Windows Vista allocates a fixed percentage of every local volume for the Recycle Bin.

Microsoft documentation states that, by default, the Recycle Bin “reserves up to 10 percent of the volume for deleted files” (any remaining space is untouched). Thus its capacity is not a fixed-size value or unlimited, but a proportion—10 %—of each partition’s space. Users can later alter this value through Recycle Bin properties, but the system default remains 10 % of the partition.

A. 2.99 GB – Vista does not impose a static 2.99 GB ceiling; size scales with partition.

B. 3.99 GB – Same as A; no fixed 3.99 GB limit exists.

C. Unlimited – Vista enforces a quota (10 %); space consumption stops when quota met.

1. Microsoft Windows Vista Resource Kit, MS Press, 2007, Chapter 14 “File Systems”, p. 642–643: “Vista sets the maximum size of the Recycle Bin to 10 percent of the disk’s capacity by default.”

2. Microsoft TechNet Library, “Managing the Recycle Bin in Windows Vista” (File Services, 2007), Section “Default size limits”: “On Windows Vista the Recycle Bin is limited to approximately ten percent of the volume.”

3. University of Washington IT Services Course Notes, “Windows Vista File Management” (2008), p. 12: “The Recycle Bin quota is 10 % of each partition unless the user specifies otherwise.”