I'm managing email storage for my team, primarily using Business Standard M365 with a 50GB limit, which makes archiving pretty straightforward. However, I've run into challenges with our E3 license users who have a 100GB limit. I've been using eDiscovery to archive emails based on various filters like date and sender, but I'm concerned I'm not capturing everything necessary. Plus, I've read about extending Outlook's handling of PST files over 50GB through registry edits, but even when I hit around 98GB, Outlook crashes. How are others dealing with this? Do you include both indexed and partially indexed items when archiving?
3 Answers
You could try enabling auto-expanding archives for E3 users. It’s part of their license, so it gives them nearly unlimited space without dealing with PSTs. That way, you avoid the hassle of manual archiving and keep everything discoverable.
Exactly! It could really streamline the process for your users too.
Have you considered using online archives? E3 users have access to 1.5TB of online archive space, which might save you a lot of headaches with PSTs. Plus, it keeps everything easily searchable. You could even create a company policy for archiving older emails and train users to look for their old stuff in the archive. Just be careful with recurring tasks, as they might affect users' task lists when archived.
I get what you're saying, but I think users might struggle without some guidance on how to manage that.
That’s a smart move! But do a lot of users actually remember to check their online archives?
If you're still exporting to PSTs, you can get the eDiscovery export tool to divide emails into smaller PST files. Just set it for around 20GB per file so they’re more manageable. But honestly, looking into the online archive option might be better in the long run—not just for storage, but also keeping everything searchable.
Totally agree, and going online opens up so many more options!
Good call on splitting those files! It’s so much simpler than dealing with a massive one.
That sounds like a great solution! Plus, it keeps the mailbox clean and organized.