Contacts Sync - Gmail <===> Outlook contacts synchronizer

User Manual

Contacts Sync Website: www.pppindia.com/contacts-sync

Please see website for more recent information on Free v5 & Pro v3

Visit Online Support / FAQ page || Technical Support: support@pppindia.com or Use Contact Form

Available - Calendar Sync for Outlook, Google Calendar

Changelog: Contacts Sync V5 (free)

- Google OAuth2 sign-in support as recommended by Google. Older Contacts Sync versions will no longer work.
There will an one-time sign-in prompt asking for user's consent. You will be only authorizing the app installed on your computer to access your contacts.
- Profile 2 tab moved to new tab "Config for Profile 2"
- "Configuration 2" tab additions - Google OAuth Login code (optional), Paste code box for manual sign-in (see Contacts Sync website for details)

If you have trouble with sign-in, Visit Online Support / FAQ page for details)

Changelog: Contacts Sync Pro v3.0

- Google OAuth2 sign-in support as recommended by Google. Older Contacts Sync versions will no longer work.

Changelog: Contacts Sync Pro 2way v2.0

System Requirements:

• Windows XP or Windows Vista / Windows 7 / Windows 2003 / Windows 2008 (including 64 bit)
• .NET Framework v2.0 or higher (a check for this is done during installation)
• Gmail Account
• Outlook 2003 or 2007 or 2010 or 2013 (including 64 bit)

Getting Started:

If you are seeing this document then you have installed Contacts Sync by now. If there are any errors during the installation process then refer to "Troubleshooting" section below.

Steps 1,2,3,4,5,6..:

1. Run Contacts Sync from desktop shortcut or from Programs-->Contacts Sync-->Contacts Sync
2. Enter your Gmail Email address and Password. Click on "Save Settings" button which is at the bottom of the window. (This step is important). If you don't Save then you will see 'invalid credentials" message from Google. If 2-step verification is turned on in your Google Account settings, then please create a application specific password and use that in Contacts Sync. Learn more about this from Google.
3. Click on "Load Default Folders" or Browse Folder.
4. Outlook Contacts Folder List will be loaded in the drop-down menu. Click on the down arrow in the menu and select the desired Contacts Folder to use for Sync. (This step is important)
5. Choose Sync direction
6. Click on "Synchronize" button (Note: When your security/anti-virus software prompts you, allow Contacts Sync to make connection to Internet as it needs to connect to Gmail server).
7. After installation, please run a 2way sync once without using the delete option. See more on Delete Options and how it works.
   
   TIP: If you keep Contacts Sync minimized, it will fetch and sync your contacts very fast. You can anytime click on Contacts Sync icon in system tray to see the status. When sync operation is not in progress, it will show last sync status.

• Where are the Contacts Sync Settings stored ? ($USER$ is your windows username)
  • WinXP Location: C:\Documents and Settings\$USER$\Application Data\PPP\Contacts Sync\<version>\.
  • Windows Vista & later: C:\Users\\$USER$\AppData\PPP\Contacts Sync\<version>\
  • Or go to Run prompt and type %appdata% , then to PPP\Contacts Sync folder, then to the folder corresponding to Contacts Sync version.

• Choosing Outlook Folder for Sync -
  • Load Default Folders - Clicking on this button will try to load all your Contact folders in Outlook. If it is unable to get the list of folders, you will see an error message. You have to use Browse Folder button instead.

    • List of Contacts folders will be seen in the drop-down menu in the "Select Outlook Contacts folder to Sync" option.
    • You have to select the folder from the drop down menu and then click Sync. (this last step is important)
  • Browse Folder - Click on "Browse Folder" to see the Outlook's Select Folder Dialog box. This is the same screen you get when you create folders in Outlook.
  • Select the desired Contacts folder which you want to sync and Click OK.
  • Go back to Contacts Sync screen.
  • The folder you selected above will be seen in the drop-down menu in the "Select Outlook Contacts folder to Sync" option.
  • You have to select the folder again and then click Sync. (this last step is important)
  • You can also use Browse Folder button to choose Outlook Contacts Sub-folder. (Folder created inside "Contacts" folder)
• Under "Synchronize Options" select the direction.
  • Synchronize Outlook Contacts to Gmail - This is oneway sync with Outlook as Master. "Delete in Gmail" - when this is enabled, Gmail Contacts which are not in Outlook will be deleted in Gmail. Of course, any new contacts added in Outlook will be synced to Gmail. When delete is enabled, any new contacts you add in Gmail will be deleted in Outlook during the sync. Use this option when you need to keep some Contacts in Gmail which you do not want to be added in Outlook.
  • Synchronize Gmail Contacts to Outlook - This is oneway sync with Gmail as Master. New contacts and contact changes in Gmail will be synced to Outlook.
    Use 2way sync option when you need to add new contacts both in Outlook and Gmail. You can keep some Contacts in Outlook which will not be added/deleted in Gmail.
  • Synchronize Outlook Contacts over Gmail (Two way) - Outlook is the Master for Contact changes, new contacts found in both Outlook/Gmail or added in either direction. Two Deletion options available - Delete in Gmail and Delete in both (using last sync time). See below for more info on the deletion options.
  • Synchronize Gmail Contacts over Outlook (Two way) - Gmail is the Master for Contact changes, new contacts found in both Outlook/Gmail or added in either direction. Two Deletion options available - Delete in Outlook and Delete in both (using last sync time).
  • Sync by Last modified (Two way). Any contact which has been recently modifed in Gmail or Outlook will take priority when updating the info in the contacts. So, you don't have to worry about specifying the direction of sync and keep modifiying/adding the contacts in both Gmail & Outlook and all your Contacts will be in sync. All 3 Deletion options are available to choose in this sync option.
    
