I'm dealing with a client's shared mailbox that has over 150,000 emails, and the issue is mainly due to the Deleted Items folder. They have a retention policy in place, but it seems to take up to two weeks to apply, and Outlook keeps crashing because of the mailbox size. The client isn't willing to invest in an Exchange 2 license. I'm wondering if PowerShell has cmdlets that can help me resolve this faster. Any suggestions?
2 Answers
Honestly, if they're struggling with their emails, it might be a management issue. If the cost is a concern, just set up a retention policy to delete items in the Deleted Items folder over 30 days old and sync issues over 15 days. Also, consider getting delegate access and do a thorough cleanup by deleting unwanted emails. You can hard delete messages with keywords like "unsubscribe" or "newsletter". It sounds drastic, but sometimes a white glove approach is the only way to go!
You can try using the `Start-ManagedFolderAssistant` command; it might speed things up. Once you run it, the retention labels tend to apply in a matter of hours instead of days. Just use the command like this: `Start-ManagedFolderAssistant -identity [email protected] -AggMailboxCleanup`. Give it a shot!
It's funny how often you find yourself just doing it for them. I've been in that same boat—sighing and saying, "Fine, I’ll just take care of it." It's usually the quickest fix!