Outlook Email Indexing

Spotlight does not index network volumes by default. Though, I'd think a symlink should do it. (However, who knows, perhaps it's smart enough to see what you've done there.)

You may need to ```
mdutil /Volumes/volumename -i on
``` to get it to work.

I believe Apple's reasoning for this is because the spotlight index lives on each volume that's indexed, not in whatever the OS disk is. They're just trying to be good network citizens.

Seems that since you're accessing SMB, you're not going to find a resolution in the Mac OS side, unless you use something like "EasyFind". Haven't tried forcing an index, but I'd have **** to pay by the server and/or network guys if that noticed this activity as it likely will cause some above the norm.
This is similar to a thread last week on searching SMB volumes from a Mac.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/easyfind/id411673888?mt=12

Unless someone figures out an answer not found yet.
https://jamfnation.jamfsoftware.com/discussion.html?id=5754#respond

Hello, I faced the very same problem with Outlook 2011 that - unlike 2008 - fully relies on Spotlight.
Even on "native" indexed AFP shares from an OSX server I could not make Outlook perform searches. It sounded to me it was not a matter of Spotlight (the shared volume was indexed and I could use Spotlight from the Finder there) rather Outlook just wanted its data on the local HDD.
My (a little cumbersome) solution was then creating a dmg (sparse image that could grow but unfortunately not shrink) I copied to the server. Once the dmg was mounted I copied the "Microsoft User Data" folder and created an alias of it, moved back within Documents folder, changing its name to "Microsoft User Data". This way as soon as I open Outlook (or the MS deamon starts up with MS apps) the dmg is automatically being mounted and Spotlight "thinks" it's an actual "local" disk Outlook is happy with.
Hope it helps...
Ciao
Carlo

SMB is an easy out for our Datacenter folks..."Aw, chucks, everything ought'a work just fine 'n dandy"...but stuff like Spotlight breaks (and auto reconnect, etc., etc.).

Does EasyFind even do content searches? Why not script backup of the user's MUD folder to the server? This way it's local so Spotlight works, and they get backups to the server.

I just love that everyone refers to that as the MUD folder - with good reason.

Microsoft's
Unmitigated
Disaster

:)