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Outlook broke after Office 365 update to 16.0.19328.20158 – cannot open emails Windows Server 2016
Hello everyone, posting to report that after the latest automatic update to Microsoft Office 365 version 16.0.19328.20158, we are experiencing a critical issue on multiple company machines running Windows Server 2016: The Outlook desktop application launches normally, but when trying to open any email, the following error appears: “There was a problem opening this item... The text formatting command is not available... Reinstall Microsoft Outlook.” Launching Outlook in safe mode (Outlook /safe) does not help. Creating the FORMS2 folder (suggested workaround) does not fix it. Attempting a downgrade via OfficeC2RClient.exe fails with error 30183-27 (400). Quick/online repair from Control Panel also has no effect. In our environment, this issue appeared simultaneously on many workstations and servers, right after the Office update today. Temporary solution: We are instructing users to access their mail via Outlook Web App (OWA), which is not affected by this bug. We would like to know: If others have experienced this bug with this build, including on Windows Server 2016 If any working workaround exists, or an official fix timeframe from Microsoft Thanks to anyone who can share their experience or updates!
Strange Issue with Outlook Classic Encrypted Emails
We have the option to Encrypt outgoing sensitive emails manually but also have DLP rules set up to catch PII if a user forgets to manually encrypt. Everything was working up until we applied an Office update and the recipients reported getting "Sorry, we can't display your message right now. Something went wrong and your encrypted message couldn't be opened. Please try again by following the instructions in the original email message in 5 minutes." However, using Outlook web, all encrypted messages could be opened normally which led us to believe it was an issue with the Outlook client. We ran an Office quick repair on the PC/User in question, and the recipients could once again open the encrypted message. Barring repairing office every time this issue happens does anyone have any other ideas? TIA, Ben
Search function in Outlook is terrible
I have a problem with the PA to the CEO. When she searches for emails in his mailbox (which she has full access to), it returns 997 mails. As an example, I chose a folder with 4 emails in it. I typed in the word I was looking for, and hit enter. Outlook reported that no mail could be found, so it searched the entire mailbox. I have recreated her profile, and switched off cached exchange mode. When cached exchange mode is switched off, Outlook finds the email. I also renamed the outlook folder under c:\user\app data\local\Microsoft\outlook, same problem. Searching for the mail in the portal works. Any suggestions?Unified inbox in new Outlook for Windows
Having a brand new email app (although it is not "real" appliaction per se) without Unified Inbox / Inbox Grouping option is really, really bad. Outlook for Android have unified inbox for years. Old Mail app in Windows had great possibility for grouping accounts which was even better than simple unified Inbox option available on Android or usually available in other apps. People having just one email use webmail anyway... And people with real need for mail appliaction usually have several emails and want some grouping at least. Hell, even naming of favorite folders is not available ?!? Can we move past 2012?Significant changes to the New Outlook Calendar Event User Interface
In October 2025, the New Outlook Calendar Event was redesigned to incorporate Copilot, leading to a complete user interface makeover. Many icons were rearranged. This blog post includes a screenshot, icon placement, and descriptions. New Outlook Scheduling Gets a Makeover - Copilot Chat Joins #traccreations4e-p25 10/29/2025New Outlook Randomly Assigning/Overriding Categories to Calendar Items
I use Categories to color code and organize my calendar. In the New Outlook, the system is randomly assigning categories to some of my calendar items. For example, I have one item that has no category assigned, but now it uses my "Misc Meeting" category. Another one I'd already labeled with the "Analyst Team" category and now it's added "Phone Call" to the item (which is making the wrong color display). In both of these examples, if I right click to access the categories and correct them (or even just "Clear all categories"), once I submit, after a few seconds the incorrect category labels and colors come back. Help?How to Update New Outlook's Custom Dictionary
I had a user to ask about how to update Outlook's Custom Dictionary. She had noticed that many of her Classic Outlook brand terms and acronyms were missing in New Outlook. You may not realize that New Outlook uses RoamingCustom.dic file and has its own custom dictionary. This file is stored in the cloud. Classic Outlook uses Custom.dic file and is saved on your local computer. Both dictionaries can be updated through Microsoft Word. In this blog post, which contains a video, I explained the differences between the two dictionaries, where they are stored, and how to build your dictionary in New Outlook. #traccreations4e-p25 11/24/2025
