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OCLC Support

Why is my Connexion client local file size so large when it only contains a few records?

Applies to
  • Connexion client all versions
Answer

When you delete records from a database file, they don’t physically delete, rather internally they are marked for deleting but are still present in the file.  Deleted records are skipped when you list them so it looks like they’re gone.  Over time, the file size grows because hundreds or thousands of records are added, processed, then deleted.  Then more records are added, processed, and deleted, and so on.  Over time, a file can grow to a large size and only contain a few records.

Is there some kind of maintenance I should be doing?
Good question!  Yes, if you periodically do a Compact/Repair (File > Local File Manager > Compact/Repair button) of the file, it is reduced to its true size.  The COMPACT portion of the operation physically removes records that are marked for deletion and brings the file back to a size that represents the actual number of records in the file at the time of the compact.
 
Depending on the volume of cataloging you do, you could do the compact once a month or once a quarter (spring, summer, fall, winter for example).  In addition to keeping the file size down, it allows the client to start quicker as it only must open and read a small file and not a humongous one that only contains a few records.
 

Additional information

 

Page ID
43846