Unable to preview attachments sent in emails

Antonioni, Nicholas 0 Reputation points
2026-10-05T13:57:18.92+00:00

Friday October 2nd 2026 a few members of my organization reported they were unable to preview attachments sent to them (PDF, Word, Excel).

After deleting their local profile they were able to preview the documents but have lost the "Open" button that was available in the drop down or by double clicking the attachment.

I am using the outlook online app.

I have tried

  • office repair
  • restart of computer
  • local profile deletion

Any information or things to try is appreicated

Outlook | Web | Outlook on the web for business | Email
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  1. Alina Le 5,495 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-10-05T14:40:22.2433333+00:00

    Hello Antonioni, Nicholas

    To narrow this down, could you confirm:

    • Is the Open option missing for all file types (PDF, Word, Excel)?
    • What options are currently shown when selecting the attachment menu? You can take a screenshot after removing all personal identity information.
    • Can users still download and open the files locally?
    • Does the issue affect all users or only specific users/mailboxes?

    Along the way, you may check:

    1/ Test with an InPrivate/Incognito browser session.

    2/ Test on a different browser (Edge/Chrome).

    3/ Compare an affected user with an unaffected user (license, mailbox type, OWA settings).

    4/ Verify whether users still see options such as "Preview", "Download", or "Open in Browser". It may display different attachment actions depending on file type and tenant configuration.

    User's image

    Screenshot showing attachment dropdown with Edit in browser selected

    For your reference:

    Open, save, and edit attachments received in Outlook | Microsoft Support

    Kind regards,

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