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How to Fix Old Sent Emails Missing in Outlook on the Web
Question details
The user is unable to locate older sent emails in the Sent folder using Outlook on the web.
- Product
- Outlook on the web
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Searching for or browsing past sent emails in the Sent Items folder.
- Observed behavior
- Older messages are unexpectedly missing from the Sent folder, even though they were not manually deleted and no obvious retention policy is configured.
Verify that you are connected to the internet and logged into the correct Microsoft 365 account. Also, check your 'Deleted Items' folder and search your mailbox by keyword just in case the emails were accidentally moved.
Verify Mailbox Retention Policies and Online Archive
Older emails are often automatically archived or deleted by retention tags or default policies applied to your mailbox by your organization.
Even if you did not manually configure a retention policy, a default corporate policy might be moving older sent emails to an archive or deleting them after a certain period.
Sign in to Outlook on the web with your Microsoft 365 credentials.
Right-click the 'Sent Items' folder in the left navigation pane and select 'Assign policy'. Check if any archive or deletion tags are currently active.
Scroll down your folder list in the left pane. Look for an 'In-Place Archive' or 'Online Archive' mailbox. If it exists, expand it and check its 'Sent Items' folder for the missing older messages.
Contact Microsoft 365 Support for Backend Investigation
If no retention policies or archives explain the missing emails, the issue requires a backend investigation by Microsoft's technical support team.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why did my old emails suddenly disappear from the Sent folder?
Emails typically disappear due to automatic retention policies set by your IT administrator, server-side auto-archiving features moving them to an Online Archive, or accidental deletion or moving to another folder.
Can I recover sent emails if my Online Archive is disabled?
If the Online Archive is disabled and the emails are not found in the 'Deleted Items' or 'Recoverable Items' folders, you will need your Microsoft 365 Global Administrator to run a message trace or open a backend service request to investigate.
How long does Microsoft 365 keep deleted emails?
By default, items remain in the 'Deleted Items' folder until manually emptied. Once emptied, they are moved to the 'Recoverable Items' folder where they are retained for 14 days (this can be extended up to 30 days by an administrator) before being permanently purged.