• Click "Synchronize" button. When your Firewall/Internet Security software prompts - Your firewall/Security software might prompt or warn about Contacts Sync trying to establish Internet connection. Authorise/ Allow it. Contacts Sync needs to connect to Gmail server to do its job. If there is no such alert and when Contacts Sync is unable to Fetch Gmail Contacts, then please double-check your Internet Security/Anti-virus settings and Authorize/Allow Contacts Sync to make connection to Internet.
  
  
• Scheduled Synchronize - If you want to transfer contacts at regular intervals then you can set a time interval. Put a tick in the check box "Enable Schedule Synchronization" Then enter interval in minutes - Eg. 60 for 1 hour. Then select the direction of contacts and then click on "Save Scheduler Settings" You will see a countdown that shows the time left.To disable the scheduler, untick the Checkbox and remember to click on "Save Scheduler Settings". ** Always take a backup of your Contacts. **
  
  
• Click on "Open Log" buton to see if there are any errors during the sync operation.
  
• "Add to Startup" toggle button - Clicking on this will create a Contacts Sync shortcut in Windows Startup group so that Contacts Sync will run automatically everytime Windows starts. When you have enabled, Please click "Remove from Startup" before uninstalling Contacts Sync.
  
• Enable Notification in System Tray - When you enable this, you will see fetching, synchronizing messages as a balloon tip when Contacts Sync is minimized. Even when you dont enable this, you can anytime click on Contacts Sync icon in system tray to see the status. When sync operation is not in progress, it will show last sync status.

  
  
• Proxy Settings - This is required, if you go through a proxy server to access Internet. Supports two modes - Use Windows Default Proxy | Manually specify a proxy server IP and port and if your proxy server requires authentication that can also be entered. When you "Enable Proxy Settings" you must enable either one of "Use Windows Default Proxy Settings" - this will auto-select your proxy from windows settings or when you want to manually enter proxy then enter Proxy Host.

 

• Copy to Gmail's My Contacts - Tick this to add all contacts from Outlook to go to Gmail's default contact group "My Contacts" This is necessary to see your contacts in your mobile phone. By default, mobile phones will sync "My Contacts" group only. It is recommended to keep this enabled when you want to sync outlook to gmail. When you missed it the first time, enable it and run sync again.
  
  

  Contacts not seen in Gmail after the sync ? See in "Gmail's Other Contacts", it is at the left of your Gmail Contacts screen (move the mouse over to the left of that screen to view). Know more about Gmail's Contact Groups. After you have found that, click on "Other Contacts" and then select "All" and click on "Add to My Contacts" button. You dont have to do this everytime. This is just a one-time task. Can't see the Contacts in your mobile ? do as above.

• Synchronizes Outlook Categories to Gmail Contacts Group automatically. Gmail Contacts Groups are created automatically as Categories in Outlook.
• Transfers Outlook/Gmail Contacts Pictures automatically. "Force Photo Update" is only for troubleshooting purpose and use it when Contact Pictures are not updated properly.
• Syncs additional contact fields - Phone(Other), Phone(Car), Address(Other), Mobile-2, Birthday, Anniversary, Spouse, Company Main Phone, Profile URL in GMail <-->Personal Home Page in Outlook.
  
  
• IMPORTANT INFO ON DELETE OPTIONS: After installation, please run a 2way sync once without using the delete option.
  
  1) Delete (Outlook as Master)
  2) Delete (Gmail as Master)
  3) Delete in both Outlook/Gmail with last sync time as cut-off time for deletion of contacts.
  4) Log will show either one of the Name/Email/Company of the deleted contacts.
  For the first two delete options, Contacts updation is always two-way and only the deletion is one-way depending on the master source you choose.
  Delete options are applicable to all 3 two-way sync options.
  
  Check List before you enable the "Delete in both.." option:

  1) Accurate date/time in your windows clock.
  2) Run a 2way sync once without delete option.

  Contacts Sync now stores the timestamp after completing every sync. This last sync time is used to identify whether to re-create or delete a contact, applies to "Delete in both Outlook/Gmail".

