Find and remove large files from Microsoft OneDrive and Exchange email

Microsoft enforced changes to its higher educational licensing. Your M365 account has storage limits. M365 account holders scan take steps to eliminate large files from OneDrive and Exchange email.

• Delete large files form OneDrive
  • Delete large files from Microsoft OneDrive desktop app
  • Delete large files from Microsoft OneDrive web app
• Delete large messages from Exchange
  • Delete large messages from web-based Outlook
  • Delete large messages from the Outlook desktop app

Delete large files from Microsoft OneDrive

Delete large files from the OneDrive desktop app

1. Right-click the OneDrive icon in the Windows notification area, and then select Settings (the wheel icon).

2. Select Manage storage.
3. This opens a page that shows a list of the files in your OneDrive, sorted by size. 
4. You can delete files from this page by marking them with a check and then choosing Delete from the toolbar.

OneDrive storage will not be recovered until the files are removed from the recycle bin. Files in the recycle bin are automatically removed after 30 days. If you are over quota, you may need to empty the recycle bin immediately. To empty the recycle bin, 

1. Click the OneDrive icon in the Windows notification area.

2. Click Recycle bin.

3. Click Empty recycle bin.

Delete large files from the OneDrive web app

1. Log on to the M365 website at https://office.com.
2. Click the waffle menu (9 dots icon) and choose OneDrive.
3. In the lower left corner, click the number for the amount of data used link (for example, click 95 GB used of.....)

4. You can delete files from this page by marking them with a check and then choosing Delete from the toolbar.

OneDrive storage will not be recovered until the files are removed from the recycle bin. Files in the recycle bin will be automatically removed after 30 days. If you are over quota, you may need to empty the recycle bin immediately. To empty the recycle bin, 

1. Click the Recycle bin from the list of OneDrive folders.

2. Click Empty recycle bin.

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Delete large messages from Microsoft Exchange

The preferred client for use with Microsoft Exchange is Microsoft Outlook, which is available in Windows, Mac, and on the web.

Delete large files from Web based Outlook

• Use search to find and delete large files

1. Log on to your Exchange account at https://outlook.office.com.
2. Click in the Search field, and choose All folders as the search type.
3. In the search field, type: hasattachment:yes

4. Messages with attachments appear in the results window. You can use the results to determine which messages should be deleted to free up storage space.

• Use Outlook settings to help you find folders that store your largest messages.

1.  Navigate to Settings > General > Storage. The size of each folder and number of messages indicate which folders store large email messages. 
2. Close the settings. Click on a folder that you suspect has large message. 

• Use the Outlook sort feature to find large messages.

1. Click on any folder, and click the filter icon at the top of the folder list.
2. Choose Sort - Size. Your messages will be sorted according to size. Review large messages and delete them if possible. Note the option to download attachments.

Exchange storage space will not be recovered until your deleted items have been removed from the Deleted Items folder. Messages will automatically be removed from the Deleted Items folder after 30 days. If you need to recover space immediately, right-click the Deleted Items folder, and choose Empty folder.

​​​​Delete large messages from desktop Outlook

• Use search to find and delete large files

1. With Outlook open, click in the Search box, and make sure All Mailboxes is selected. 
2. Type: messagesize:>5 mb. This will find all messages larger than 5 MB.
3. You can delete some or all of these messages or move them to Outlook's Online Archive. 

• Use the Outlook sort feature to find large messages.

1. Click on any folder, and click the filter icon at the top of the folder list.
2. In the Sort By category, choose Size.
3. You can delete large messages or move them to Outlook's Online Archive. 

Exchange storage space will not be recovered until your deleted items have been removed form the Delete Items folder. Messages will automatically be removed from the Deleted Items folder after 30 days. If you need to recover space immediately, right-click the Deleted Items folder, and choose Empty folder.

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