Increase maximum size pst-files
How do I increase the maximum file size of an UNICODE pst file? The default size is 20 GB but as far as I know there must be a registry value that allows to increase the maximum up to approximately 4TB.
Yes, you can do this via the registry or via Group Policies. The default maximum size for pst-files in Outlook 2010 is 50GB.
Note: This tip does not apply to pst-files who are in the Outlook 97-2002 format (ANSI formatted pst-files).
Via the Registry
You need to go to the following location in the Registry;
- Outlook 2003
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\PST - Outlook 2007
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\12.0\Outlook\PST - Outlook 2010
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\14.0\Outlook\PST
Here you must create and set 2 new DWORD values (note that these values are case sensitive);
WarnLargeFileSize
Don’t set this higher than4090445042(decimal) orf3cf3cf2(hexadecimal)MaxLargeFileSize
Don’t set this higher than4294967295(decimal) orffffffff(hexadecimal)
The first value is how many MB a user can write to a pst-file. The second value is how many MB the system can write to a pst-file. This difference has to be at least 5% since there is more written to a pst-file than just user data.
Above the maximum size of a pst-file has been set to 100GB with a warning at 95GB.
Via Group Policies
Not comfortable editing the Registry? You can then use Group Policies as well even when you are on a home computer. For instructions on how to use Group Policies see this guide.
The settings for adjusting the pst filesize can be found in the section Miscellaneous-> PST Settings. The following 2 settings need to be modified;
- Large PST: Absolute maximum size
Don’t set this higher than4294967295 - Large PST: Size to disable adding new content
Don’t set this higher than4090445042


