and business users to communicate faster and to structure their messages very clearly. But what if the Outlook search function suddenly stops working? What problems may occur when there are no matches found? How can they be eliminated? The Outlook search function no longer works: typical problems Not all Outlook search issues are made equal. If your Outlook search function is not working, there may be different causes for it. What may cause one user to no longer be able to see search results, may cause another user to only see half the available e-mails in their search. Typical problems with the search function include:
Restarting Outlook Sometimes the simplest solutions are the most effective. Restart the program by closing it entirely once and then reopening. But be careful: Outlook may be set up by default so that clicking close does not mean exiting the program. It continues to run in the background and is simply no longer directly visible to you. You can find out whether this is the case in your system tray. If the Outlook icon is still active there, it means you have not closed the program. Look at the visible and hidden icons. To exit Outlook permanently, just right-click the icon and select “Exit.” Alternatively, select “File” and “Exit” in the Outlook menu. Closing the program using Task Manager If Outlook does not respond to your attempts to close it, you can also force this through the Task Manager. To do this, end the “OUTLOOK.EXE” process. Follow these simple steps:
It may also be helpful to restrict your search to just a specific folder, e.g. “Sent Messages” or one of the subfolders in your inbox. If the Outlook search function is still not working, you can restart your PC. Using the repair function If a restart does not solve the problem, you can then try to repair the program virtually. Just go to the Window control panel and select the “Programs” category. You now have the option to uninstall or modify the program. Usually you select your entire Microsoft Office package to be repaired, since Outlook is a part of that package. Click on “Change” and then “Repair.” When the repair is complete, close the window and restart Windows. If the cause of the problem lies in the repair tools’ access area, the Outlook search function should return to normal. Repair Outlook from the control panel. Check Outlook for updates Make sure that your Outlook program is up to date. The updates are done centrally through the Windows update. Outdated versions of the program may no longer be compatible with the latest updates that your Windows operating system has already been running in the background, so it’s important that you always keep your Outlook up to date. To decipher whether this is the case, check for available updates. You can do this in the “Settings” section with Windows 10. Select the “Update and Security” section. Click on “Advanced Options” and “Install updates for other Microsoft products.” Then go back to the previous page and start running a check for new updates by clicking on “Check for updates.” If none are available, you can ignore this step. Disable third-party search tools Some third parties have developed add-ons that can be integrated into the Outlook program. These may create problems for Outlook’s search function. Extensions can also access the program’s database, so that users can search for messages through them. To resolve this inconsistency, you should disable any third-party tools that you install later. If the add-on was the reason for the Outlook search function not working, it should now work. Checking Outlook indexingOutlook has an index that is structured like a data catalogue. It combines all important terms in saved e-mails. This allows users to find specific messages just by entering a search term. If the Outlook’s search engine is no longer working, it is often because the program settings are incorrect and because the necessary information has not been collected. To find out whether this is the case for you, you need to check the indexing options. To do this, proceed as follows:
If you suspect that one of these files has become corrupted, you will need a tool to repair your inbox. Outlook has already integrated the scanpst.exe tool. It detects whether a PST file is damaged and then repairs it. The following steps will help you repair a PST file:
There are sometimes errors or incorrect information in the registry, resulting in certain programs now starting or working correctly. If your Outlook search function is returning no matches found, it may be due to incorrect registry information. If you are unable to perform an Outlook search after you have already reset the index, you have the option of forcing a “clean up” through the registry. ! Note It is recommended that only administrators or experienced computer users make changes to the registry, since cleaning the registry automatically resets Outlook. Incorrect entries can cause more problems with PC software. It is also advisable to make a backup copy before making any changes to the registry. Resetting Outlook manually is the final resort before reinstalling the program. To delete registry entries for your Outlook program, open the registry first:
Reinstalling Outlook When uninstalling the program, proceed like you are repairing it. To remove the program, open Control Panel, select “Program” and then “Uninstall program.” Then select “Add or Remove Features” in the “Microsoft Office” entry and confirm the action with “Next.” You will then see a list of individual associated programs. Click on the small arrow next to “Microsoft Outlook” and set it to “Not Available.” Confirm your selection with “Next” and follow any further instructions from the (un)install wizard. When the uninstallation is complete, close the window and restart the computer. Original Source: https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/e-mail/technical-matters/outlook-search-function-not-working/
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Author'Alice Cook' is been working for the last 5 years as the strategists and senior digital leader with a core skill set in digital marketing, digital transformation. Work at Contactforhelp. Archives
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