Turn on suggestions
Auto-suggest helps you quickly narrow down your search results by suggesting possible matches as you type.
Showing results for
Reducing Outlook PST file size
Topic Options
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Mark Topic as New
- Mark Topic as Read
- Float this Topic for Current User
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Printer Friendly Page
- Plusnet Community
- :
- Forum
- :
- Other forums
- :
- Tech Help - Software/Hardware etc
- :
- Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size
Reducing Outlook PST file size
06-04-2015 1:57 PM
- Mark as New
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Highlight
- Report to Moderator
I am splitting PST files to group by date. I do this regularly at work to help manage file sizes.
I have copied the PST file and deleted a number of emails (Into the thousands) from each personal folder and yet the PST file size remains the same. I have looked for deleted folders and where found emptied and yet the PST file size remains the same. When I look in properties of the Personal folder, this suggests that the file size is greatly reduced. Yet PST file is still the same size.
Any ideas why the file size does not reduce
I have copied the PST file and deleted a number of emails (Into the thousands) from each personal folder and yet the PST file size remains the same. I have looked for deleted folders and where found emptied and yet the PST file size remains the same. When I look in properties of the Personal folder, this suggests that the file size is greatly reduced. Yet PST file is still the same size.
Any ideas why the file size does not reduce
6 REPLIES 6
Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size
06-04-2015 1:59 PM
- Mark as New
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Highlight
- Report to Moderator
The compaction process is a background task so the file size doesn't shrink immediately.
https://support.office.com/en-nz/article/Reduce-the-size-of-Outlook-Data-Files-pst-and-ost-e4c6a4f1-...
https://support.office.com/en-nz/article/Reduce-the-size-of-Outlook-Data-Files-pst-and-ost-e4c6a4f1-...
Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size
06-04-2015 3:46 PM
- Mark as New
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Highlight
- Report to Moderator
I vaguely remember going to Windows Control Panel, Email and using the "Compact Now" function in there for the PST file.
It will stay the same size on the hard drive until it has been compacted.
It will stay the same size on the hard drive until it has been compacted.
Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size
06-04-2015 4:28 PM
- Mark as New
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Highlight
- Report to Moderator
Thanks folks. Had a 5% effect. And the deleted folders were already empty
Still can't understand why the file size did not shrink after deleting the emails
Still can't understand why the file size did not shrink after deleting the emails
Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size
07-04-2015 6:24 AM
- Mark as New
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Highlight
- Report to Moderator
Deleting the emails just marks them as deleted. They are still there, you just cannot see them any more. You never see a reduction in the PST file size until you compact it and that can take hours for a large file. Earlier versions of Outlook (up to 2002) stop working if the .pst file size exceeds 2 GB.
Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size
07-04-2015 9:21 AM
- Mark as New
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Highlight
- Report to Moderator
I think it was an inbuilt restriction on the file format so was also a problem with later Outlook versions if you used the older format, e.g. for compatibility/migration.
Quote from: ReedRichards Earlier versions of Outlook (up to 2002) stop working if the .pst file size exceeds 2 GB.
I run Outlook 2007 with multiple PST's and there's a mixture of types, and yes it was Outlook 2003 that introduced the new format.
Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size
08-04-2015 9:56 PM
- Mark as New
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Highlight
- Report to Moderator
My .pst file (Outlook 2007) was 1GB but with careful deleting this evening and some archiving it is now 460MB.
I have a lot of emails with attachments I may look to archiving those as well.
I have a lot of emails with attachments I may look to archiving those as well.
Forum Moderator and Customer
Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear - Mark Twain
He who feared he would not succeed sat still
Topic Options
- Subscribe to RSS Feed
- Mark Topic as New
- Mark Topic as Read
- Float this Topic for Current User
- Bookmark
- Subscribe
- Printer Friendly Page
- Plusnet Community
- :
- Forum
- :
- Other forums
- :
- Tech Help - Software/Hardware etc
- :
- Re: Reducing Outlook PST file size