Stopping recurring Outlook freezes for a Perth design firm
An owner's Outlook kept freezing as shared and delegated mailboxes pushed her data file to the 50 GB limit. We freed ~15 GB and tuned the offline cache for a durable fix — each visit under 30 minutes.
~15 GB
Mailbox data freed
<30 min
Per fix
0
Freezes since
3→1 yr
Offline cache tuned
The challenge
The business owner's Outlook was repeatedly freezing shortly after launch. She had several shared and delegated mailboxes attached to her profile, which over time pushed her local Outlook data file (OST/PST) to around 50 GB — the practical ceiling for stable Outlook performance.
What we did
On the first call we removed the delegated mailboxes from her profile so they no longer bloated the local data file, then compacted the file to restore normal operation — done in under 30 minutes. When the freezing returned the next day, we found her “mail to keep offline” slider was set to 3 years, so Outlook had begun re-downloading years of mail for her primary mailbox and pushing the file back towards the limit. We reduced offline retention from 3 years to 1 year and compacted the file again.
The outcome
The durable fix freed roughly 15 GB and brought the data file well below the practical size limit. Outlook stayed responsive and stable, recent and relevant mail remained instantly available, and both visits were completed in under 30 minutes — minimal downtime for a busy owner.
Services involved
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