Resizing the Recycle Bin
Windows XP Support
By: WinXpFix.com
How to Resizing the Recycle Bin: By default, the
maximum size of the Recycle Bin on your hard drive is
10 percent of the size of the hard drive. Example, a 10GB
hard drive has a maximum Recycle Bin size of 1GB - that's
a lot of space to use up for files you've decided to delete.
If you delete an file that would cause the Recycle Bin
to exceed that size, Windows will warn you with an error
message.
You may decide either to raise this limit or lower it,
either of which you can do by following this procedure:
* You need to right-click the Recycle Bin icon on the
desktop, and then choose Properties from the shortcut
menu. You will see the Properties dialog box of the Recycle
Bin.
* The Properties dialog box contains a Global tab, plus
a tab for each hard drive on your system. If you want
to change the maximum size setting for all the hard drives
at once, set the new maximum size of the Recycle Bin (as
a percentage of total drive space) by moving the slider
on the Global tab. Then click OK. Skip the remaining steps.
* You may want to reset the maximum Recycle Bin size
for only a single hard drive, and leaving the others the
same, you need to select the Configure Drives Independently
radio button on the Global tab.
* Click on the tab for the drive you want to change.
Set the slider on that tab. Then click OK.
Streamlining the Deletion Process
We've all been thankful that Windows makes it a little
hard to eliminate a file on a hard drive. There are four
different actions usually necessary: deleting the file
in the first place, confirming the deletion in a dialog
box, emptying the Recycle Bin (or deleting the file from
the Recycle Bin), and then confirming that decision in
a dialog box. This process can occasionally be a lifesaver,
it can also be tedious (particularly if you are trying
to get rid of sensitive files that you don't want hanging
around in the Recycle Bin).
* If you let the Recycle Bin get full, however, the oldest
recycled files will be lost when new ones are recycled.
NOTE: Even deleting a file from the Recycle Bin doesn't
destroy the information right away. Windows makes the
file's disk space available for reassignment, but doesn't
immediately write over that disk space. People with the
proper tools could still read the file. To prevent this,
you need file-deletion software that is not part of Windows.