5 Fixes for the “Outlook Data File Has Reached the Maximum Size” Error in Windows

Pankil is a Civil Engineer turned freelance writer. Since his arrival at Guiding Tech in 2021, he delves into the world of how-tos, and troubleshooting guides for Android, iOS, and Windows. Besides his new-found love for mechanical keyboards, he’s a disciplined footfall fan and loves international travel with his wife.

Fix 1: Compact the Microsoft Outlook Data File

Compacting yourOutlook data fileremoves unused space and purges redundant information from the data file, effectively reducing its size. Hence, you should try that first.

Step 1:Open the Outlook app on your PC and click theFilemenu in the top-left corner.

Step 2:In theInfotab, click onAccount Settingsand selectAccount Settingsfrom the resulting menu.

Step 3:Under theData Filestab, select the Outlook data file and click onSettings.

Step 4:Click theCompact Nowbutton.

Fix 2: Clean Up Old Outlook Items

Archiving old mail items in Outlook is another way to reduce the size of your Outlook data file. This will move your old emails to a separate PST file while still keeping them accessible.

Step 1:Open the Outlook app and click theFilemenu in the top-left corner.

Step 2:In theInfotab, click onToolsand selectClean Up Old Items.

Step 3:In theArchivewindow, choose theArchive this folder and all subfoldersoption and select your email account.

Step 4:Click the drop-down menu next toArchive items older thanand select your preferred date. Then, clickOK.

Fix 3: Enable AutoArchiving in Outlook

Although manually archiving old mail items in Outlook does not take long, you can also automate this process by enabling the AutoArchiving feature. Here’s how:

Step 1:Open the Outlook app and go toFile > Options.

Step 2:In the Outlook Options window, switch to theAdvancedtab and click theAutoArchive Settingsbutton.

Step 3:Tick theRun AutoArchive everycheckbox and specify the number of days after which the AutoArchive feature will run.

Step 4:Use the checkboxes to specify how Outlook needs to handle old items during AutoArchive.

Step 5:Enter the age of the items you want to archive and then clickOK.

Fix 4: Save Attachments in a Different Folder

If you frequently exchange emails with large attachments, it can increase the size of your Outlook PST file and trigger the “Outlook data file has reached the maximum size” error on Windows. To fix this, you will need to identify emails with large attachments in Outlook and save those attachments in a separate folder.

Step 1:Open the Outlook app, click the filter option, and selectSizeunder Arranged by.

Step 2:Open any email under theHugeorVery Largesection. Right-click on your attachment and selectSave All Attachments.

Step 3:ClickOKand save the attachments in your preferred folder.

Step 4:Right-click on your attachment and selectRemove Attachment.

Fix 5: Increase the PST File Size Limit Using the Registry Editor

Reducing the size of the Outlook data file may not be feasible for you if you regularly receive large files via email or engage in extensive email communication. Fortunately, it’s possible to increase the Outlook PST file size limit byediting registry files.

Step 1:Press theWindows + Rkeyboard shortcut to open the Run dialog box. Typeregeditin the box and pressEnter.

Step 2:Paste the following path in the address bar at the top and press Enter.

Step 3:Right-click thePSTkey, go toNew, and selectDWORD (32-bit) Valuefrom the submenu. Rename it toMaxLargeFileSize. Similarly, create another DWORD and name itWarnLargeFileSize.

Step 4:Double-click theMaxLargeFileSizeDWORD and enter51200in the Value data field if you want to set the PST file size limit to 50GB. Alternatively, if you want to set the limit to 40GB, enter 40960 instead. Then, clickOK.

Step 5:Double-click theWarnLargeFileSizeDWORD and set its value to95%of theMaxLargeFileSizevalue. For instance, if you have set the MaxLargeFileSize DWORD to51200, set the value for WarnLargeFileSize to48640(95% of 51200) and clickOK.

Was this helpful?

Last updated on 18 July, 2024

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

Your email address will not be published.Required fields are marked*

Name*

Email*

Comment*

Δ

The article above may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. The content remains unbiased and authentic and will never affect our editorial integrity.

More in Windows

7 Ways to Fix Preview Pane Not Working on Windows

7 Best Ways to Fix Kindle for PC Desktop App Won’t Open on Windows

JOIN THE NEWSLETTER

Get Guiding Tech articles delivered to your inbox.

© 2024 Guiding Tech Media. All Rights Reserved.