Compacting drawer data files
Drawer data files can contain unused space, resulting in larger files than is necessary. You can compact drawer data files to reduce the amount of unused space within the files.
- From theHelpmenu, chooseRepair.noteDepending on your organization's security configuration, you may be required to enter the master password to open theRepairdialog.
- Select theCompacttab.
- Highlight drawers to compact in theDrawers available to compactpane, and use theSelectbutton to move them to theDrawers Selectedpane.
- When all appropriate drawers are listed in theDrawers selectedpane, select theCompact Drawersbutton.
note
- When you archive data, you will still need to compact the data to reduce unused space.
- Repeat this process for each data location.
- The compact feature is resource intensive; the duration of the compact process is dependent on the number of drawers selected for compacting, the size of the drawers, and the available hardware resources.
- If there is an error during the compacting process for a drawer, the process will stop and generate error summary information. You may need to repeat the steps in the compact process for drawers that were not processed due to an error.
- We recommend that you run the compact feature biannually, yearly, or as needed to optimize hard drive space. However, it should not be necessary for you to frequently compact drawer data files.
- FileCabinet CS uses an automatic locking feature for this process.
- Drawer sizes may differ between theDrawer Statisticsand theCompact Drawersdialogs due to the optimization of the files. Refer to the sizes in theCompactdialog when considering database size.
- The compact feature is not available for SQL data locations and you cannot reduce the size of SQL databases by simply removing data. For help on reducing SQL databases, contact a qualified SQL technician.
