There are many mechanisms you can use to automate the sending of large email attachments in Microsoft Outlook. Some third-party products use FTP to accomplish this, but that isn't always considered a user-friendly option. One alternative choice is a commercial product called DirectXchange that can send large files directly through the email client.
To download a free 30-day trial version of the program, you'll need any version of Microsoft Outlook, from Outlook 2000 through Outlook 2007, and the .NET 2.0 runtinme.
After the 30-day trial period, DirectXchange will only work in extract mode unless you buy the full version, which costs anywhere from U.S. $31.99 to $39.99 for up to 99 seats. For 100+ seats, pricing is not disclosed, but is likely negotiable based on the volume of licenses purchased.
DirectXchange integrates directly with Microsoft Outlook. The utility will work with any email system, so Exchange Server is not specifically required.
DirectXchange uses the industry-standard .ZIP-format archiving to break an email attachment into smaller pieces, more manageable pieces. Each segment is then sent in its own individual email. This way, a large file can be sent without breaking any message-size limits.
The email recipient can then use DirectXchange to reassemble the pieces, or extract the sent pieces into a folder. Almost any .ZIP-extraction utility can be used to unpack them.
Each individual email message is created by the program itself and sent automatically; you don't have to do anything except point to the file and click the DirectXchange button on the toolbar.
The program can also encrypt the pieces using AES for additional safety (although your recipient will need to know the password to unpack the files). The size for each file piece can be set manually by the user.
About the author: Serdar Yegulalp is editor of Windows Insight, a newsletter devoted to hints, tips, tricks, news and goodies for all flavors of Windows users.
Do you have comments on this tip? Let us know.
Please let others know how useful this tip was via the rating scale below. Do you have a useful Exchange Server or Microsoft Outlook tip, timesaver or workaround to share? Submit it to SearchExchange.com. If we publish it, we'll send you a thank-you gift only an IT geek could love.
