Q: Outlook for Mac 2011 on OS X 10.11 hangs during account sync operation

i had to be completely out of outlook when i turned my wifi off.  but after about 20 minutes after I posted this the beachball came back.  If I force-quit Outlook, turn off wifi, open outlook, wait about a minute, and turn on wifi it works.

MSoutlook (MSOffice 11) mail synchronizing works (mail server: exchange) but calender sync crashes. I do not use Calender, only mail untill this problem is fixed by MicroSoft

Microsoft just released version 14.5.6 for Outlook. This should fix the pinwheel issue in El Capitan.

I downloaded and installed the update and all is well

New update today from Microsoft fixed the problem for me.

Looks like Microsoft has released an Office update v14.5.6 which seems to have repaired the issue and my Outlook is now functioning.

Issues that the update fixes

This update provides the following fixes to improve Mac OS X El Capitan compatibility:

• The hang situation that occurs during an account sync operation in Microsoft Outlook for Mac 2011 is fixed. This problem is described inKB 3098396.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3098229

Thank you! Installing the "Microsoft Office for Mac 2011 14.5.6 update" fixed the problem for me.

The latest update for Office 2016 is 15.17. You need to be sure to update the Microsoft AutoUpdater (MAU) first to see the latest update.

Microsoft AutoUpdate for Mac 3.3.0 - December 10, 2015 update

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3119516

MS15-131: Description of the security update for Office 2016 for Mac: December 10, 2015  v15.17

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3119518

Hello dianeoforegon-

     Wondering if you could help me with a similar issue?

On El Capitan 10.11.3 and Microsoft Office for Mac 2011, including Outlook 14.6.0.  Never had the account sync issue pre 14.6.0, but it all of a sudden has shown up since the new update to 14.6.0.  Anyone else seeing this?  It appears to be ONLY happening on a large GMAIL account as my other GMAIL, cable internet provider email address and an Exchange accounts all appear to be syncing correctly and complete. I've tried rebuilding the Outlook database multiple times and even downloading and reinstalling 14.6.0 thinking perhaps something reverted back to a previous version.  But no luck.

Can I delete this account from the database and still recover the email that is stored on my drive from this account?  I'd like to see if that account itself is the problem, or if it just "appears" to be the problem.

MacBook Pro with Retina display, OS X El Capitan (10.11.3)

Rebuilding rarely fixes issues like this plus it can introduce problems to the Identity. Just think of it like having chemotherapy. While it might kill the cancer, it can also damage your body.

After you rebuild, you should always delete any IMAP and/or Exchange accounts and let them download from the server. Otherwise, the rebuild could have corrupted data in those account and it would sync back and overwrite the sever contents.

Your best option is to create a new Identity. If had never done a rebuild, then removing the account and adding it back would have been an acceptable option. If you choose this as the easy way out, don't be surprised when it all comes back to bite you in the future.

How to move your data to a new Identity

http://www.officeformachelp.com/2012/05/how-to-move-your-data-to-a-new-identity/

Connect Outlook for Mac 2011 to Gmail’s IMAP service

http://www.officeformachelp.com/2012/12/connect-outlook-for-mac-2011-to-gmails-i map-service/

**(Fair disclosure: OfficeforMacHelp is my site. I may receive some form of compensation, financial or otherwise, from links on my site.)

Thanks dianeoforegon, prior to doing any of the rebuilds, I did create a copy of the identity/database using the finder.  Could I revert back to that copy and then delete/readd the gmail account, or am I still better off creating a new identity?

Considering the copy you made before rebuilding most likely had problems or you wouldn't have selected to rebuild, I would still recommend moving to a new Identity. It's not that difficult. You are only moving the "On My Computer" local data over to the new Identity.

Outlook crashed and restarted in the middle of importing the .olm file.  Do I create another new identity and restart that process?

In addition, it appears as though this process only takes into account the mail that is still stored on the IMAP or Exchange servers.  Trying to recall how far back my mail on the IMAP server(s) goes...  I know I have been going through and archiving mail as old as five years ago on my main IMAP account.  Will this only recover what is on the server?

Tried the new identity twice with the same results, Outlook crashes only part way through the import of the .olm file.  Not 100% certain if it crashed at exactly the same place each time, I do know it appears to get through contacts and calendars, but crashes part way through mail... I'm guessing about 1/8.  The .olm file size is 1.28gb.  Any other thoughts or ideas?  Everything appeared to be working normally until yesterday.  I was thinking that the problem had not occurred until after I had installed 1.4.6, which is true, but AutoUpdate installed that back on 1/12/16, so it had been running normally under that version until yesterday, or possibly the day before..

My Time Machine backups are up to date, are there particular files I could restore to get me back to a working state?  The only other thing that I've done is update to the latest El Capitan yesterday, but that was after the hang started happening.