Though I can't solve the "design" problem of big archives on a "small" system, if you are not in a rush, you can probably offload the prime-time processing of your SEARCH (request) by using the following // JOB card syntax: //SrchSAS JOB Echo=no,prime=NO Though I am not positive, I was under the impression that the listserv-maintainer had some control over when searches are enabled. (?) With a cursory observation of the topology of the PEERed SAS-L archives and the dates covered by each, it would seem that MARIST is the most complete. Nevertheless, depending on your specific knowledge of which other archives might cover your dates, maybe VTVM1 or UGA would suffice? alternatively maybe there are WEB sites that would provide better service (assuming there are such WEB sites and you have a browser). Needless to say, Melvin would be as expert on this as anyone. -- co-owner: INFOSYS, TQM-L, CPARK-L, ERAPPA-L, JANITORS, LDBASE-L, et -L URL:mailto:[log in to unmask] "Morning After on the Internet: net-censorship"