Archive ‘a collection of historical documents or records providing information about a place, institution, or group of people’. that what Oxford dictionary saws.
What is Archive in Outlook?
The main purpose of MS Outlook Archive (and AutoArchive) is to move/shift older emails, calendars, etc., items to an archive folder.
Why archive is important?
It’s a paper-based work scenario if we talk about a long period of time, it is very difficult to shuffle required 
documents from the pile of papers, it’s really scary. Now Microsoft outlook works for you to wipe out these kinds of issues with your emails.
In Outlook, there are two options, you can manually transfer old items to a storage file by clicking archive on the File menu, or you can have old items automatically transferred by using the AutoArchive feature.
Archive folders work smartly and store your older emails, calendar, etc. in another location on your system hard drive.
The main purpose of archiving transfers older items from the main .pst file into a separate archive.pst file. This way, it helps you reduce the size of your mailbox and get some free space back on your drive.
Depending on how you configure it, Outlook Archive can perform one of the following tasks:
- Move emails and other items from their current folders to an archive folder.
- Permanently delete old emails and other items as soon as they have passed the specified aging period.
Steps to get auto-archive activated in outlook
AutoArchive helps the user to manage the space in your mailbox & that you are using by automatically moving items to an archive location.
- Step 1 – Click to File Tab >> Click Options >> Advanced >> Autoarchive settings >> OK
Step 2 – Next step is very important and will ask you several things.
It is important to understand every option available in the dialog box to keep the auto-archive smooth and trustworthy.
- Run AutoArchive every *** day – Select the number of days you want the archive to run automatically every (selected day), keep it not more than 20 days, that’s why we are getting 20 days by default.
If you want to discontinue AutoArchive unselect/turn off the AutoArchive feature.
- Prompt before AutoArchive runs – Sometimes you want to revoke your decision, this option allows you to ask before the auto-archive of your outlook begins. When prompts appear, you can click No on the reminder message to cancel that AutoArchive session. I like these kinds of options available in Microsoft outlook.
- Delete expired items (e-mail folders only) – This option required your special attention by selecting the option. Under these criteria, your mails are programmed to delete after their aging period appears.
- Archive or delete old items – Choose this option if you want to set or change the settings that follow. If this checkbox is cleared, AutoArchive runs using default settings.
- Show archive folder in folder list – This option is available to have your Archive folder listed with your other working folders.
- Clean out items older than *** months – you can manually declare the age of holding your archive content up to one day to a maximum of 60 months.
- Move old items to – Under this option, you are instructing the outlook to save your archive in the default folder or you can select space as per your choice instead of automatically deleting them.
- Permanently delete items – This option deletes any expired items. They are not moved and no archive copy is kept. Selecting this option clears the selection of the Move old items to option.
- Apply these settings to all folders now – This option is the trigger to apply all related AutoArchive settings, including your changes, to all folders mentioned above.
When archiving is in progress, the status information is displayed in the status bar.
How to Turn off AutoArchive in Outlook
- Step 1 – Click to File Tab >> Click Options >> Advanced >> Autoarchive settings >> OK
- Step 2 – Uncheck Run auto-archive in every *** day, that way auto-archive turns off.
Steps to get Archive items manually in Outlook
Archive items manually whenever you want. That way, you can control which items to archive, where to store them, and how old an item needs to be before it can be archived.
- Step 1 – Click File tab >> Info >> Cleanup tools >> Archive
- Step 2 – Select the Archive this folder and all subfolders option, and select the folder you want to archive.
- Step 3 – Under this option, you have to select the date, this will signal outlook to archive mail older than that day.
- Step 4 – Select the Include items with “Do not AutoArchive” checked box to archive individual items that are excluded from automatic archiving.
- Final Step – Click OK
How To Not Auto Archive Items In An Outlook Folder?
Under manually or auto-archive the whole folder archive in outlook, in case you want to exclude some of the files or emails, there is an option to available in Microsoft outlook.
There are certain steps to instruct your outlook not to auto-archive selected items. Here is [Step by Step Guide]
There are two options – You can set remove auto-archive for the single mail or multiple mails.
- Select the particular mail and press Alt + Enter keys together to open the Properties dialog box.
- Check Do not AutoArchive this item option and click the OK button.
- Click OK and Apply, This step is useful if you want an individual [mail, calendar, or contact]. In the majority of cases, the user wants to establish multiple selections of emails for not auto-archive.
Step by Step Guide for Stop auto-archive for multiple emails
- Step 1 – Select the folder where you want not auto-archive multiple items, click View tab >> Click View Settings.
- Step 2 – You get a popup [Advanced View Settings dialog box] Click to Columns on top of the box.
- Step 3 – Show Columns dialog box consists of bulk of options Start with Select All Mail fields >> Select Do not auto-archive >> Click Add [You can see Do not auto-archive shifted to right portion] >> click the Move Up or Move Down buttons [it is optional to adjust the sequence you want Do not auto-archive to appear], and finally (5) click the OK button.
This section is the game-changer for not auto-archive for multiple emails.
- Step 4 – Now you return back to the Advanced View Settings dialog box >> click the Other Settings button.
- Step 5 – A separate dialog box popup, check the Allow in-cell editing, and click the OK.
- Step 6 – Back to the homepage of Microsoft Outlook click View Tab >> Reading Pane >> Off
- Step 7 – Do Not AutoArchive column is added to the folder. Now you can select multiple emails which not want to auto archive.
I hope this guide has shed some light on How Microsoft Outlook does not archive items in this folder. Under this guide both particular or multiple selections of mails [step by step process] for archive automatically, manually, stop archive, and not archive items in this folder.
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