.OST file size remains the same after an archieve

[Jim Stallings]

I recently archieved some old mail into a .pst file. The email that I
archieved is no longer present in the inbox which should mean it was removed
from the .ost, but the .ost file size remains the same. Can anyone explain
why this happens?

Windows XP SP3
Outlook 2007
Exchange 2003

Thanks,

Jim

 

[Brian Tillman [MVP - Outlook]]

I recently archieved some old mail into a .pst file. The email that I
archieved is no longer present in the inbox which should mean it was removed
from the .ost, but the .ost file size remains the same. Can anyone explain
why this happens?

It happens because it's GOOD to keep spare space available in a database file
(which an OST is) so that new additions don't need to request additional.
space from the file system. Allocating new space is "expensive" in terms of
time on a computer. It's much faster to reuse existing free space within the
file by merely changing some pointers. Eventually, if the free space gets
large enough, Outlook should compact the OST. If you want to compact it
yourself, right-click on your mailbox in the Navigation Pane, choose
Properties, click the Advanced tab, click "Offline Folder File Settings", then
"Compact Now".