Your email account has a certain amount of storage space (quota) assigned. When this becomes full, you can no longer receive new emails. In this article, we explain how to check your quota, free up space, and manage your mailbox efficiently.

What is email quota?

Email quota is the maximum amount of storage space allocated to your email account. This includes:

  • All received emails in your inbox and subfolders
  • Sent messages in your Sent folder
  • Attachments in all emails
  • Drafts that you have saved
  • Trash and deleted items

Default quotas vary by hosting package, usually between 500 MB and 5 GB per email account.

Check your current quota

Via DirectAdmin

  1. Log in to DirectAdmin (usually via yourdomain.nl/directadmin or through your hosting panel link)
  2. Go to Email Manager or Email Accounts
  3. You will see an overview of all your email accounts
  4. Next to each account, you will see the used and available quota

Via Webmail

  1. Log in to webmail (mail.yourdomain.nl or webmail.yourdomain.nl)
  2. Look at the bottom left or top right for a quota indicator
  3. Often you will see a bar or percentage showing your usage

Via your email program

Outlook:

  1. Right-click on your account in the folder list
  2. Select Data File Properties
  3. Click on Folder Size

Apple Mail:

  1. Go to Mailbox > Mailbox Properties
  2. You will see the total usage

Thunderbird:

  1. Right-click on your account
  2. Select Properties or Settings
  3. View the quota information

Freeing up space: Step-by-step plan

Step 1: Empty the trash

This is the quickest way to free up space:

  1. Go to your Trash or Deleted Items folder
  2. Select all messages (Ctrl+A or Cmd+A)
  3. Delete permanently or choose Empty Trash

Note: In webmail, you often also need to delete the "real" deleted items. Look for an option like "Expunge" or "Compact".

Step 2: Delete old emails with large attachments

Attachments take up the most space:

In webmail (Roundcube):

  1. Click on Search or the magnifying glass
  2. Search by attachments or size
  3. Sort by size (largest first)
  4. Delete emails that you no longer need

In Outlook:

  1. Go to Search > Search Tools > Advanced Search
  2. Select Size is greater than and enter, for example, 5 MB
  3. Review and delete where possible

In Thunderbird:

  1. Use the search bar
  2. Type `size:>5m` to find emails larger than 5 MB
  3. Delete unnecessary large messages

Step 3: Clean up the Sent folder

Many people forget that sent emails also take up space:

  1. Go to your Sent folder
  2. Sort by date (oldest first)
  3. Delete old sent messages that you no longer need
  4. Pay special attention to messages with large attachments

Step 4: Archive important emails locally

If you want to keep emails but free up space on the server:

Outlook:

  1. Create a local archive via File > Info > Tools > Clean Up Old Items
  2. Or create a local PST file and drag emails there

Thunderbird:

  1. Create a Local Folder
  2. Drag emails from the server to your local folder
  3. These will then be removed from the server but remain on your computer

Apple Mail:

  1. Create a On My Mac mailbox
  2. Drag emails there

Step 5: Clean up and compress

After deleting emails, you often need to "compress" or "expunge":

Thunderbird:

  • Right-click on a folder > Compact
  • Or: File > Compact All Local Folders

Roundcube webmail:

  • Go to each folder and click on Compact in the toolbar
  • Or look for Expunge

This actually removes the messages from the server.

Increasing your quota

If you regularly hit your limit, consider:

Option 1: Increase quota via DirectAdmin

If your package allows it:

  1. [Log in to DirectAdmin](https://support.theory7.net/hc/nl/articles/713-directadmin-complete-handleiding-voor-beginners)
  2. Go to Email Manager > Email Accounts
  3. Click on the account you want to adjust
  4. Change the Quota field
  5. Save the changes

Note: You cannot assign more quota than your total hosting package allows.

Option 2: Upgrade your hosting package

If you need more space than your current package offers, you can upgrade to a package with more storage.

Tips for efficient email management

Set up automatic cleanup

Outlook:

  1. Go to File > Options > Advanced
  2. Scroll to AutoArchive
  3. Set it to automatically archive or delete old items

Thunderbird:

  1. Go to Settings > Settings > Advanced
  2. Configure automatic deletion of old messages

Manage attachments smartly

  • Download attachments you want to keep to your computer
  • Then delete the email or the attachment
  • Use cloud storage (Google Drive, OneDrive) for large files instead of email attachments

Unsubscribe from newsletters

Newsletters and marketing emails pile up quickly:

  1. Look for "unsubscribe" links
  2. Use tools like Unroll.me to unsubscribe in bulk
  3. Set up filters to automatically delete spam

Synchronize IMAP folders

If you use IMAP, make sure your email program syncs correctly:

  1. Deleted items must also be removed from the server
  2. Check that "Keep a copy on the server" is not unnecessarily enabled for POP3
  3. Regularly synchronize all folders

Frequently asked questions

"I deleted everything but the quota is still full"

  • Did you empty the trash?
  • Did you compress (expunge)?
  • Check your Spam/Junk folder
  • Wait 15-30 minutes - quota updates may be delayed

"Can I adjust the quota limit for a specific email address?"

Yes, in DirectAdmin you can set a different quota per email account, as long as the total does not exceed the package limit.

"What happens if my quota is full?"

  • You can no longer receive new emails
  • Senders receive a bounce message back
  • You can usually still send emails
  • Free up space as soon as possible

"Does the trash count towards the quota?"

Yes! Deleted emails in the trash still count until you empty the trash.

Need help?

We are here for you! Are you facing any issues or do you have questions? Our support team is happy to assist you personally. Send us a message via the ticket system - we usually respond within a few hours and are happy to help.