Today I'm going to show you how to display the hidden Conflicts folder in your Outlook folder pane. We had an issue with one of our clients where they were at the limit for storage, but we couldn't figure out where the majority of the storage was being used. Eventually we discovered it was in the Conflicts folder, but that doesn't show up in the folder pane by default.
In Outlook, the Conflicts folder is part of the Sync Issues folder and contains items that Outlook couldn't synchronise properly due to conflicts between different versions of an item. Here’s how you can access and display the Conflicts folder in Outlook:
Method 1: Access the Conflicts Folder via the Navigation Pane
Open Outlook on your computer.
Press Ctrl + 6 (This will display all mail folders, including hidden ones).
Scroll down and look for “Sync Issues”.
Expand “Sync Issues” by clicking the arrow (if it’s collapsed).
Click on “Conflicts” to view the folder.
Method 2: Enabling the Conflicts Folder via Options Settings
If the Conflicts folder is not visible, you can enable it manually:
Open Outlook.
Click File > Options > Advanced.
Scroll down to Other.
Check “Enable troubleshooting logging” (if not already enabled).
Restart Outlook and check under the Sync Issues folder.
Understanding the Conflicts Folder
The Conflicts folder stores different versions of an email, calendar item, or contact when Outlook detects discrepancies. It typically happens when Outlook is syncing between different devices or servers. You can review and delete unnecessary conflict items to free up space.
If you've found this useful, you may want to sign up to our newsletter where you'll receive notices on when we post new articles and helpful "how tos". Just fill out your details below and we'll do the rest…
