independent utilities which actually work to compress a PST file?

[Licensed to Quill]

independent utilities which actually work to compress a PST file?



Are there any independent utilities out there WHICH ACTUALLY WORK to
compress a pst file? (The internal one obviously does nothing whatsoever
except possibly save space taken up by attachments which have already been
removed from the file itself)

( as an additional question, I have enquired before on this topic an no one
at Microsoft would respond admitting that the internal one doesn't do much:
Does ANYBODY know if the XP version does anything more than the 2000 one?)

Licensed to Quill

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

The utility supplied with Outlook works just fine.

 

[Licensed to Quill]

I think an MVP answered a question I put out a few years ago on this point
and
she agreed then that the compress utility didn't actually do anything.
Elsewhere it was suggested that the reason for this is that you have to run
it three times in a row; but as she correctly noticed, running compress a
second time doesn't even work unless you have deleted 10% of the volume of,
for example, attachments to sent items. Which sort of implies that under
any normal circumstances if you have a pst file of (lets take a random
example) 283 megabytes, it is almost inconceivable that compress will even
run. That's right isn't it?

As an example I have an archive file with very little in it besides SENT
ITEMS and attachments which in (for example) a CompuServe inbox would occupy
under 20 kilobytes. Instead it occupies 283 megabytes and my 2 year old
notebook computer is running out of actual hard drive space. If I upgrade
to an Xp version of Office
and it CAN compress the file to any kind of reasonable level, it will be a
valuable upgrade. If it doesn't do anything, I suppose Microsoft is quite
good about refunding the retail price (when they have only been paid the
wholesale price)? (They don't seem to mind taking a loss when someone
notices that their programs don't work)

Or are there in fact some undocumented realities about how to run compress
which Microsoft doesn't want anyone to know about and to which you allude
when you suggest that a program which I have tried and which doesn't work at
all DOES work?

The utility supplied with Outlook works just fine.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

independent utilities which actually work to compress a PST file?



Are there any independent utilities out there WHICH ACTUALLY WORK to
compress a pst file? (The internal one obviously does nothing whatsoever
except possibly save space taken up by attachments which have already been
removed from the file itself)

( as an additional question, I have enquired before on this topic an no one
at Microsoft would respond admitting that the internal one doesn't do much:
Does ANYBODY know if the XP version does anything more than the 2000 one?)

Licensed to Quill

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

There are no "undocumented realities." It simply works.

To see if you might be right, I just emptied my Sent Items Folder and
another message Folder. I checked my PST file size after the deletions: 31
MB.
Next I ran the compression utility.
File size: 14.8 MB.
It has been ever thus in every version of Outlook. Perhaps you are not
checking the file size correctly or were not aware that in later versions of
Outlook file compression occurs automatically in the background so that if
you run it manually there may not be any compression left to do.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

I think an MVP answered a question I put out a few years ago on this point
and
she agreed then that the compress utility didn't actually do anything.
Elsewhere it was suggested that the reason for this is that you have to run
it three times in a row; but as she correctly noticed, running compress a
second time doesn't even work unless you have deleted 10% of the volume of,
for example, attachments to sent items. Which sort of implies that under
any normal circumstances if you have a pst file of (lets take a random
example) 283 megabytes, it is almost inconceivable that compress will even
run. That's right isn't it?

As an example I have an archive file with very little in it besides SENT
ITEMS and attachments which in (for example) a CompuServe inbox would occupy
under 20 kilobytes. Instead it occupies 283 megabytes and my 2 year old
notebook computer is running out of actual hard drive space. If I upgrade
to an Xp version of Office
and it CAN compress the file to any kind of reasonable level, it will be a
valuable upgrade. If it doesn't do anything, I suppose Microsoft is quite
good about refunding the retail price (when they have only been paid the
wholesale price)? (They don't seem to mind taking a loss when someone
notices that their programs don't work)

Or are there in fact some undocumented realities about how to run compress
which Microsoft doesn't want anyone to know about and to which you allude
when you suggest that a program which I have tried and which doesn't work at
all DOES work?

