The maximum number of records allowed in a collection is restricted to a numerical cap. The maximum number of items in drop-down lists is similarly capped. The default cap on both records and list items is normally 200, but under certain conditions, these caps can be overridden (see Cap Overrides).
Caps are designed to maintain the performance of your local system and of the database server. Because data retrieved from the server resides on your local system in a collection, retrieval of a large number of records or list items can put unnecessary demands on the database server and slow system performance.
The default caps are suitable for most data-entry tasks and information-search tasks. Still, you should be aware of options for dealing with the size of collections and lists. For more information, see Caps on Collections and Caps on Drop-down List Items.
When you export a collection of records to an external file, you usually want no limit on the number of records. You need not reset the cap on collections in this case. Instead, select the Unlimited query option when you export a collection.
When the system processes records (for example, during posting) it ignores any cap you have set and processes all records that meet the criteria. However, if the process returns a result set, a record cap could still affect how many returned records display on the form.
The default cap limits can be overridden in a couple ways:
This is accomplished on the Runtime Behaviors tab of the User Preferences dialog box.
About Forms, Fields, Records, and Collections
Exporting Collections to External Files
Default Name, Process Defaults