An Informative Guide to Resolve ‘Outlook Error Synchronizing Folder’ Issue

  

Nimisha Ramesh   
Published: Sep 27, 2018 • Error , Outlook • 6 Min Read

The article illustrates solution on how to troubleshoot issues, which Microsoft customers might face at the synchronization time. Several users complain regarding ‘Outlook error synchronizing folder’ problem that is generally caused in OST file with users who are using Exchange accounts in Microsoft Outlook. (Instead of going for useless talks, we are directly starting with instructions to fix Microsoft error).

Determine Whether OST Files Are Synced Or Not?

Take help of following instructions to check whether offline folders are synchronized or not:

• Right-click on the folder, which is to be verified and click on Properties option
• A Properties window gets opened in which you have to click on the Synchronization tab.

• Go to Statistics for this folder and check the settings in following fields :
• Last Synchronized on Date
• Server folder contains:#
• Items Offline folder contains:# Items

The items number in the Server folder and Offline folder field will be the same if synchronization is working properly. If it is improperly working or if synchronization is not working properly between the server and offline folder, it means that verification of profile settings is required. Determine the version of Outlook used by you and accordingly follow the below-mentioned instructions :

For Outlook 2003

• Open MS Outlook on your PC and click on Tools >> Email Accounts
• In the dialog box of Email Accounts, ensure that ‘View or change existing email accounts’ option is activated under the Email section. Click on Next to proceed with the solution for ‘Outlook error synchronizing folder’ problem
• Ensure that Mailbox-account name is enabled in the list of Deliver new Mail to the following location
• Click on MS Exchange Server object and click on Change
• Check that Use Cached Exchange Mode feature is enabled and click on Next
• Click on Finish and then, on OK button
• Close MS Outlook 2003 email client and again open it

For Outlook 2007

• Open Account Settings window in MS Outlook 2007 by clicking on Tools >> Account Settings
• From the current screen, click on Data Files tab and ensure that Mailbox-account name is mentioned for default use
• Click on the Email >> Mailbox-account name >> Settings
• Click on Advanced tab and check that ‘Use Cached Exchange Mode’ option is enabled. Click on OK to continue with fixing of ‘Outlook error synchronizing folder’ issue
• Click on a Close button in Account Settings dialog box
• At last, close MS Outlook 2007 email client and again open it to update all the changes

For Outlook 2010

• Go to File >> Account Settings >> Account Settings
• Click on the Data Files tab and check that Mailbox-account name is mentioned for default purpose
• Click on Email tab and then, click on Mailbox-account name >> Change
• Verify that ‘Use Cached Exchange Mode’ option is enabled and click on OK
• Continue the resolution procedure of fixing ‘Outlook error synchronizing folder’ problem by clicking on the Close button
• Close MS Outlook 2010 and again open to it after a certain time duration

Synchronize the Folder Again

When you are done with the defined settings in Microsoft Outlook email client, apply any one of the following approaches to synchronize folder for the second time :

Manual Synchronization

1. Go to the Folder List pane and click on the folder, which is to be synced. If no Folder list pane appears, click on Folder List in the Go menu
2. Expand the Send/Receive option from Tools menu and select ‘This Folder (Microsoft Exchange Server)’ to synchronize one offline folder at a time. Also, directly you can click on Send/Receive option to simultaneously sync all offline folders

At the beginning of synchronization procedure, you will view a synchronization status statement at the lower-right part of the screen. If you are having tons of items in the mailbox and they are not synced in offline folders then, synchronization process might consume more than half an hour.

Automatic Synchronization

You can define automatic synchronization procedure by implementing the following instructions :

1. Open MS Outlook program and click on Tools >> Option
2. Click on the Mail Setup tab and in Send/Receive section, enable the checkbox of ‘Send immediately when connected’
3. Click Send/Receive, which opens a dialog box where you have to make sure that ‘Perform an automatic send/receive when exiting’ option is enabled. Click on Close and then, OK to continue with fixing of ‘Outlook error synchronizing folder’ problem

Create a New .ost File and Synchronize Offline Folders Again

1. If you find that all folders, except Inbox, are synchronized or if you are unable to sync folder even after implementing above-mentioned instructions then it means that your OST file is damaged. The only manual solution to troubleshoot ‘Outlook error synchronizing folder’ problem is to rename an old .ost file and then, create a new one. If you are unknown from the measures, take help of following guidelines :
2. Close all applications and then click on Start button of Windows OS
3. Move the cursor towards Search option and click on For Files or Folders
4. Type *.ost command in ‘all or part of the file name’ tab
5. Do not type anything in the box of A word or phrase in the file
6. Click on the hard disk in Look in a list and click on Include subfolders checkbox in More Advanced options. Now click on Search
7. You will find the .ost file in the Name column on which you have performed right-click and then choose Rename option. Rename the file with any of your desired name and also change the file extension from .ost to .old
8. Completely close all applications, which got opened due to the implementation of this procedure and restart your system
9. When a system is done with restart process, open MS Outlook and synchronize all the folders by clicking on Send/Receive button

The procedure will not cause any harm to information because a .ost file is the replica of data, which is stored on Exchange server mailbox.

Conclusion

There is no particular reason due to which ‘Outlook error synchronizing folder’ problem is taking place. Users need to implement all the described approaches one-by-one for troubleshooting the problem.