Lotus Notes Database Size Exceeds Quota Limit

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Written By Mohit Jha
Anuraag Singh
Approved By Anuraag Singh 
Published On October 31st, 2022
Reading Time 4 Minutes Reading

With electronic communication at its peak, exceeding the size of default databases of email clients is very common. In this write up, we will restrict our discussion to Lotus Notes database. At times while working it happens that Lotus Notes unable to write to database because database would exceed its disk quota.

Lotus Notes database size limit can be extended up to 64 GB. However, when Lotus Notes mail quota exceeded its limit, the following message appears –

Unable to write to database- database would exceed its disk quota.”

When a database reaches its quota, the user cannot add new documents to it. In order to receive a warning when the database nears its limit, the users can set a threshold value. When this threshold limit is crossed, following error message is generated:

“Warning, database has exceeded its size warning threshold.”

Methods to Manage Lotus Notes Database Size

In order to prevent the Lotus Notes database size from exceeding, the users should adopt below mentioned techniques-

#1 Compact Your Database

Notes database contains unusable space referees as white space. This unusable space is created by deletion of large documents and attachments. This white space consumes unnecessary space in the database and is the biggest cause of exceed in the size of Lotus Notes database.

This white space can be removed by compacting the database. To do compacting, follow the below-mentioned steps:

  • Open Notes mailbox.
  • Click on File option and select Database
  • From drop down menu, select Properties
  • In the Database Properties dialog box, click on the second tab.
  • Click % button to view the current compression ratio.
  • If the % is less than 90%, click Compact option and compact the database.

#2 Download & Delete Attachments

The size of Lotus Notes database can be managed by downloading all the attachments embedded in the emails and then delete the attachments. You can also delete the complete email in case it is not important. This will save the unnecessary space that the attachments occupy in the database.

#3 Delete Emails That You Don’t Need

Make it a habit to delete the unwanted messages from your Notes database. You can sort the emails according to their size and date and then delete the emails, which are not necessary and are of large size.

#4 Disable Automatic Saving Of Sent Mail

If you do not want to automatically save the emails that you are sending, then choose the Always Prompt option for your sent mail. When this option is enabled, the user will be prompted to save a copy of each message that is being sent. Since by default this option is set to Always Keep A Copy, you can change it by following below steps:

  • Click on File option and select the Preferences
  • Select User Preferences option and click on Mail.
  • In the Sending section, browse for Save Mails That You Send, select the Always Prompt from the drop down menu.

#5 Archive Documents That You Don’t Need Regularly

Creating Archives of Lotus Notes emails is another method to save the emails that are not accessed regularly but are important and cannot be deleted. Create archives and delete the emails from the main database.

#6 Removal Of Old Attributes

Not just emails, unnecessary attributes like old calendars, contacts, and To-do list entries also occupy a lot of space in Lotus Notes database. Therefore, deleting such unnecessary items is very necessary in order to avoid Lotus Notes size limit exceeds quota issue.

Conclusion

With the help of the methods mentioned in the above sections, Notes users can get back their database within the pre-defined quota & if the mailbox quota exceeds they could split NSF file.

  author

By Mohit Jha

Meet Mohit, an accomplished professional serving as an Assistant Digital Marketing Manager and content strategist. As a content strategist, Mohit combines creativity and strategy to craft compelling narratives that captivate audiences and align with brand objectives. With a dual expertise in digital marketing and content strategy, Mohit is your trusted partner in achieving digital excellence.