After quite some test and searching I have finally discovered that I am not the only one having issues with duplicate and silently vanishing contact entries in Outlook 2013 using outlook.com.
Unfortunately my testing shows that the bug is more general and severe than described in this
thread. So please do not just delete the duplicate as recommended, this will just cause the remaining copy to silently vanish when it is edited at some point later in time.
My tests indicate that it is best to avoid any modification (create, edit or delete) of contacts in Outlook 2013 when using outlook.com. Use the web or another device (e.g. iPhone) to do any contact modifications until the bug is fixed.
The problem starts when creating a contact in Outlook 2013 folder connected to outlook.com, but at this point it is only a hidden error in the internal outlook data structure. The problem becomes visible when the contact sometime later is edited, and then
results in a duplicate contact entry (one with the update and one without). Deleting one of the duplicates will cause the other contact to silently vanish when later edited.
How to reproduce the problem:
- Create and save a contact in Outlook 2013, just call it TEST or something else.
- Wait until it has been synchronized with outlook.com, this typically happens in a few seconds.
- Modify something on the contact in Outlook 2013, such as adding a company name.
- Wait until it has been synchronized with outlook.com
- Now there will be two identical contacts named TEST in Outlook 2013. In outlook.com and other connected devices there is only one contact.
- Delete any of the two contacts in Outlook 2013 and wait for synchronization.
- Now there is one contact named TEST in Outlook 2013 and none in outlook.com or other connected devices.
- Open, edit and save the contact in Outlook 2013 and wait for sync.
- Now the contact silently vanishes in Outlook 2013 and cannot be seen on any devices.
The problem does not occur if the first step is performed on outlook.com. This leads me to conclude that the first step is the root cause where some kind of internal data inconsistency is created in the Outlook 2013 cache. The issue cannot be reproduced
on some of my older contacts, so it may be a bug introduced by an update.
This brings me to the following questions:
- Can the above steps reproduce the problem for everybody using a fully updated Outlook 2013 connected to outlook.com?
- Can the above steps reproduce the problem when Outlook 2013 is connected to an Exchange Server?
- Are there any indications that Microsoft is fully aware of the extent and severity of this problem?
Further details:
- Fully updated Windows 8.1
- Fully updated Office Home and Business 2013 (version 15.0.4693.1001)
- Fully updated AVAST Antivirus - temporarily disabling it has no effect
- Full Office online repair does not solve the problem.
- Reproduced on two computers connected to different outlook.com accounts.
Tips:
- A vanished contact can be restored to the state of step 5 within 30 days fromhttps://people.live.com/#vw=deletedContacts, but the last edit is permanently lost.
- A duplicate contact can be fixed by first printing the contact, then deleting the duplicates in Outlook 2013, and finally recreating the contact using outlook.com on the web.
Any feedback, guidance or help is highly appreciated :)
