I'm dealing with a frustrating issue where one of my users has completely lost the ability to search her mailbox in Outlook Web App (OWA). We don't use the Outlook application, so all her searches are done through OWA. Whenever she clicks in the search bar, she sees no suggestions, and if she types a query and presses enter, it shows the error message: "Your request cannot be completed right now." Even trying to access contacts results in a message saying, "Something went wrong." It seems like her search index might be corrupted or not initializing properly. I've tried troubleshooting through multiple computers and browsers, and since there's no improvement, I'm leaning towards the idea that it's a backend issue. I've already contacted Microsoft support, but they haven't been helpful. My concern is that if this were an on-premise Exchange setup, I would easily trigger some index rebuild actions. Now, I'm considering exporting her mailbox to a PST, deleting the user, recreating her account, and restoring the mailbox from the PST, but it feels like an overly complicated last resort.
5 Answers
This happens all the time for me too! I think it might be related to our network connectivity. Sometimes when I search, it takes forever and then finally finds something, making me wonder if it's even searching locally.
Have you tried using the New Outlook app? It might provide a different result.
I've had a similar experience with one of my users. We tried different browsers and even delegated permissions but nothing worked. Interestingly, the search issue resolved itself after about a week. It's really frustrating trying to work with OWA; it feels like everything is just so convoluted. I miss the straightforwardness of on-premise Exchange!
I know, right? If I had access to my old on-prem Exchange server, I’d just trigger a mailbox move and be done with it. When did you face this issue?
This definitely sounds like a backend issue with the search index since it fails across multiple devices and applications for just this user. Before you consider the harsh PST route, try a few things. First, test out Outlook Classic with Cached Mode; sometimes forcing that can reinitiate the local index. You could also try removing and reassigning her EXO license after a short wait since that might help trigger a backend reprovisioning. If her mailbox is under retention or litigation hold, you should double-check that, as those can also cause weird search problems. I would be cautious about exporting to PST unless absolutely necessary, as it can complicate things even further!
You should definitely think about initiating a mailbox move; that usually clears things up if the search index is corrupted.
I just remote accessed her machine and confirmed that searching doesn't work in the New Outlook either. I'm thinking of trying Outlook Classic with cached mode soon since that might trigger a local search index.