---
title: "Outlook Search Not Working"
url: https://lookeen.com/blog/outlook-search-not-working
lang: en
description: "There can be many reasons why your Outlook search is no longer working. Here you will learn what options are available to fix the problem."
author: "Ben Golling"
published: 2016-01-11T14:17:07+00:00
modified: 2026-11-11T06:25:56+00:00
---

# Outlook Search Not Working

If your Outlook search constantly indicates that items still need to be indexed or you only receive results from before a certain date, this usually means: Your Outlook search is no longer working. We would like to show you several ways to resolve this issue.

## Re-index PST Files

[Replace Outlook search with the Lookeen search tool – Learn more here!](https://lookeen.com/solutions/outlook-search/outlook-search)

If your Outlook search is no longer working, you need to check whether the PST files in Microsoft Outlook are indexed correctly. To do this, proceed as follows:

1.  You can either select the “Indexing Options” shortcut in the Windows Control Panel or open your Microsoft Outlook client and click on the “File” tab.

![Indexing Options](https://lookeen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Indizierungsoptionen-Systemsteuerung-1-1024x318.jpg)

2.  A pop-up will appear where you need to find the “Options” sub-item on the left. After clicking “Options”, a new window named “Outlook Options” will open.

![Options Indexing Options](https://lookeen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Datei-Optionen-Outlook-1.jpg)

3.  Under the “Search” (or “Browse” depending on the version) section, you will find a gray-bordered field on the right labeled “Indexing Options…”. Clicking it will open a new window.

![Indexing Options](https://lookeen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Suche-Indizierungsoptionen-1.jpg)

4.  Here, click “Modify” to open another new window named “Indexed Locations”.

![Indexing Options](https://lookeen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Indizierte-Orte.jpg)

5.  If Microsoft Outlook is not selected in the list, check it by clicking the small square to its left.

6.  Confirm with “OK”, “Close”, and then “OK” again to close all windows and return to the default Outlook window.

If Microsoft Outlook was already checked or you still do not see correct results after checking it, unfortunately your Outlook search is still not working. However, one of the following procedures may help you:

## Repair PST Files

The Personal Store file (PST for short) is a file format that Microsoft uses to store all of Outlook’s data. If your PST file is corrupted, the Outlook search cannot correctly access the stored data. Therefore, you should first check whether your PST file is damaged and needs to be repaired.

For this, Microsoft Office provides the program scanpst.exe, which you can either find via the Windows search or directly in the folder directory. Up to Outlook 2010, scanpst.exe was located at the path C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Microsoft Office\\OfficeXY\\SCANPST.EXE. Starting with Outlook 2013, it is located at C:\\Programme (x86)\\Microsoft Office/root/OfficeXY (on 32-bit systems, the same directory under C:\\Programme…).

The fastest way to find the file is to select any item and press “S” on your keyboard multiple times until you reach the correct alphabetical position. However, you can also search for the file in the folder using the search box in the top right corner.

![Scanpst Directory](https://lookeen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/scanpst-1-1024x546.jpg)

Run scanpst.exe as soon as you have found the file. The program will search your PST files for errors. Depending on the size of your PST file, this process may take some time. If the number of items to be indexed does not change even after a long time, scanpst.exe could not immediately solve your problem.

Let scanpst.exe run and try removing the problematic PST file from the index and adding it back:

1.  First, you need to open “Indexing Options” as described above.
2.  There, uncheck the problematic PST file (e.g., “Microsoft Outlook”).
3.  Click “OK” and close Outlook (you must also stop the Outlook processes in the Task Manager, which you can open using the Ctrl + Alt + Del shortcut).
4.  After 10 minutes, you can restart Outlook and re-select the previously deselected PST file in the search options. In scanpst.exe, the status should change to “0 items remaining”. If this is not the case, it is advisable to completely rebuild your index so that your Outlook search works again.

## Delete and Rebuild Index

For this as well, you must return to the “Indexing Options” window. Here, click on “Advanced” to open the “Advanced Options”.

![Indexing Options Change or Advanced Settings](https://lookeen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Indizierungsoptionen.jpg)

Under “Troubleshooting”, you can have the index deleted and rebuilt. This process can sometimes take a very long time and significantly impact your computer’s performance. It is advisable that you only have the new index created when you have enough time (e.g., overnight).

![Outlook Index](https://lookeen.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Index-l%C3%B6schen-und-neu-erstellen.jpg)

If this also does not lead to the desired result and your Outlook search still does not work, then as a last resort, you can disable and re-enable your Windows Search. You can read how this works [in this blog post](https://lookeen.com/blog/disable-windows-search-here-s-how/).