The utility supplied with Outlook works just fine.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

independent utilities which actually work to compress a PST file?



Are there any independent utilities out there WHICH ACTUALLY WORK to
compress a pst file? (The internal one obviously does nothing whatsoever
except possibly save space taken up by attachments which have already been
removed from the file itself)

( as an additional question, I have enquired before on this topic an

no
one

at Microsoft would respond admitting that the internal one doesn't do much:
Does ANYBODY know if the XP version does anything more than the 2000 one?)

Licensed to Quill

 

[Licensed to Quill]

Well, all I have in my pst file is about two years worth of e-mails of
probably up to 5 kb each, (all Spam deleted and nothing in the deleted items
folders) and the archive file is 283 meg and the Outlook file is 180 meg.
I suppose I can't disagree that if I deleted everything in it, the file
might well be a bit more manageable?

By the way, how many messages do you have in your in box and does your
message mean that if you hadn't deleted everything in your PST file, the
compress utility WOULDN'T have compressed those 17 megabytes?

There are no "undocumented realities." It simply works.

To see if you might be right, I just emptied my Sent Items Folder and
another message Folder. I checked my PST file size after the deletions: 31
MB.
Next I ran the compression utility.
File size: 14.8 MB.
It has been ever thus in every version of Outlook. Perhaps you are not
checking the file size correctly or were not aware that in later versions of
Outlook file compression occurs automatically in the background so that if
you run it manually there may not be any compression left to do.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

I think an MVP answered a question I put out a few years ago on this point
and
she agreed then that the compress utility didn't actually do anything.
Elsewhere it was suggested that the reason for this is that you have to run
it three times in a row; but as she correctly noticed, running compress a
second time doesn't even work unless you have deleted 10% of the volume of,
for example, attachments to sent items. Which sort of implies that under
any normal circumstances if you have a pst file of (lets take a random
example) 283 megabytes, it is almost inconceivable that compress will even
run. That's right isn't it?

As an example I have an archive file with very little in it besides SENT
ITEMS and attachments which in (for example) a CompuServe inbox would occupy
under 20 kilobytes. Instead it occupies 283 megabytes and my 2 year old
notebook computer is running out of actual hard drive space. If I upgrade
to an Xp version of Office
and it CAN compress the file to any kind of reasonable level, it will be a
valuable upgrade. If it doesn't do anything, I suppose Microsoft is quite
good about refunding the retail price (when they have only been paid the
wholesale price)? (They don't seem to mind taking a loss when someone
notices that their programs don't work)

Or are there in fact some undocumented realities about how to run compress
which Microsoft doesn't want anyone to know about and to which you allude
when you suggest that a program which I have tried and which doesn't

work

at
all DOES work?

The utility supplied with Outlook works just fine.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]
independent utilities which actually work to compress a PST file?



Are there any independent utilities out there WHICH ACTUALLY WORK to
compress a pst file? (The internal one obviously does nothing whatsoever
except possibly save space taken up by attachments which have

already
been

removed from the file itself)

( as an additional question, I have enquired before on this topic an no
one
at Microsoft would respond admitting that the internal one doesn't do
much:
Does ANYBODY know if the XP version does anything more than the 2000 one?)

Licensed to Quill

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

My 14 MB PST file contains 456 messages in various folders (many HTML and 20
of them faxes) and 255 Contacts. I keep mine fairly lean, and I often get it
down to about 7 MB. That's about as small as PST files can get. Many are in
excess of 250 MB, so the sizes of yours are not at all unusual and shouldn't
be at all unmanageable.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

Well, all I have in my pst file is about two years worth of e-mails of
probably up to 5 kb each, (all Spam deleted and nothing in the deleted items
folders) and the archive file is 283 meg and the Outlook file is 180 meg.
I suppose I can't disagree that if I deleted everything in it, the file
might well be a bit more manageable?

By the way, how many messages do you have in your in box and does your
message mean that if you hadn't deleted everything in your PST file, the
compress utility WOULDN'T have compressed those 17 megabytes?

There are no "undocumented realities." It simply works.

