I have a very large PST file in Outlook (about 4 GB). I use Outlook
for all of my POP email and I like to keep all of my deleted and sent
emails for future reference (I can search them in Google Desktop
Search).

I REALLY want to shrink my PST file considerably for a variety of
reasons related to Outlook performance AND length of time required to
backup my "active" PST file.

My hope was that "Archiving" the largest components of my email
(Deleted and Sent) which make up 90%+ of my emails would solve this
but for some reason the PST file barely shrunk (even though that 90%
of emails are now all in ARCHIVE PST files which are separate from my
Main PST file).

Why is the Archive function successfully archiving emails into a
separate PST but NOT considerably shrinking the size of the main PST?

*** What can I do to resolve this so that I CAN shrink my main PST
file which I use actively (given that I have already archived the
majority of my emails)? [Note that I am aware one can create separate
PSTs and move emails between them BUT I have already Archived the
majority of my emails from my Main PST so I can no longer move these
away from it]***

Thanks so much for your help!

Chris

Hello bartonsurfer-ga,

Outlook slowly compresses the file in the background over time. You
can force a compression yourself by following these instructions and
then pressing the "compact now" button:
SOURCE: http://ask-leo.com/where_is_my_outlook_pst_file_located.html 

Here are instructions straight from Microsoft (but without pictures): 
When you delete items from your Personal Folders in Outlook, the .pst
file size does not decrease automatically. You must compact the file
to reduce the file size. To manually compact your Personal Folders,
follow these steps: 1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click
Control Panel.
2. Double-click Mail. 
3. Click Data Files. 
4. Click the .pst file that you want to compress, and then click Settings. 
5. Click Compact Now.  
SOURCE: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/829971

I hope that this answers the question to your complete satisfaction.
Please let me know before rating this question if you need any
clarification or further assistance.

tisme-ga


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---

Request for Answer Clarification by bartonsurfer-ga on 28 Nov 2006 00:45 PST

Hi,

I did all of this but my Outlook PST is STILL 3 GB in size. This makes
no sense as I had archived the majority of the emails (which were in
SENT and DELETED folders).

What is wrong? What can I do?

Thanks!

Chris

To compress a PST file:

1.	Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2.	Double-click Mail.
3.	Click Data Files.
4.	Click the .pst file that you want to compress, and then click Settings.
5.	Click Compact Now.

( Found in KB 829971, http://support.microsoft.com/kb/829971 )