The feature is meant to work seamlessly as part of the Windows 10 sync feature. But in our experience, there are a few things that can go wrong. In this article, we’ll do a quick recap of how to sync Microsoft Edge favorites in Windows 10 and show you some tricks to make sure it works. Update: This article is about the original legacy Edge browser that originally was included with Windows 10 — Not Edge based on Chromium. To make sure your favorites are syncing in the new version of Edge go to Settings > Profiles > Sync and turn on the Sync button.
How to Sync Microsoft Edge Favorites in Windows 10
To start syncing your Favorites in Microsoft Edge, open Start > Settings > Accounts > Sync your settings. Toggle on Sync settings and Internet Explorer settings. You read that right—even though we are talking about Edge, it uses the same sync setting as Internet Explorer.
You can also enable this from within Microsoft Edge. From Edge, open the more actions menu (…), click Settings, scroll down to Account then toggle on Sync your favorites, reading lists, top sites and other settings across your Windows Devices.
Syncing might not be immediate, so give it some time to take effect across all your devices. Microsoft says it can take up to 24 hours to sync all your favorites, reading lists, and passwords. So, patience is recommended.
What to Do If Your Favorites Won’t Sync in Windows 10
To Troubleshoot your Edge syncing issues, there are a few different fixes you can try.
Log in to your Microsoft Account
Your Microsoft account is the backbone of all the syncing functionality in Windows 10 and Edge. Start by making sure you are logged in to your Microsoft Account on all your devices.
Open Start > Settings > Accounts > Your info Click sign in with a Microsoft account instead. (If you don’t see this option, it means you’re probably already logged in with a Microsoft account.) Enter the email address of the account you want to use. Click Next. Enter your Microsoft Account password. Enter the current Local account password used to sign in to the account Click Next and you should be signed in to your account. Restart your computer and see if it works.
Disable and Re-Enable Sync
If Edge was syncing before but stopped working, you can try disabling and re-enabling it. Open Start > Settings > Accounts > Sync your settings. Toggle off Sync settings, restart your computer then toggle on again.
Log Out of Work or School Account
Go to Start > Settings > Accounts > Sync your settings. Check for this error message: Sync is not available for your account. Contact your system administrator to resolve this. If you see this, you likely need to remove a Work or School account attached to your machine. Users connected to a Windows Server Domain might need to log into a Local Account or Microsoft Account in order for Favorites syncing to work since this might not be allowed in an organization.
Open Start > Settings > Accounts > Access work or school. Select the current work or school account then click Disconnect. Restart your computer then try syncing again.
Restart SettingsSyncHost.exe Process
In some cases, the SettingsSyncHost.exe process itself might not be functioning properly. Restarting the process might be able to resolve the problem. Press Windows key + X then choose Task Manager and go to Processes. Select the Host Process for Settings Synchronization. Click End task, restart your computer, let the process restart then wait while your Favorites resume syncing.
Choose an Alternate DNS Server
There can sometimes be latency issues with Microsoft’s own DNS servers handling syncing across your devices. We have seen issues with this in Microsoft’s own apps (e.g., updates don’t always download properly for Office for Mac). A solution to this problem is to switch to an alternative DNS server such as Google Public DNS or OpenDNS. For details, see our previous article on how to Add Google Public DNS to Your Windows PC. Sounds like a few simple things to do right? Well, give them a try the next time you experience a problem with Favorites not syncing in Edge and let us know if it works. WHY has MS taken all these years and still can not offer a SYNC system that is reliable and works, I need a Browser that is 100% correct when you have 8000 Bookmarks. Truly unbelievable MS.. “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Edge\ForceSync” is missing! I added this entry to my system and set it (REG_DWQORD) to a 1 (true). My system now sync’s every time I start it and gives me access to all my saved passwords and other things without having to manually login each time. Comment Name * Email *
Δ Save my name and email and send me emails as new comments are made to this post.
