Yesterday, security updates were released for Exchange Server 2016 and Exchange Server 2019. In connection with Outlook and Exchange Server 2019, there are now increasing reports of problems with the search. In the Exchange Team Blog and also in the Comments Admins report on the problems with my post.
Bei der Suche kommt es scheinbar zu der Fehlermeldung „We’re having trouble fetching results from the server…“ bzw. „Da hat etwas nicht geklappt, und ihre Suche konnte nicht abgeschlossen werden.“, wie in Screenshots auf dem Exchange Team Blog zu sehen ist:
The search problems seem to be independent of the Outlook version and also independent of the Outlook mode (Cache Mode / Online Mode). In a comment in the Exchange Team Blog, two registry keys are suggested as a workaround, which seems to have helped in one case:
Microsoft has not yet officially confirmed the problem. Regardless of the possible search problem, the March security update contains two known problems:
- Download domains not working after installing the March 2024 SU
- OwaDeepTestProbe and EacBackEndLogonProbe fail after installing March 2024 SU
A commentator on the Exchange Team blog puts it in a nutshell:
The Outlook search is one of the core functionalities for users, for OWA users the display and download of attachments must of course also work. The temporary deactivation of the download domains could still be tolerated, but a faulty Outlook search would result in many calls to the helpdesk.
My recommendation is therefore to postpone the installation of the update until further information is available. I will update this article as soon as I get any news. If you experience similar problems after installing the update, please let me know in the comments.
Update 14.03.2024: Microsoft has now confirmed that the problems described may occur. There is now a corresponding note about the update on the Exchange Team Blog. Anyone who has installed the update and now has problems with the search should set the registry entries shown on the Outlook client:
Key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Outlook\Search
Value 1: DisableServerAssistedSearch
Value 2: DisableServerAssistedSuggestions
Value type: REG_DWORD
Value: 1
However, this is only a workaround. A fix for the problem is still being worked on.
Update: 19.03.2024: No further information is available yet. Microsoft is still working on a fix and recommends the two registry keys as a workaround:
Update 02.04.2024: So far there is no new update that fixes the problems. However, new problems are being added. In the meantime, the bug with the incorrectly labeled mails has been confirmed, as well as problems with various add-ins:
- After installation of the March 2024 SU, newly received messages might show yellow envelope icon in Outlook client, no matter the read status of the message. This issue is cosmetic.
- Certain add-ins (such as My Templates) might not work properly after March 2024 SU is installed.
Many users are also reporting problems with the Outlook Mobile app in the Exchange Team Blog. There also seem to be problems with shared calendars. Unfortunately, we still have to wait for a new update.
Update 23.04.2024: The new hotfix from the April update fixes the problems.