How To Sync Windows Live Hotmail With Microsoft Outlook 2013

I’m not one of those Outlook fans but I know that most people, especially those from the corporate world, love Outlook  as it can manage our Contacts, Mails, Calendar, Notes, Tasks all in one place. Since I was a power Gmail user I never had to depend upon Outlook. But yesterday I gave a try to the new Microsoft Office Outlook 2013 Preview. It looks just fantastic and is no longer the Outlook which I knew for a long time.

Well, now I feel that I realized the true power of Outlook lately. It can really do much more than what I have imagined. How? I’ll be showing you that in the upcoming posts as I’m still in process of consolidating my online stuff.

Microsoft says,

Outlook helps you manage your busy life more easily and efficiently. You get new and improved ways to find information quickly, handle email, coordinate schedules, keep current with contacts and social networks, and tame your unruly to-do lists.

Microsoft offered an Office Outlook Hotmail Connector to connect our Hotmail (now Outlook.com) accounts with Outlook so that we can manage our Windows Live Hotmail (MSN Hotmail), Calendar, Contacts from within Outlook 2003, 2007 and 2010. But it still lacked perfection and looked quite messy. But the new Outlook 2013 mimics the Windows 8 metro interface and is tightly integrated with your Microsoft account (formerly Windows Live ID) so it is connected to your Microsoft SkyDrive account.

Now the good news is that you no longer need an Outlook Hotmail Connector if you want to setup Hotmail in Outlook 2013. Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync is part of the new Outlook 2013. So all you need to do is enter your basic account details – name, username, and password.

How To Synchronize Microsoft Hotmail With Microsoft Office Outlook 2013

1. Open Microsoft Outlook 2013

2. Go To File > Account Settings > Account Settings…

3. Click “New…”

4. Enter Your Microsoft Account (@hotmail.com, @msn.com, @live.com or an @outlook.com) Details

Select “E-mail Account” if you want to configure your Hotmail (or Outlook.com) account and then enter the account details – Name, E-mail Address, and Password.

5. Click “Finish” and you’re done

How To Sync Windows Live Custom Domains With Microsoft Outlook 2013

Wait! If you’re using Windows Live Admin Center (formerly Windows Live Custom Domains) like me then you need to select the option “Manual setup or additional server types”.

Click “Next” and choose “Exchange ActiveSync”.

Now enter the Windows Live Admin Center (or Windows Live Custom Domains) account details which looks like.

Note: The “Mail server” should be: m.hotmail.com

Click “Next” and then click “Close” to finish account setup.

You’re all set!

Alternatively you can setup the accounts from within your Windows Control Panel. I relied on this method when Outlook did not open because I deleted the temporary account. I got the error messages “Host Process Rundll32 has stopped working” and “The set of folders cannot be opened“. I solved the issue by checking the “Always show icons, never thumbnails” option under Folder Options > View tab.

How To Setup Outlook Account From Within Windows Control Panel

Open your Windows Control Panel. Search and find “Mail”.

It opens the “Mail Setup – Outlook” window.

Click on “E-mail Accounts…” and click “New”. Now follow the “Add Account” instructions which I’ve mentioned earlier.

Note:

If you were already using Outlook 2010 then you will probably see two Hotmail account entries in your Outlook 2013 Preview. But only the new one would work as the other one will be disabled automatically. Outlook 2013 keeps old data but it won’t be copied to the new account due to some limitations. Hence its better you delete your old account profiles from “Account Settings”.

If you face any issue or need technical help then I suggest you to post your question or query at the Microsoft Answers Community.

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