Fix email connectivity problems after Office 365 upgrade

Some people who have been recently upgraded from the pre-upgrade version of Office 365 are having connectivity problems with Outlook. For example, you may see a message in the status bar at the bottom of your Outlook window that says Trying to connect or Disconnected. There are a few things that can cause connection issues.

The most common cause for connection problems is outdated operating system or app software, so you should check that first. If your software meets Office 365 requirements, try the other steps here. Test your Outlook connection between each step.

 TIP    While you track down Outlook connection issues, you can keep sending and receiving email and manage your calendar and contacts in Outlook Web App. Click Outlook in to the Office 365 portal, or go directly to Office 365 email at http://mail.office365.com.

Step 1: Make sure that your operating system is up-to-date

1. Check the version of your software and your operating system to see if they meet the minimum requirements for Office 365. There’s a list of all the minimum software requirements located here. If the versions that you’re using aren’t supported, you’ll need to upgrade.

1. If your operating system and software meet requirements, you might just need to install a software update for Outlook. Run Windows Update to install the latest patches and feature updates.

Step 2: Repair your Outlook profile

• Follow these quick steps to repair your Outlook profile and see if that fixes your email connection.

Step 3: Create a new Outlook profile

• If repairing the profile doesn’t work, try creating a new email profile in Outlook.

Step 4: Use the Outlook Connectivity Troubleshooter

• If you’re still experiencing connectivity problems, try the Outlook Connectivity Troubleshooter. This tool can help guide you through diagnosing and resolving Outlook issues.

Why this might help: If your Outlook profile was set up so that Outlook automatically discovers the right mail server (using Autodiscover), email will continue to work during an upgrade. If the profile was set up manually to use a specific email server name, you may need to repair the profile.