One of the most anticipated features (I use that term loosely with the new version) of SharePoint Server 2007 is the Recycle Bin. Unfortunately, it is not as straight-forward as it appears to configure. This post is an attempt to clarify the settings and functions of the Recycle Bin.
First, it is important to understand that the Recycle Bin is configured in Central Administration, but managed at the Site Collection level.
Second, there are two stages of the Recycle Bin - User stage (first stage) and Site Collection administration stage (second stage). The first stage is where the deleted items goes when the user deletes an object such as a document or folder. The first stage counts against the site quota and individual quota. The first stage is not configurable directly, it inherits global settings from the Recycle Bin. The Second stage is where emptied first stage items go. That is the only way items enter the second stage. There is a common misconception that expired items go into the second stage; they do not.
To manage expiration of items in the Recycle Bin, browse to Central Administration > Application Manglement > Web Application General Settings. From there, you need to select the Web application you want to configure. At the bottom of the page you will the Recycle Bin and associated configuration items:
1. Recycle Bin Status - If you turn the Recycle Bin off, it immediately empties the first and second stages of all Recycle Bins in that Web application. This is not reversible and should only be used in a severe out of storage crisis.
2. Delete items in the Recycle Bin - This is a global Recycle Bin setting and applies to the first and second stage. So, when an item is deleted and moved to the first stage, it will be expunged after the number of days you set here. Changing this option to Never does NOT turn off the first stage, it means items will never be emptied from the first stage unless manually deleted (bad). If set to Never, the first stage of the Recycle Bin in this Site Collection will grow until it reaches the Site Quota or the Individual Quota. No Site Quota = No Limit. Yep, now you want to use quotas :-)
3. Second stage Recycle Bin - By default, it is set to 50% of live site quota. If you don't have a quota, then there is no limit. For most Site Collections, 20% is a better number to start with. It really depends on the amount of activity in a site collection and the average file size. Remember, the Recycle Bin stores a full fidelity copy of a file. This includes the modified dates, permissions, and all versions. If you turn this off, files are permanently deleted when a user empties the first stage.
Management Notes: The Recycle Bin is security trimmed, that is, a user only sees their own files in the Recycle Bin. A Site Collection administrator can restore items for users from the second stage from Site Actions > Site Settings > Site Collection Administration > Recycle Bin. From this interface, you select the stage to manage from the Quick Launch.
Design Note: The second stage ADDS to the default Site Quota. So, if you have planned Site Quotas so that content databases won't grow to more than 100GB, leaving the second stage to the default 50% of live site quota could cause those content databases to grow to 150GB. Food for thought.
HTH,
Ben Curry
Mindsharp