The Outlook for MAC search 'No Results' problem, can appear after updating MAC OS or Office for MAC from one release to another or can appear suddenly without an obvious reason. In such cases the Outlook Search function in Outlook 2011 for MAC or in Outlook 2016 for MAC does not work and returns 'No Results' when you try to find something in Outlook mail program that you know it exists. Despite the Outlook search problem, SPOTLIGHT is working correctly and displays results.

This tutorial contains instructions to resolve the Outlook for MAC Search problems (Search returns 'No Results'), in Outlook for Mac 2016 or Outlook for Mac 2011.

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How to fix: Outlook MAC Search Returns 'No Results' in Outlook 2011 or 2016 for MAC *

* Suggestion for Outlook 2016 users: We've identified that the most common root for this problem is the need to re-index Outlook's Search Database, so we recommend to try method-6 first to see if it solves the problem.

Method 1. Verify that the Outlook Profile/Identity is stored at the default location.

First of all, make sure that the Outlook 2016 for Mac Profile or the Outlook for Mac 2011 Identity data is stored under the correct default location and has no special characters on its name. If the Profile or Identity name contains a special character, then follow the steps in this Microsoft Article to change the name:

• Outlook 2016 for Mac default Profile Location:
  • • ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/Outlook/Outlook 15 Profiles/Main Profile
• Outlook for Mac 2011 default Identity location:
  • • /Users/username/Documents/Microsoft User Data/Office 2011 Identities/Main Identity

Method 2. Install all Microsoft Updates.

1. Open any Office application such as Word, Excel, or Outlook.
2. On the top menu, go to Help > Check for Updates. *

* Important: If you don't see the 'Check for Updates' option on the Help menu, then download and run the latest version of the Microsoft Auto-Update tool from https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3133674. (After running the tool, the 'Check for Updates' option will be available).

Method 3. Run the Outlook 2016 Search Troubleshooter.

The next method to fix the 'No Results' search issue in Outlook 2016 for MAC, is to run the Microsoft Outlook Search Troubleshooter.

1. Close Outlook 2016 for MAC.
2. Run the Outlook 2016 Search Repair Troubleshooter (source-2) tool from MS:

Method 4. Move Messages to another Outlook folder.

1. Open Outlook.
2. Create a new folder inside Outlook (e.g. Inbox-New)
3. Select and move all messages to the new created folder.
4. When the moving is done, move back your messages to the original folder. (This process will force Outlook to re-index the emails and they start to appear in the results).
5. Once you done delete the temporary folder.

Method 5. Re-Index Hard Drive in Spotlight.

1. Open the System Preferences and click on Spotlight.
2. Make sure that Mail Messages is checked under the Search Results tab
3. Then click the Privacy tab.
4. Make Sure that the Outlook Profile (or Identity) folder or one of its parent folders is not added to the Privacy tab. (If so, then remove them, skip the rest steps and try to find something using the Outlook search).
5. Then Drag and drop the hard drive icon from the desktop into Spotlight. (This will remove the current index)
6. Finally highlight the hard drive you just added and click the minus button to remove it. (This will force Spotlight to create a new index)
7. Wait until Spotlight indexing your drive.
8. After indexing restart your computer.
9. Try to use the Outlook search.
10. If the problem persists:

a. Delete (or move to desktop and delete them later) the following files from the User's Library/Preferences folder:

• com.microsoft.Outlook.SyncServicesPreferences.plist
• com.microsoft.SyncservicesAgent.plist

b. Then delete (or move to desktop) from the User's Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Office 2011 folder, the file OfficeSync Prefs

c. Restart your MAC.
d. Try to perform a search in Outlook.

Method 6. Re-index the Outlook for MAC Search Database.

Outlook for Mac uses OS X Spotlight to search your mailbox. If the Spotlight Index is corrupted then the Outlook search may display 'No results'. At this case you have to re-indexing the Outlook 2016 for Mac search database. To do that:

• Outlook 2016 for MAC:
  – To re-index the Search database in Outlook for Mac 2016

1. Restart Mac.
2. Go to Finder > Applications > Utilities > Terminal.
3. Type 'mdimport -L'.

• IMPORTANT: If you see more than one instance of 'Microsoft Outlook Spotlight Importer.mdimporter' delete the Outlook application that you are NOT using, empty it from the Trash, again restart your Mac, and go back to Step 1.

4. Without closing the 'terminal' window, open Outlook and try the search function. If you receive results when searching then the problem is resolved. If the Outlook search displays again 'No results' then continue below:

5. In Terminal, re-index your Outlook database using the following command and substituting your own user name for <user_name>:

mdimport -g '/Applications/Microsoft Outlook.app/Contents/Library/Spotlight/Microsoft Outlook Spotlight Importer.mdimporter' -d1 /Users/<user_name>/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/Outlook/Outlook 15 Profiles/Main Profile

• Note in the command above, the path after '-g' is the default path where your Outlook is installed. The path after '-d1' is the default path to your profile. You'll have to substitute your actual paths if you have renamed your profile or installed Outlook in a different location.

6. Re-indexing will take some time to complete. Once the process is complete, quit and re-launch Outlook. *

* TIP: Here is an alternative method to re-build the Outlook 2016 Database in MAC:

1. Go to the following location:

• ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/Outlook/Outlook 15 Profiles/Main Profile/Data

2. Move the Outlook.sqllite file to your desktop. (This will force Outlook to detect an issue and to do an auto rebuild).
3. When the Rebuild is completed, open Outlook and perform a search.
4. If the search is working then delete the 'Outlook.sqllite' file from your desktop.

