Troubleshooting Synchronization Between InterAction and Outlook

A User Contact List is Showing Possible Corruption

If you have enabled synchronization between Microsoft Outlook and InterAction, there are controls for selecting a new mode to use during the next Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync. Some of these modes are provided to handle situations where there is possible data corruption of data coming in from Outlook in a user contact list. These sync modes are available on the Edit User Contact List dialog box on the Synchronization tab and (for users whose contact lists are not in a Possible Corruption state) from the Actions drop-down list on the Manage User Contact List dialog box.

Using special sync modes incorrectly can cause data loss or unintended results! Do not use any of these options aside from the Normal option unless you are directed to do so by InterAction Technical Support.

Possible Corruption

When synchronizing data between Outlook and InterAction, InterAction monitors suspicious changes that indicate the data in Outlook may have been corrupted. To prevent such data from affecting firm data, if InterAction detects suspicious modifications to 10 or more contacts during an Outlook to InterAction Sync, InterAction aborts the sync and puts the user collection into a state where no further syncs are performed until the source of the problem has been determined.
You need to run a special sync to remove the user from a state of Possible Corruption. Before running a sync in a special (not Normal) mode, contact InterAction Technical Support so you know which option to choose. The sync only runs in the special sync mode once before returning to Normal synchronization.

Available Sync Modes

Sync Mode	State of the User Contact List	Definition
Normal	Normal or Possible Data Corruption	Synchronizes the data in InterAction and Outlook. If the user contact list is in the Possible Corruption state, this option is used if the user has already cleaned up the data.
InterAction Overwrites Outlook	Normal or Possible Data Corruption	Overwrites the data in Outlook because the InterAction data is the most current.
Outlook Overwrites InterAction	Normal	Overwrites the data in InterAction because the Outlook data is the most current or correct.
Clear Timestamps	Normal	Clears the timestamps for when the last Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync ran (according to Outlook) and the last synchronization date in the InterAction database. Either the timestamps do not match or one is missing, but neither the InterAction or Outlook environment has been restored.
Force Refresh	Normal	Forces all contacts and calendar items to synchronize regardless of the date they last changed.
Skip (Possible Contact Corruption)	Possible Data Corruption	Skips this user contact list and proceeds with the sync for all other users.
Accept Suspect Outlook Data	Possible Data Corruption	Assumes the data is not corrupted, accepts all suspect Outlook data.

The sync modes are available for both Contact Sync and Calendar Sync, if calendar sync is enabled. You can clear the check box for either sync before running a special sync mode to perform a Normal sync on that option. For example, if you use different processes for synchronizing contacts and calendars, you need to run both syncs before the user contact list is returned to the Normal mode. If you use one sync process to synchronize contacts and calendars, you only need to run that sync once to remove the user contact list from the Possible Corruption state.

Audit Trail Reports

From the Manage User Contact List dialog box, you can access audit trail information for a particular user. This is helpful for troubleshooting data corruption or other possible problems with a user’s contact list and for determining where and when a contact was changed. You usually do not need to consult this unless directed by InterAction Technical Support.

Access an Audit Trail Report

1. Choose User Contact List from the main entity list in InterAction Administrator. The Manage User Contact List displays.

2. Select a user contact list from the Contact Lists for active users and choose the Audit Trail button.

   The Audit Trail for <user’s> Contacts dialog box displays.

3. Select one contact or mark multiple contacts whose audit information you want to view.
4. Specify the date range of the information you want included in the report and choose OK. The audit trail report for the selected contacts displays.

I Set Up Synchronization and the Log Says It Ran Correctly, but No Data Was Synchronized.

Make sure you check the log file for both the process and the Process Manager application. For more information about log files, see Reviewing the Results of Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync.
By default, the log files for the Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync process reside in the InterAction
Data directory, which is determined by the following entry in the IAAdmin.ini file.

For Windows Server:

[Data]
C:\ProgramData\LexisNexis\InterAction\Data

These are rolling log files that are named OLC2IACSyncProcess.log for the current day’s log file and
OLC2IACSyncProcess<yyyymmdd>.log for log files from previous days.
The amount of detail in this log file is determined by the log level set in the Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync Configuration dialog box. For more information about this setting in the dialog box, see Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync Log Files. For information about process results, see Reviewing the Results of Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync.
Make sure the workstation that runs the process is on and is connected to the network.

Check the User Contact Lists

In InterAction Administrator, choose User Contact Lists. You may have not enabled synchronization with Outlook for these users. For instructions on how to configure synchronization for individual users, see Configuring User Contact Lists for Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync.
You cannot synchronize contact lists for users who are inactive. If turning on synchronization for a user’s list does not synchronize the contacts, check the user’s status and make sure it is set to active.
If neither of these are the solution, check the log files for errors in synchronization. For more information about the log files, see Reviewing the Results of Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync and Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync Log Files.

Some of the Outlook Contacts for a User Are Not Synchronizing with InterAction

Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync only synchronizes contacts in the Contacts folder of Outlook. If you have contacts in a sub-folder under the Contacts folder, they will not be synchronized.
Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync does not synchronize users’ distribution lists which are stored in their Outlook Contacts.

My Outlook Contacts Are Synchronizing, but My Calendar Items Are Not

Make sure that you added your calendar items to InterAction.
Also, when you created your Microsoft Outlook to InterAction scheduled process, make sure you chose to synchronize calendar items as well. See Scheduling Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync.

How Do I Keep an Appointment in Outlook and Not Synchronize It with InterAction?

Microsoft Outlook to InterAction Sync only synchronizes appointments that are explicitly added to InterAction. An appointment can be added to InterAction by either the organizer or an attendee. If the appointment is not added to InterAction, synchronization does not occur for that appointment.

Why Am I Seeing Duplicate Appointments in InterAction?

Both the meeting organizer and its attendees can add an appointment to InterAction. If more than one person adds the calendar item, it appears twice in InterAction. As a best practice, only the organizer should add the meeting to InterAction.

Can I Change That Fields Are Mapped?

You cannot change which fields are synchronized between InterAction and Outlook, with the exception of the Outlook Notes field on a contact as discussed in Outlook Notes.
For a list of the fields that are synchronized (contacts and calendar items), see Field Mapping,

What Information Is Not Synchronized between Outlook Contacts and InterAction?

Only specific fields are synchronized between Outlook and a user’s InterAction contact list. For a list of these fields, see Field Mapping.
Note that any distribution lists stored in a user’s Outlook Contacts are not synchronized with InterAction. Additionally, a user’s private activities in InterAction are not synchronized with Outlook.
You can only synchronize with a user’s Contacts folder in Outlook. You cannot synchronize InterAction with any of the following:

• Public contacts folders in Outlook
• Contacts in InterAction that are not in the user’s contact list
• Distribution lists in the user’s Contacts folder in Outlook

Testing Synchronization with a Sub-folder in Microsoft Outlook Is No Longer Supported

Outlook/Exchange behavior does not fully support collaborative meetings that exist in a subfolder of the main Calendar folder. As such, testing new InterAction Appointment features is not possible using a similar Outlook Calendar subfolder model. 

Both synchronizations as well as the private folder converter now operate only against the primary Outlook Contacts and Calendar folders. It is necessary to use either a completely separate test Exchange environment or at least dedicated test mailboxes on your production Exchange servers.

As a safety measure, when using an InterAction database configured for testing, if Microsoft Outlook to InterAction synchronization or the private folder converter detects the presence of a Contacts subfolder that may have been used in pre-5.5 testing, both features stop and alert the user.