  There is no change in the way updation of contacts works. Here is an example of how last sync time is used:-
  1) Suppose the Last Sync Time is July 5, 9.00 AM
  2) And Delete option is both ways.
  3) Then Delete an existing say a "Test Contact" in Outlook

  Contacts Sync will now know that "Test Contact" is an old contact and so it will delete in Gmail. If you sync without Delete option then "Test Contact" will be re-created again in Outlook since it already exists in Gmail. It works as a 2way merge without the delete option.

  So any deletion of existing Contacts in either direction after "last sync time" will be deleted in either direction. If your system clock is inaccurate then this might delete the contact in one direction when you have added in another direction.

• Visit Contacts Sync website for the latest.

Troubleshooting:

1 .Error: "Unable to find a version of the runtime to run this application"

This can happen if you have .NET Framwork 4.0 without the older versions of the .NET framework. Download and install .NET Framework 3.5 to fix this problem. If that does not fix, click here to seach in Google for possible solutions or email us.

2. Error: "Check username and password.. Invalid Credentials"

Solution: If you feel you have entered your Gmail username and password correctly, then after entering/modifying Gmail username and password, make sure you click "Save Settings" button. Contacts Sync first needs to store your Gmail settings before starting the sync. If 2-step verification is turned on in your Google Account settings, do not use the password that you get by voice/text message, you must create a application specific password and use that in Contacts Sync. Learn more about this from Google.

3. Contacts Sync transfers Outlook contacts to Gmail "Other Contacts" but the contacts are not seen in Android phone.

You need to modify the Display settings in Android phone inorder to view all contact groups from Gmail. Here is how:
Navigate to Contacts and then go to Menu -> Display Options. Here you can select each account and also select the Groups that you want in your contacts in Gmail to show up on your Android Contacts list. Typically tick "All other Contacts". You may also need to modify "Accounts & Sync" settings to sync the right contact group in your Android phone.

4. Error: Invalid Credentials and a message popup "-24147,12"

Contacts Sync is unable to decrypt the password you have saved. Delete the password, Save Settings, Enter password again and do the Sync without saving. It will pickup the password that you have entered instead of the saved password. Another Workaround which may or may not work:- Use 2-step verification for your Gmail account and create application specific password and then copy the password generated by Google and paste into Contacts Sync password box. Save Settings and try sync again.

5. Selecting a Outlook Contacts Folder: The pull down menu extends beyond the right side of the available window. This hides the down arrow of the pull down menu.

This can happen when the name of your Outlook Contacts folder is very long. Just click on the pull down menu and press the down/up arrow key and you should be able to select the folder. Or try to rename the outlook contacts folder which has a long name and then click Load Default Folder again and now you should be able to see the down-arrow of the pull down menu and you can now choose the folder using your mouse.

6.Email addresses of contacts in Exchange Domain not transferred properly to Gmail.

Email us to get an upgrade. After you upgrade, you will see the correct email format of your contacts getting transferred to Gmail.

7. Execution of request failed: http://www.google.com/m8/feeds/contacts/......System.Net.WebException: The remote server returned an error: (500) Internal Server Error

This error is most likely due to connection problem - check your internet connection. Firewall/Proxy settings might also cause this error. You will also get this error when Gmail server is not reachable. Try again after sometime.

8. Error: Retrieving the COM class factory for component with CLSID {0006F03A-0000-0000-C000-000000000046} failed due to the following error: 80080005.

Make sure you run both Contacts Sync and Outlook with same level of user rights. If you have run Contacts Sync with (Run as Administrator) admin privileges to save Gmail settings, then restart Contacts Sync and run it with normal user privileges.

9. Error: system.invalidoperationexception

Either you dont have Outlook or Outlook is not properly configured with an email account and Personal Folders (.pst file). Reconfigure outlook with new Personal Folders using new Outlook Data file and try again. You will also get this error when there is no valid Contacts folder in your Outlook.

10. Error: Unable to cast COM object of type 'Outlook.ApplicationClass' to interface type 'Outlook._Application'. This operation failed because the QueryInterface call on the COM component for the interface with IID '{00063001-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}' failed due to the following error: Error loading type library/DLL. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80029C4A (TYPE_E_CANTLOADLIBRARY)).

Your installation of Outlook is corrupt due to conflict with another version of MS-Office. See this link for a possible solution.

If you still have problems in making Contacts Sync work, please send us the screenshot or copy/paste the full error and send it to us by email. We would be happy to assist you to overcome any issues related to Contacts Sync.

Duplicate Contacts: See more information from Google. Please keep these info in mind and organize your contacts accordingly. The following info is from Google/iTunes sync. And this info applies to synchronization of contacts in general.

"Subtle differences in contact information may cause the system's syncing software to consider contacts or their information to be distinct. These differences include small changes in a contact name or company name, and differences in the type of email (work, home, other) or other address information. Similar but distinct information will lead the system to treat contacts or information on contacts as unique, causing these contacts to be synced separately.

Contact names or addresses synced incorrectly: The sync software makes its best guess at determining the structure of names and addresses. Occasionally, errors can occur, particularly names in non-Roman scripts or unusual names, such as nicknames."