How to fix Sync Services issue to wirelessly sync Outlook calendar with iOS devices using Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac

9to5 Staff | May 5 2011 - 9:30 am PT

As of today, MobileMe stopped using Sync Services, Apple’s own platform for data synchronization between your programs and supported devices. As we pointed out, this has affected recently released Office for Mac 2011 Service Pack 1 which relied on the platform to sync Outlook calendar with your iPhone. As a result, Mac people must physically connect their device and sync via iTunes, which kills the purpose of push calendar in the first place.

Alternatively, you can change your email client and go through the email server supported by the Mail app. Sounds like too much hassle just to keep your Outlook calendar and iOS gadget in perfect sync.There’s a workaround that lets you wirelessly sync Outlook calendar with your iOS device via Windows – on your Mac.

You will need Parallels Desktop 6 for Mac to run Outlook for Windows side-by-side with your Mac programs, courtesy of the virtualization technology. Boot Windows inside Parallels Desktop for Mac and install the latest version of MobileMe Control Panel for Windows which supports calendar sync between Outlook for Windows and the MobileMe cloud. Unfortunately, Outlook for Mac had no such solution at the time of this writing. Run the MobileMe control panel applet from the Start > Control Panel menu. Provide your MobileMe credentials and click the Sync tab. Choose “Outlook” from the Calendars drop-down menu and hit OK.

It’s also good practice to set the applet to sync with MobileMe continuously.

This way, any changes made to your Outlook calendar will be immediately beamed to the cloud, which will in turn push them down to your authorized iOS devices and vice versa. Also, don’t forget to set up MobileMe account on your iOS device. Here’s how…

On the home screen of your iOS device tap Settings and then “”Mail, Contacts, Calendars”. Make sure Fetch New Data is set to Push. Tap Add Account, choose MobileMe and provide your MobileMe account information, then tap Save. You can choose whether to sync your MobileMe mail, contacts, bookmarks, notes and calendars. Naturally, we want to ensure that Calendars is turned on.

The outlined method, of course, requires you to manage your calendar in Outlook for Windows inside Parallels Desktop for Mac. You will also need a MobileMe subscription ($99 a year) because syncing won’t work with a free trial account. Happy syncing!