How to fix Microsoft 365 calendar availability showing as Free when you have all-day events

Summary

This guide helps you troubleshoot and resolve: How to fix Microsoft 365 calendar availability showing as Free when you have all-day events. Follow the steps below to fix the issue.

Common Causes

When you create an all-day event in Microsoft 365 Outlook, your colleagues may still see your calendar status as Free. This can lead to unwanted meeting requests being booked during your time off. This guide explains how to check your event status settings and ensure your availability is reflected correctly for your organisation.

Quick Fix Steps

1. Open the calendar event in question.
2. Check the Show as dropdown menu.
3. Change the status from Free to Busy or Out of Office.
4. Save the event.

Detailed Instructions

Outlook for Windows

1. Open Outlook and navigate to your Calendar.
2. Double-click the all-day event you wish to update.
3. In the event window, locate the Show as dropdown menu in the top ribbon.
4. Select Busy or Out of Office from the list.
5. Click Save & Close to apply the changes.

Outlook on the Web (OWA)

1. Sign in to Outlook on the Web.
2. Click the Calendar icon in the left-hand navigation pane.
3. Click on the all-day event to open the event details pane.
4. Click Edit to open the full event editor.
5. Use the Show as dropdown to select Busy or Out of Office.
6. Click Save.

Outlook for Mac

1. Open Outlook for Mac and go to the Calendar view.
2. Double-click the all-day event.
3. Find the Show as field in the event details.
4. Change the value to Busy or Out of Office.
5. Close the event window to save your changes.

Outlook Mobile (iOS and Android)

1. Open the Outlook app on your mobile device.
2. Tap the Calendar icon at the bottom of the screen.
3. Tap the all-day event to view its details.
4. Tap the pencil icon to Edit the event.
5. Tap the Show as option and select Busy or Out of Office.
6. Tap the checkmark to save.

Troubleshooting

Changes are not syncing to colleagues

If you have updated the status but colleagues still see you as Free, try the following:

• Restart the Outlook application to force a synchronisation with the Microsoft 365 server.
• Check your internet connection to ensure the calendar changes are uploading.
• Ask a colleague to refresh their shared calendar view or restart their Outlook client.

Recurring all-day events

If the event is part of a recurring series, Outlook will ask if you want to apply the change to:

• This occurrence only: Updates a single instance of the event.
• This and all future occurrences: Updates the selected event and all subsequent events in the series.
• All occurrences: Updates every instance of the event in the series, including past events.

Tip: For extended periods of leave, consider using the Out of Office status. This clearly signals to colleagues that you are unavailable and prevents meeting requests during your absence.

Warning: Changing an event from Free to Busy will update your availability for anyone who has permission to view your calendar. Ensure you have selected the correct status before saving.

If you continue to experience issues with calendar availability not updating correctly, please Open a Ticket with our support team.

Still Having Issues?