XCLN: No Means of Disabling Default Folders from Offline Use

ID: Q170816

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Exchange Windows 3.x client, versions 4.0, 5.0
Microsoft Exchange Windows 95/98 client, versions 4.0, 5.0
Microsoft Exchange Windows NT client, versions 4.0, 5.0

SUMMARY

By default, the following four folders are marked as being available both online and offline. (To view this, point to a folder and right-click to display the selections. Click Properties and then click the Synchronization tab):

Sent items
Deleted items
Inbox
Outbox

To synchronize an offline folder (OST file), on the Tools menu of the Exchange or Outlook client, click Synchronize, and then select All Folders. All information in these default folders is synchronized as well as any additional private or public folders that have also been marked for offline use. These four default folders are always marked as being available both online and offline and cannot be marked for online use only. This is by product design.

MORE INFORMATION

To prevent information from all four default folders from being synchronized, select the one folder you wish to synchronize and on the Tools menu of the Exchange or Outlook client, click Synchronize, and then click This Folder.

The time it takes to synchronize all folders can be improved by minimizing the amount of information kept in these default folders.

Some general tips for optimizing synchronization times while using offline folders:

Encourage all users to send links to large documents instead of sending the whole document as attachments.

Place restrictions on the sizes of messages that may be sent through the Exchange Messaging system (this can be done through the Exchange Administrator program). Restrictions can be set on individual mailboxes or for all messages flowing through a specific connector.

Perform a full synchronization and download the offline address book while connected to a LAN whenever possible. This is especially important after creating a new OST file because of the amount of information that typically must be replicated initially. Because synchronization only transfers new information, if a majority of the information can be replicated while connected over a LAN, remote synchronization time will be greatly shortened.

Consider moving large forms from the Organizational Forms Library to a Personal Folder (PST) or a public folder. Organizational forms are replicated to offline folder files as well and can be large.

Keep information in the Sent Items folder to a minimum by regularly archiving or deleting information from the Sent Items folder. Microsoft Outlook's Autoarchive feature can make this process easy. If necessary, disable the option Save A Copy Of The Item In The 'Sent Items' Folder. (To locate this option, on the Tools menu, click Options and click the Send tab.)

Keep information in the Deleted Items folder to a minimum by selecting the "Empty the deleted items folder upon exiting" option. (To locate this option, on the Tools menu, click Option and click the General tab).

Use a server-based Inbox Assistant rule to automatically move any large messages or messages with attachments to a private folder not marked for synchronization. A reply template can simultaneously be sent stating "a large message has been moved to the Attachment folder" so that it is apparent to the user that a large message was moved with a rule.

See the following Knowledge Base articles for additional information about OST files and synchronization:

Q162544 XCLN: Troubleshooting Remote Function of Exchange and Schedule+

Q163589 XCLN: Restoring from an OST after Deleting the Mailbox

Q161889 XCLN: OST and PST Quick Reference

Keywords : win95 winnt WIN16 XCLN
Version : WINDOWS:4.00,5.00
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbinfo