So what can you do about folders that grow to large? You could manually move files out of the folders that are to large to reduce their file count.

Or, you could use a program like Folder Axe to perform that operation for you. When you first run the program you are asked to select a folder that you want to split.

Once you have selected a folder you can select one of the two available split types. The program supports splitting by amount of files or by size. When you select a split type, you are asked to enter a number. If you want to split by amount, you are asked to enter a maximum number of files that you want to have in each individual folder.

If you select size instead, you are asked to enter a maximum size for individual folders. Megabyte is selected by default, but you can click the MB icon to change it to Gigabyte or Kilobyte instead.

It is also recommended to change the folder naming scheme from the default “Folder” name to something more appropriate and related to the files of the root folder.

A click on the split button starts the splitting process. The program moves all files based on the selected criteria to new folders.

Probably the biggest issue that users may have with the program is that it is not possible to sort files by file extension or type.

We have reviewed several file splitting and sorting applications before. This includes File Sort, the gadget Magic Folder or Desktop Teleporter.

Head over to the Folder Axe website to download the folder splitting software. It requires the Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0.

The string sorting option can be very interesting for users of webmail accounts that support Unicode characters like Gmail. The default sorting order in Thunderbird would change the sort order of the Gmail folder as Thunderbird does not use these characters in the sorting process.

The manual folder sorting on the other hand gives the user the versatile option to sort the folders exactly how they should look like without having to care about a specific sort order. It could take longer to sort but in the end it should be the most comfortable for the user.

Manually Sort Folders is available for Thunderbird 3 only. It can be downloaded at the Mozilla Thunderbird website.