iPhone Calendar problem with iOS 17.1.1 update

I believe this is an issue with the way the iOS calendar app (or the underlying Apple framework) interfaces specifically with MS Exchange shared calendars. I have tested this with an iCloud shared calendar and the issue cannot be reproduced. So interfacing to iCloud mail/calendar servers is not a problem. It is not a Microsoft issue either, because I can't reproduce the issue with two Windows laptops working with the same shared Outlook calendar. Add to that the fact that the emergence of the problems coincided with the 17.x.x updates, and I would say the update (most likely 17.1.1) broke the MS Exchange interface.

One *temporary* workaround for new entries is to create a shared iCloud calendar and share across iCloud id's. It is easy to generate a free iCloud id from within an iOS device, if you don't have one. To share the same calendar across Windows devices running Outlook you will need to add the iCloud account to Outlook, and supply your password (or a generated application password if you have MFA enabled). A bit more involved, but doable.

I insist that this be a temporary step until a fix is pushed out, because I do not want to bear the burden of replicating all legacy calendar entries from the Microsoft calendar to the new Apple one, and abandon the old calendar. I have a need for shared calendars to reside on MS Exchange. When the problem is fixed I will abandon the Apple shared calendar and go back to the Exchange calendar.

I think Imfound a fix: the issue only occurs with the pre-set designated Outlook My Family calendar. I have some other shared calendars and they seem unaffected.

So: go to outlook online, create a new blank calendar, name and save it. After that, open its settings and share it. Once everybody has added this calendar to their outlook account, it appears in iOS Calendar and works like we were used to.

Unfortunately this fix doesn’t do the magic. I did some testing and the issue appears indeed to affect ALL shared calendars. I apologise for suggesting.

The issue seems to be:

The person (account) that sets up an item in a shared calendar ‘owns’ it and is able to change it, delete it, etc. Annoyingly, other users of that shared calendar are downgraded to ‘invitees’ and can only accept, reject, accept tentative or propose a change. Ouch.

There might be a workaround.

Create a new account (outlook or google), add this account to all your iOS devices and those of your colleagues, family members etc. and use its calendar as your ‘shared’.

Now that everybody is using the same account to access the joint calendar, everybody ‘owns’ the items in it, nobody is ‘invitee’. The calendar isn’t ‘shared’, all devices are using the same credentials.

Should pretty much work across platforms and regardless of iOS handling of shared calendars. Moreover, you can use this account to share contacts, too.

And for migration purposes: there are some third party mail clients (not Outlook) that allow you to copy a whole bunch of calendar items from one account to another. Or export and import. Be careful, test on a limited number of items and make sure they ‘work’ on all your devices (e.g. don’t get converted to invitations) before you go all the way!

JoeBMVO wrote:

We have been using a shared Outlook Calendar on the IOS Calendar for the past 10 years- this has only just started so it seems like IOS are at fault.

I'm not sure I see the logic there. The calendar app is, in many ways, just the viewer for whatever calendar data base you're using. In this, case, that's Outlook. Regardless, though, I'd suggest you try using Outlook (the app).

This is definitely an iOS fault and not a Microsoft one. Like others on this thread I am experiencing the same issue. It started happening when we updated devices to 17.x.x. After updating my wife's iPhone the problem started happening on it. The problem did not appear on her iPad until it too, was updated to 17.1.2. We have had seamless shared Outlook calendar integration between iOS devices and Windows laptops for years, and now our family event coordination is in complete disarray. Calendar viewing and updates still work fine on Windows (I have not tried the Outlook iOS app). I'd rather not have to put the effort into establishing a substitute mechanism. This is a significant usability issue and Apple needs to fix this bug as a priority.

Easier to get a hold of someone on support chat. I would suggest having screen shots available so that they can be shared with the support person. A problem ticket needs to be created.

I am also hoping a corporate IT administrator with an Apple support contract will raise this and appropriately escalate, because this is a common scenario in some corporate IT environments -- Microsoft services and a variety of client devices in the hands of users -- Windows, iPads, Macs etc.

I reached out to Apple support today because of the same issue. I have been watching this thread hoping it would get fixed. My situation is an Office365 shared calendar that editors can't modify since ios 17. Interestingly, this happened to my family when we upgraded to iPhone 15 pro. One of my family members was running an iPhone12 with ios 17 and it worked. When we upgraded that phone to iphone 15 pro it stopped working, so this looks like it may be a combination of hardware and ios 17 in my case. It for sure isn't working properly on 4 devices for me at this time

Unfortunately, Apple hasn't been helpful yet, and I have two hours working with chat and multiple calls that keep getting 'disconnected'.

DrJoanneM wrote:

Any ideas about how to get Apple's attention? Has anyone called this issue out on Twitter (X)? I've been dealing with this since November...

If you want to speak to Apple directly, use the Support link at the bottom left of every page of this forum.

If you want to leave feedback, use the Feedback page:

Product Feedback - Apple

It is my understanding that Apple has removed their support presence from X.

DrJoanneM wrote:

Thanks for your response-It's the Calendar App in the iPhone which uses Outlook events

Then that's probably an Outlook issue. Have you tried using the Outlook app on your phone?

The event is created in Outlook - no attendees just a date - text ie Joe Bloggs Visit - set as all day - with no reminders. Now I am an attendee and have the option to accept decline or maybe. This is definitely a IOS issue. Who can we contact to have it looked at professionally.

Not sure this is helpful, but here goes…. I was waiting for support and messing with my calendars - turning ones off and on …. And by the time support came online with me the calendar was working properly again!!! Go figure.

This is so frustrating. I updated last night and still the same. My subscribed calendar with Outlook was no longer working and I deleted It and tried to subscribe again and it’s won’t even subscribe anymore. The issue was with the update, hard to see how this is a Microsoft issue.

I, like so many others, am still waiting for Apple to fix the calendar glitch. I’m further annoyed that my original post has been edited and not by me. It should read ‘events’, not ‘invites’, which is actually a verb and not a noun. Other pedants will understand!