This article tells how to delete email from the Mail application's Deleted Messages folder and how to change the settings for automatically purging deleted email.

With Mac OS X 10.0, iTools email uses the IMAP protocol by default. When you delete email messages with the application Mail, they are moved to the Deleted Messages folder and remain there for 30 days. During that time, the messages count toward the 5 MB of space allotted for your email on the iTools email server. After 30 days, they are removed from the Deleted Messages folder on the mail server and from your hard disk.

With light to average email activity, the 5 MB storage allotment on the iTools email server should suffice. If your iTools email account is very active or uses large email attachments, you may want to empty the Deleted Messages folder to free up needed space.

To empty the Deleted Messages folder immediately, choose Empty Deleted Messages from the Mailbox menu in the application Mail.

Messages in the Deleted Messages folder can be automatically purged at intervals shorter than 30 days. Follow these steps to set the length of time email remains in the Deleted Messages folder:

1. Open the application Mail.
2. Choose Preferences from the Mail menu; the Preferences window opens.
3. Click Viewing within the Preferences window.
4. Choose a time interval from the "Erase deleted mail when:" pop-up menu. The choices are:
   • One Day
   • One Week
   • One Month (the default)
   • Never
   • When quitting Mail
5. Close the Preferences window.