To see if you might be right, I just emptied my Sent Items Folder and
another message Folder. I checked my PST file size after the deletions: 31
MB.
Next I ran the compression utility.
File size: 14.8 MB.
It has been ever thus in every version of Outlook. Perhaps you are not
checking the file size correctly or were not aware that in later

versions

of
Outlook file compression occurs automatically in the background so that if
you run it manually there may not be any compression left to do.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

I think an MVP answered a question I put out a few years ago on this point
and
she agreed then that the compress utility didn't actually do anything.
Elsewhere it was suggested that the reason for this is that you have

to
run

it three times in a row; but as she correctly noticed, running

compress

a volume
of,

be

a

valuable upgrade. If it doesn't do anything, I suppose Microsoft is quite
good about refunding the retail price (when they have only been paid the
wholesale price)? (They don't seem to mind taking a loss when someone
notices that their programs don't work)

Or are there in fact some undocumented realities about how to run compress
which Microsoft doesn't want anyone to know about and to which you allude
when you suggest that a program which I have tried and which doesn't

work

at
all DOES work?



The utility supplied with Outlook works just fine.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]
independent utilities which actually work to compress a PST file?



Are there any independent utilities out there WHICH ACTUALLY WORK to
compress a pst file? (The internal one obviously does nothing
whatsoever
except possibly save space taken up by attachments which have already
been
removed from the file itself)

( as an additional question, I have enquired before on this topic

an
no

one
at Microsoft would respond admitting that the internal one doesn't do
much:
Does ANYBODY know if the XP version does anything more than the 2000
one?)

Licensed to Quill

 

[Russ Valentine [MVP-Outlook]]

My 14 MB PST file contains 456 messages in various folders (many HTML and 20
of them faxes) and 255 Contacts. I keep mine fairly lean, and I often get it
down to about 7 MB. That's about as small as PST files can get. Many are in
excess of 250 MB, so the sizes of yours are not at all unusual and shouldn't
be at all unmanageable.

--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

Well, all I have in my pst file is about two years worth of e-mails of
probably up to 5 kb each, (all Spam deleted and nothing in the deleted items
folders) and the archive file is 283 meg and the Outlook file is 180 meg.
I suppose I can't disagree that if I deleted everything in it, the file
might well be a bit more manageable?

By the way, how many messages do you have in your in box and does your
message mean that if you hadn't deleted everything in your PST file, the
compress utility WOULDN'T have compressed those 17 megabytes?

There are no "undocumented realities." It simply works.

To see if you might be right, I just emptied my Sent Items Folder and
another message Folder. I checked my PST file size after the deletions: 31
MB.
Next I ran the compression utility.
File size: 14.8 MB.
It has been ever thus in every version of Outlook. Perhaps you are not
checking the file size correctly or were not aware that in later

versions

of
Outlook file compression occurs automatically in the background so that if
you run it manually there may not be any compression left to do.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]

I think an MVP answered a question I put out a few years ago on this point
and
she agreed then that the compress utility didn't actually do anything.
Elsewhere it was suggested that the reason for this is that you have

to
run

it three times in a row; but as she correctly noticed, running

compress

a volume
of,

be

a

valuable upgrade. If it doesn't do anything, I suppose Microsoft is quite
good about refunding the retail price (when they have only been paid the
wholesale price)? (They don't seem to mind taking a loss when someone
notices that their programs don't work)

Or are there in fact some undocumented realities about how to run compress
which Microsoft doesn't want anyone to know about and to which you allude
when you suggest that a program which I have tried and which doesn't

work

at
all DOES work?



The utility supplied with Outlook works just fine.
--
Russ Valentine
[MVP-Outlook]
independent utilities which actually work to compress a PST file?



Are there any independent utilities out there WHICH ACTUALLY WORK to
compress a pst file? (The internal one obviously does nothing
whatsoever
except possibly save space taken up by attachments which have already
been
removed from the file itself)

( as an additional question, I have enquired before on this topic

an
no

one
at Microsoft would respond admitting that the internal one doesn't do
much:
Does ANYBODY know if the XP version does anything more than the 2000
one?)

Licensed to Quill