Mailbox Full : Creating Local Archive in Outlook To Free Space

Mailbox Full : Creating Local Archive in Outlook To Free Space

To move all your emails older than one year to a separate data file in Microsoft Outlook, you can use the AutoArchive feature or manually archive your emails. Here are the steps for both methods:

Using AutoArchive

  1. Open Outlook:
    • Launch Microsoft Outlook on your computer.
  2. Access AutoArchive Settings:
    • Go to the File tab.
    • Click on Options.
    • In the Outlook Options dialog box, click on Advanced.
    • Under the AutoArchive section, click on AutoArchive Settings.
  3. Configure AutoArchive:
    • In the AutoArchive dialog box, select the Run AutoArchive every x days checkbox and set the desired frequency.
    • Choose the Prompt before AutoArchive runs checkbox if you want a notification before AutoArchive runs.
    • Select the Delete expired items (e-mail folders only) checkbox if you want to delete expired items.
    • Select the Archive or delete old items checkbox.
    • Specify the period (e.g., 12 months) to determine which items are old enough to archive.
    • Choose the location for the archived items by clicking on Browse and selecting a path for the new data file (PST).
  4. Apply AutoArchive:
    • Click OK to save the settings and close the dialog boxes.

Manually Archive Emails

  1. Open Outlook:
    • Launch Microsoft Outlook on your computer.
  2. Access Archive Settings:
    • Go to the File tab.
    • Click on Info.
    • Click on Tools and then select Clean Up Old Items.
  3. Configure Archive Settings:
    • In the Archive dialog box, select Archive this folder and all subfolders.
    • Choose the folder you want to archive (e.g., Inbox).
    • Select the Archive items older than date. Set this date to one year ago from today’s date.
    • Choose the location for the archive file by clicking on Browse and selecting a path for the new data file (PST).
  4. Start Archiving:
    • Click OK to start the archiving process.

Additional Tips

  • Create a New Data File: If you prefer, you can create a new data file specifically for archiving:
    • Go to the File tab.
    • Click on Account Settings and then Account Settings again.
    • Go to the Data Files tab.
    • Click Add to create a new Outlook Data File (PST).
  • Manually Move Emails: If you prefer to manually move emails instead of using the AutoArchive or Archive feature:
    • Create a new PST file (as described above).
    • Drag and drop emails older than one year into the new PST file.

These steps should help you efficiently manage and move emails older than one year into a separate data file in Outlook.