Answered by:
Outlook 2013 email stuck in Outbox

Question
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Periodically we get reports from frustrated staff who are informed by a recipient that they never received an email, only to find it sitting in their Outbox. Often times simply closing and reopening Outlook resolves the issue. We're seeing this on both Win7 and 10 clients. Looking for help in determining common causes of this and proactive steps to prevent it from happening in the first place.
Thanks kindly for any help!
Hank Vare
- Edited by techrep43 Tuesday, August 28, 2018 8:08 PM
- Moved by Yuki SunMicrosoft contingent staff Wednesday, August 29, 2018 6:57 AM move to outlook forum.
Tuesday, August 28, 2018 7:57 PM
Answers
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Thank you for the reply Yuki.
Is there a way to set a notification or alarm that will notify the user whenever an email is directed to the Outbox? I looked through the different Rules and Alerts settings but didn't find a way to set this up.
Hank Vare
Hi Hank,
Generally, only when closing Outlook, a notification will pop up if messages are stuck in Outbox:
As regards to your requirement about prompting an alert during the use of Outlook, I am afraid there is no such a built-in option. Based on my research, if you are familiar with macros and this is acceptable in your environment, you may refer to the code shared by David Lee in the link below as a workaround:
Dim WithEvents olkSync As Outlook.SyncObject Private Sub olkSync_SyncEnd() If Session.GetDefaultFolder(olFolderOutbox).Items.count > 0 Then msgbox "A send/receive just completed and there are still unsent items in your Outbox.", vbExclamation + vbOKOnly, "Unsent Item Warning" End If End Sub Private Sub Application_Quit() Set olkSync = Nothing End Sub Private Sub Application_Startup() Set olkSync = Application.Session.SyncObjects.Item(1) End Sub
Please Note: Since the web site is not hosted by Microsoft, the link may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this information.
I tested in my Outlook 2016 and it worked fine:
If you still have concern on such a feature and would like to see it in the future versions of Outlook, it is encouraged to share your idea in the Outlook UserVoice forum. It is a place for customers provide feedback about Outlook for Windows. What’s more, if a feedback is high voted there by other customers, it will be promising that Microsoft Product Team will take it into consideration when designing the next version in the future.
Hope the above information can be helpful :)
Regards,
Yuki Sun
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they helped. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact tnsf@microsoft.com.
Click here to learn more. Visit the dedicated forum to share, explore and talk to experts about Microsoft Teams.
- Proposed as answer by Yuki SunMicrosoft contingent staff Monday, September 3, 2018 9:13 AM
- Marked as answer by techrep43 Saturday, September 8, 2018 4:36 PM
Thursday, August 30, 2018 2:20 AM
All replies
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Hi Hank,
Does this issue affect some particular users or it occurred randomly?
What did you do to solve this when restarting Outlook didn't work?Generally, when the problem happens, firs it is suggested to check the bottom of the Outlook window to see if Outlook is disconnected. For other possible causes and general troubleshooting steps, hopefully you can find the article below helpful:
Regards,
Yuki Sun
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they helped. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact tnsf@microsoft.com.
Click here to learn more. Visit the dedicated forum to share, explore and talk to experts about Microsoft Teams.
Wednesday, August 29, 2018 6:57 AM -
Thank you for the reply Yuki.
Is there a way to set a notification or alarm that will notify the user whenever an email is directed to the Outbox? I looked through the different Rules and Alerts settings but didn't find a way to set this up.
Hank Vare
Wednesday, August 29, 2018 1:46 PM -
Thank you for the reply Yuki.
Is there a way to set a notification or alarm that will notify the user whenever an email is directed to the Outbox? I looked through the different Rules and Alerts settings but didn't find a way to set this up.
Hank Vare
Hi Hank,
Generally, only when closing Outlook, a notification will pop up if messages are stuck in Outbox:
As regards to your requirement about prompting an alert during the use of Outlook, I am afraid there is no such a built-in option. Based on my research, if you are familiar with macros and this is acceptable in your environment, you may refer to the code shared by David Lee in the link below as a workaround:
Dim WithEvents olkSync As Outlook.SyncObject Private Sub olkSync_SyncEnd() If Session.GetDefaultFolder(olFolderOutbox).Items.count > 0 Then msgbox "A send/receive just completed and there are still unsent items in your Outbox.", vbExclamation + vbOKOnly, "Unsent Item Warning" End If End Sub Private Sub Application_Quit() Set olkSync = Nothing End Sub Private Sub Application_Startup() Set olkSync = Application.Session.SyncObjects.Item(1) End Sub
Please Note: Since the web site is not hosted by Microsoft, the link may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this information.
I tested in my Outlook 2016 and it worked fine:
If you still have concern on such a feature and would like to see it in the future versions of Outlook, it is encouraged to share your idea in the Outlook UserVoice forum. It is a place for customers provide feedback about Outlook for Windows. What’s more, if a feedback is high voted there by other customers, it will be promising that Microsoft Product Team will take it into consideration when designing the next version in the future.
Hope the above information can be helpful :)
Regards,
Yuki Sun
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they helped. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact tnsf@microsoft.com.
Click here to learn more. Visit the dedicated forum to share, explore and talk to experts about Microsoft Teams.
- Proposed as answer by Yuki SunMicrosoft contingent staff Monday, September 3, 2018 9:13 AM
- Marked as answer by techrep43 Saturday, September 8, 2018 4:36 PM
Thursday, August 30, 2018 2:20 AM -
Hi Hank,
Just checked in to see how everything is going on with the issue. If my reply above was helpful, could you please help mark it as answer so that others who might have a similar issue can benefit from your thread? Thanks for your understanding and support.
Regards,
Yuki Sun
Please remember to mark the replies as answers if they helped. If you have feedback for TechNet Subscriber Support, contact tnsf@microsoft.com.
Click here to learn more. Visit the dedicated forum to share, explore and talk to experts about Microsoft Teams.
Friday, September 7, 2018 5:35 AM