Searching old emails

Hi,

I am having trouble searching for old emails via Outlook.  If I sort my Sent Items, and then click the link at the bottom to get more from Exchange, I see them all.  However, using the Outlook search tools doesn't find them - even if I do an advanced search and use the date field to specify dates.

Is there a way to do this from Outlook?

Thanks!

--Kent

March 23rd, 2015 2:43pm

Kent,

how about if in the search "inbox field" you type:

received: 02/12/2015 ..  03/15/2015   or  sent :02/12/2015 ..  03/15/2015

Example:

you still get the same result ?

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March 23rd, 2015 4:04pm

I tried doing:

<searchterm> sent:10/1/2013 .. 12/31/2013

while on my sent items folder, but it couldn't find anything.

However, if I manually go to that date range, I can see items matching the searchterm.

Thanks!

--Kent

March 23rd, 2015 4:10pm

Karl,

https://support.office.com/en-nz/article/Learn-to-narrow-your-search-criteria-for-better-searches-in-Outlook-d824d1e9-a255-4c8a-8553-276fb895a8da

Will get you familiar with search query syntax.

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March 23rd, 2015 6:09pm

Hi Kent,

From your description, I recommend you check if the indexing has completed.

1. Open Outlook, click the Search box.

2. Click the Search tab, click Search Tools, and then click Indexing Status.

3. When the Indexing Status dialog appears, you should see: Outlook has finished indexing all of your items. 0 items remaining to be indexed.

Hope this can be helpful to you.

Best regards,

March 24th, 2015 7:34am

Hi,

Any update?

Best regards,

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March 29th, 2015 9:27pm

Will Outlook index emails over a year or two old in Exchange?

--Kent

March 29th, 2015 10:01pm

Hi,

It depends on the AutoArchive settings in your Outlook. Please follow the steps to check it:

Open Outlook -> File -> Options -> Advanced -> AutoArchive Settings

For your reference.

Hope this can be helpful to you.

Best regards,

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March 30th, 2015 10:28pm

Hi,

I am just writing to see if you have obtained the opportunity to test the solution. If anything is unclear with the information I provided, please let me know.

Best regards,

April 7th, 2015 10:01pm

The old items are still listed in Exchange, and the Index says 0 items left, but it's still not finding things from searching over a year old.  When I list them by date and scroll down, I see them all, but I have to click the show more messages from Exchange first.
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April 7th, 2015 11:03pm

Hi,

Yes, you need to click the "click here to view more on Microsoft Exchange" message to see the old items.

Best regards,

April 9th, 2015 10:45pm

I choose that, but the searching is not working!  I can see items after I click that link, but when I try to search for one of the items, it's not included in the search results.

--Kent

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April 10th, 2015 12:40am

Hi,

If the issue persists, please install the latest Service Pack for your Outlook and check the result.

Best regards,

April 12th, 2015 9:36pm

Doing a search now for Windows updates.  Am I correct in thinking that Outlook should match older email stored on the Exchange server?

Will I need to do anything after the latest updates are installed?

--Kent

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April 12th, 2015 10:12pm

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