SOF file won't compress into a POF file

When I compile my project using Quartus, it automatically generates 2 different programming files (SOF and POF). If I connect my USB Blaster to the Cyclone’s JTAG port, I can load the SOF file generated. To program the serial configuration device (in this case EPCQ32A), I do the following:

I set the USB blasterto ‘Active Serial Programming’ in Quartus, connect the USB Blaster to the programming port of the EPCQ32. The Quartus Programmer window detects the EPCQ32A, when I go to select a programming file, my only options are *.pof files.

I’ve done this on multiple projects and always assumed that this was normal.

I remember when I first set up my project that I had to tell it to compress the SOF file into a POF (which I think is just a compressed version of the SOF designed for serial boot devices). The SOF files are always 12,210 KB and the POFs are always 4097 KB.

If I use the convert programming file tool and set the configuration device to EPCQ32A, the options/boot info only lets me choose between little endian or big endian.

However, I can set the properties of the SOF file to 'compression'. When I do this it still tells me that it won't fit in the configuration device.