Microsoft Outlook Best Practices Managing Data Files

Keeping Exchange Mailbox Size within limits

AGENDA • Guidelines and What NOT to do

• Organization Strategies with Data Files

• Understanding Size of Mailbox

• Data Files - Adding/Deleting Data Files

• Moving mail into their proper Data File

• Cleaning up Mailbox and Backup of PST files

• Takeaway

John Greene

March 11, 2012

Guidelines and What Not to do … • Overall Goal – Keep Exchange mailbox small … yet provide easy access to all

inbox and sent items for many years • Do NOT allow data files (PST files) to live on a network drive

– This will dramatically slow outlook down – If a PST file is corrupted (due to a network fault or other issue), you will not be

able to open that PST file again …. Keep PST files on your local machine (C Drive)

• Turn OFF Auto Archiving – This feature is too constraining and does not allow for multiple PST files – Archiving merely takes exchange mailbox items and puts them into a designated

PST file … but only one PST file – It is difficult to keep up with what folders are being affected by auto archive

• Keep individual PST files to under 1.5 Gb • Determine an organization strategy (naming convention) for your PST files • Select an easy yet distinct folder to store your PST files on the C:\ drive … for

example: My Documents\Outlook

Organization Strategies with Data Files

Option 1 Organize by Year and

Message Type • Create two PST files for

each year … one for inbox mail and one for sent mail

• Note in picture, there is an extra special projects folder as well

Organization Strategies with Data Files

Option 2 Organize non-Customer emails by year

and type as before … Add folders for Customers by year /

alphabet • Create two PST files for each year …

one for inbox mail and one for sent mail

• Add folders for Customers separated by Alphabet and agnostic to year … and both inbox (incoming) and sent (outgoing) messages are included

STEP 1 – Turn off Auto-Archiving

• Open Outlook

• Tools | Options

• Select “Other” Tab

• Hit “Auto Archive” Button

• Un-Check the “Run Auto Archive…

• Hit OK then OK

STEP 2 – How to check the size of your mailboxes

• Open Outlook

• Right Click on Mailbox and select Properties

• Select “Folder Size”

STEP 2 – Another trick to Understand SIZE

• Open Outlook • Select Mail • Click on “Size”

at top of your mail

• SORTS by Size • Note … All of

the large emails have attachments

STEP 3 – Where are my data files

• Open Outlook • File | Data File

Management • Note where your

data files are located

• Never change your base Mailbox location – Note it is your default data file

• The smaller your default file is, the faster Outlook performs

• Identify a single location for your PST files

Basically storing my PST files in “My Documents\Outlook”

Let’s Add some Data Files

• Select “Add…” • Choose “Office Outlook Personal Folders File (.PST)” • Hit OK • Type in name of the file

– EXAMPLES: 2011-Inbox, 2011-Sent, – Browse to correct PST Folder you have created ON C:\ Drive – Hit OK

• Type in name for this again – as you want it to appear in Outlook • DONE • Repeat again to add more Data File containers • Hit Close and you can now see the data files in your mailbox folder

list

Next Steps • If you had PST files located on the network … within Outlook, move all

items from those data files to the new PST containers you just created … inbox items by date to the appropriate Inbox PST and sent items by date to the appropriate Sent PST. (Use Shift key to select a large set and drag over to the PST folder in Outlook)

• Once you have completely removed all items from the OLDER PST files, you can delete that PST File

• You will want to SEARCH for all PST files as some may NOT be Loaded into outlook. NOTE: If you were using Auto Archive, some PST files will be located in the default directory used by Auto Archive

• To connect Outlook to a personal PST file (so it can be seen in the mailbox folder list) …. File | Open | Outlook Data File

• Every time Outlook starts, it will connect to all of the Outlook Data Files that were previously open the last time you closed Outlook.

• To REMOVE from Outlook, Right Click on the Data File and select “Close” … This does NOT delete the file, just removes it from Outlook. It is still located in the same place … just not open in Outlook.

Demonstration …. Discussion

Mailbox Cleanup and PST File Backup

Since your PST files are now locally stored on your c:\ drive, you must find a way to backup these files periodically.

• STEP 1 - Copy all inbox and sent items to their respective

PST folders that are older than 2 weeks. • STEP 2 - Exit Outlook …. You must be out of Outlook to copy

the PST files opened by Outlook • STEP 3 – Manually copy the PST files to a specific PST folder

(you create) on a netowrk drive that is backed up by your Corp IT group

• This should be done on a weekly basis …. Every Friday for example.

Review – Takeaway One Page Tips

How to Add and Find your PST Files

• Open Outlook

• Click File | data file management

• Click Add

• Click OK

• Browse to where your PST file lives

• Double click on PST File (or single click and click Open)

• Click OK

• This will show up on the left hand side.