Microsoft fixes bug preventing classic Outlook launch — but still recommends the new Outlook for Windows as a workaround, despite it not being prime-time ready

Microsoft has released a new Outlook app for Windows, and it’s now replacing the Mail & Calendar apps that used to come with Windows. If you’ve recently updated to Windows 11, version 24H2, you’ll notice the older Mail & Calendar apps are no longer automatically installed.

Users have strongly criticized the recent changes to the Windows Outlook app, calling it a simple web page disguised as a native application. Many fear it won’t meet their needs because it feels slower and less polished, with an inconsistent and frustrating design.

Microsoft claims the redesigned Outlook now offers a seamless experience, having fixed several initial problems. However, many users, including our editor Zac Bowden, feel it still isn’t polished enough to be the standard email app for Windows.

With Microsoft planning to end support for the older version of Outlook on Windows, they recently resolved a significant issue that was stopping some Microsoft 365 users from opening the program.

Some users reported problems opening the app or logging into their Exchange account. The specific errors included messages like “Cannot start Microsoft Outlook,” “Cannot open the Outlook window,” “The set of folders cannot be opened,” and “The attempt to log on to Microsoft Exchange has failed.”

This error can happen for a variety of reasons, and each situation isn’t necessarily the same. However, we’ve recently seen most cases of this error related to user email accounts.

Microsoft

The tech company initially told users experiencing problems to contact the Exchange Online support team. However, they’ve since updated their documentation, stating the issue is now resolved. The Outlook team is continuing to monitor things closely to confirm everything is working as expected.

If you’re still having trouble, you can submit a support request through the Microsoft 365 Admin portal. However, resolving the problem will require Exchange Online support to make a change on our end.

Interestingly, Microsoft also suggests a simple solution at the bottom of their help page: try using Outlook on the web or the new Outlook for Windows. That’s great!

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2025-10-22 17:39