• Outlook for Mac 2011:
  – To re-index the Search database in Outlook for Mac 2011

1. Hold down the Option key, and then click the Outlook for Mac 2011 icon. (or go to Applications > Microsoft Office 2011 > Office > Microsoft Database Utility).
2. Highlight your Identity Click Rebuild.

Method 7. FIX Spotlight Permissions & Rebuild Spotlight Index using Terminal.

The final method to resolve the 'No Results' issue when performing a search in Outlook 2011 or 2016 for Mac, is to fix the Spotlight permissions in Outlook 2011 database and then to rebuild the Spotlight database, by following the steps below:

• Outlook for Mac 2016

1. Open Terminal from Applications > Utilities.
2. Give the following commands in order (Press Enter after typing each command)

• sudo mdutil -i off /
• sudo rm -rf /.Spotlight*
• sudo rm -rf /.metadata_never_index

3. Reboot your computer.
4. After restart, open Terminal again and type these commands in order:

• sudo mdutil -i on /
• sudo mdutil -E

3. Now wait until Spotlight reindex your entire drive. You can monitor the process if you click at Spotlight Search icon at the upper-right corner. When the indexing is completed (100%) then proceed and try the Outlook search.

• Outlook for Mac 2011.

1. Open Terminal from Applications > Utilities.
2. Give the following commands in order (Press Enter after typing each command)

• sudo chown root:wheel '/Applications/Microsoft Office 2011'
• sudo chmod 755 '/Applications/Microsoft Office 2011'
• sudo mdutil -a -i off
• sudo rm -rf /.Spotlight-V100
• sudo mdutil -a -i on

3. Now wait until Spotlight reindex your entire drive. You can monitor the process if you click at Spotlight Search icon at the upper-right corner. When the indexing is completed (100%) then proceed and try the Outlook search.

Method 8. Completely Remove and Reinstall Office for MAC.

1. Backup Outlook Data (copy Outlook Identity or Profile to another location. e.g. your Desktop).

2. Completely uninstall Office 2011 MAC or Uninstall Office 2016 for MAC.

3. Re-install Office for MAC.

4. Open Outlook for MAC and use the Import command to import the Outlook data from the backup location.

5. Follow the steps is method-6 above to reindex the Outlook search database.

6. Try the Outlook search function.

Did it work for you?
Please leave a comment in the comment section below or even better: like and share this blog post in the social networks to help spread the word about this solution.

Microsoft Office is a powerful and complex suit of programs that allow you to get a lot of work done. But, just like with any other program, sometimes it becomes unstable and doesn’t work how you need it to. Here’s some tips to help you solve issues when things go awry.

Diagnose and Repair Office 2007 or 2010

Office 2007 includes the Microsoft Office Diagnostics tool. it’s a simple utility that’s wizard based and runs diagnostics on Office that identifies problems and search fro solutions and repair them itself. After it’s done, you’ll get a detailed report of the results. If a problem can’t be fixed, it provides a link to a Microsoft site that will provide you with more details of what’s wrong and possible fixes.

Microsoft removed 2007’s Diagnostic Tool in Office 2010, but you can still run an Office repair. Go to Control Panel > Programs and Features, right-click on Microsoft Office 2010, and select Change.

On the next screen select Repair and Microsoft Office will go through and do a repair and hopefully that will get you up and running again.

For full details on both Office 2007 and 2010 read: Diagnose and Repair Microsoft Office 2007 or 2010.

Fix Microsoft Office 2013

Repair Microsoft Office Mac Os X

While Office 2013 doesn’t have a built-in diagnostic tool like Office 2007, you can download the free analyzer tool from Microsoft that will identify problematic Office configurations. It’s called Microsoft Office Configuration Analyzer Tool or OffCAT.

For full details on running OffCAT, check out: Fix Office Problems with OffCAT.

Speaking of Microsoft Fix it, you can get easy fixes for specific problems for virtually all consumer software products the company offers. It’s definitely a good resource to have, and Microsoft provides all of the fixes for free.

Sometimes when you can’t fix the office suite with the above tools, it might come down to reinstalling it completely. However when you do install Office, it digs it hooks deep into the OS and can be quite difficult to completely uninstall it. You’re definitely not going to completely uninstall it using Programs and Features in Control Panel.

In fact, I wrote an article a while ago: How I Completely Uninstall Software. In that article I recommend using Revo Uninstaller. I actually tried that with Office once, and it found so many leftovers that I just gave up because it was a ridiculous headache.

So, read: How to Uninstall Office 2013 or 365 the Easy Way. This uses a Microsoft Fix it Solution that is so convenient I recommend it to everyone. It uninstalls Office with a couple of clicks and lets you do a clean reinstall.

Repair Microsoft Office Mac Os Compatibility Chart

Speaking of Microsoft Fix it, you can get easy fixes for specific problems for virtually all consumer software products the company offers.

Hopefully some of these tools will help if you’re having troubles with the Microsoft Office suite as a whole. It is worth mentioning that if you’re still running Office 2003 – which Microsoft is no longer supporting – it has a repair tool with it as well. It’s been a long time since I ran that, but I believe you put in your Office 2003 disc and it gives you the option to repair it.

Now if you’re having problems with individual programs in MS Office such as finding the Outlook temporary OLK folder, or just need a tutorial like how to create booklets in Word, then use the search box on our site because chances are we’ve covered it…no matter which version you’re running.

If you have a specific question about fixing or doing something in Office, then check out our Microsoft Office forum. There’s a lot of knowledgeable people in there who will be happy to help!