Microsoft Outlook is probably one of the most popular email programs used in organizational and individual setups. However, over time as emails, attachments, calendar invitations and contact logs pile up, the Personal Storage Table (PST) file can get very huge. Outlook tends to slow down, freeze, or exhibit frequent indexing delays as the PST file becomes huge. In extreme circumstances, huge PST files can lead to serious data corruption, making it impossible to view vital emails.

Dividing large data files into smaller sections is necessary for the proper functioning of Outlook and security of your archives. This article will help you securely divide large PST files, first by utilizing Microsoft Outlook's native manual approaches, and later by employing a straight automated solution when manual methods are too sluggish or difficult.

Why Should You Split Large PST Files?

Storing large Outlook data files is a major security and performance issue. Here is why it is vital to truncate / split them:

Avoid File Corruption: Older PST formats (ANSI) had a hard 2 GB restriction but contemporary Unicode forms can manage up to 50 GB. Approaching these maximum limits greatly increases the likelihood of file header corruption.

Improve Outlook Speed: Large PST files require a lot of memory at the time of starting and daily search indexing, due to which Outlook freezes or crashes abruptly.

Easier Management & Backup: It is faster and more reliable to backup or move a few smaller 2GB to 5GB files than to move one huge 45GB monolith.

Smooth Archiving: Keeping emails clean and organized by breaking down data by year, project, or folder structure.

Method 1: Manually Split Large PST Files in Outlook

Microsoft Outlook has a couple of manual solutions to help minimize the size of a mailbox and segregate data: the native Archive feature and the Import/Export wizard.

Method A: Archiving in Outlook

The Archive function copies older items from your mailbox to a separate PST file depending on a date range you define.

• On your PC, open Microsoft Outlook.
• Click the File tab at the top of the ribbon menu.
• Go to Info > Tools > Clean Up Old Items (or Archive, depending on which version of Outlook you have).
• Select Archive this folder and all subfolders.
• Select the primary mailbox folder or a particular folder (eg Inbox or Sent Items) to split.
• Select a cut-off date for Archive items older than drop-down.
• Click Browse to select the folder path and name for your new split PST file.
• Click OK. Outlook will move the emails older than the selected date to a new PST file, freeing up some space in your primary mailbox.

Approach B: Import/Export and Move to Folder

If you want to specifically choose which folders go into which file, it's possible to create new PST file and manually move data to it.

Step 1. Create New Blank PST File

• In Outlook, select Home > New Items > More Items > Outlook Data File.
• Give the new file a descriptive name (eg Archive_2023.pst) and save it locally.
• Click OK. The new, empty PST file now shows in the Outlook folder window on the left hand side.

Step 2: Transferring Emails to New File

• Back to your huge mailbox of yore.
• Select the email, folders, or things you want to transfer.
• Right-click on the selection and choose Move > Other Folder.
• Select the destination as the newly generated PST file directory and click OK.

Repeat this procedure to produce additional PST files for other time periods or project folders.

Disadvantages of manual methods

The native manual techniques do not require any additional installs, however they have significant disadvantages:

1. Time-consuming: Manually moving thousands of emails or executing many archiving cycles takes hours.
2. Risk of Data Loss: In the event of a system freeze or internet drop, a manual transfer can be interrupted, leading to corruption of the destination file or data loss.
3. No Direct File-Size Cutoffs You can't force it to "break this 30 GB file into exactly 5 GB pieces". Archive only filters on date.
4. Complicated for Many Files: If you have dozens of orphaned PST files outside Outlook, importing every single one of them into a profile is tiresome and not practicable.

Method 2: Automatic splitting using Outlook PST Split Expert Software

In case of badly damaged, extremely large or several orphan PST files, manual approaches might be dangerous and exhausting. The dedicated utility software tools offer an effective alternative, automating the entire procedure without the need to manually manage the folders within Outlook.

DataVare Outlook PST Split Expert Software makes it very easy to split enormous storage data neatly, as per file size, date, folder hierarchy or year, etc.

Advantages of an Automated PST Splitter

• No Outlook Profile Necessary: ​​Works directly on standalone.pst files without the requirement of an active Outlook installation or profile setup.
• Multiple Splitting Options: Split files by size (1 GB, 2 GB, 5 GB, etc.), date period, year or particular folder structures.
• 100% Data Integrity: Preserves original email metadata, headers, inline attachments, formatting, and folder trees.
• Supports All PST Formats: Native support for both older ANSI and contemporary Unicode PST formats in all versions of Outlook.

Automated Process of Splitting PST Files Step by Step

Download and Run Download and run the software on your Windows PC.

• Add PST File(s): Click the “Browse” or “Add File” option to load the huge PST file you desire to process.
• Select Splitting Option: Choose your split criteria:
• By Size: Set a specific size limit (eg divide into 2 GB or 5 GB pieces).
• By Date Break up items into specified date ranges.
• Per folder. Create a separate PST file for each mailbox folder.
• Select Destination Folder: Click on Browse to choose the location for the new split PST files.
• Split Now: Click the Split Now button. The program processes the file safely and stores the smaller lightweight PST pieces in the destination folder.

Conclusion

If you want Microsoft Outlook to run fast and reliable and want to minimize PST file corruption then you have to manage huge PST files. If you only need to archive or reduce the size of your mailbox a little, Outlook's built-in Archive and Move tools will work fine for smaller mailboxes. But when working with huge PST files, lost archives or a specific necessity to split files down by specified size limits without damaging email metadata, then the use of an automated program is the safest, most efficient approach.

This comprehensive guide will assist you to easily separate your hefty Outlook data files, secure your precious email archives and bring your workspace back to its top efficiency.