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Manual Mail Migration

Hi,


Does anyone know how to manually migrate email from another computer via target mode or external clone to a new mac running El Capitan - WITHOUT using Apple's migration assistant?


I've done this for years for clients and can't figure it out in El Capitan. I used to move these files/folders:


User - Library - Mail Folder

User - Library - Containers - com.apple.mail - data - Library - Mail Downloads

User - Library - Containers - com.apple.mail - data - Library - Preferences - com.apple.mail.plist


This always worked moving to Mavericks or Yosemite Macs... but not El Capitan.


Any thoughts on what to move?


When I did this for a client - it said migrating mail when launched... but then only showed the iCloud account - even though I moved 13GB of various IMAP and POP3 accounts, local folders, etc. Also - none of the actual email accounts appeared in mail preferences - just iCloud.


Thanks!


Sam

iMac (27-inch, Late 2012), OS X Yosemite (10.10.1)

Posted on Oct 29, 2015 9:42 PM

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Question marked as Best reply

Posted on Nov 6, 2015 7:27 AM

This is tricky, but I just figured it out. I'm surprised Apple doesn't have good documentation on this. The trick lies in TWO things - migrating both your Apple Mail Items AND the Internet Account Items. Before Yosemite, your email accounts were all contained in the Apple Mail folders. However, now they have been separated so if you JUST manually migrate the Apple Mail stuff, without the Internet Accounts, then Mail will open and you'll just get your a nakedn iCloud Inbox that will start to load your most recent emails. Also, it helps to copy the Keychain folder over so you don't have to re-enter all your passwords (in Mail or other places as well).


These are the files you need to copy over from your user's Library folder:


for Internet Accounts

.../Accounts (folder)


for Mail

.../Mail (folder)

.../Mail Downloads (folder)

.../Containers/com.apple.mail (folder)

.../Preferences/com.apple.accounts.plist (file)

.../Preferences/com.apple.accountsd.plist (file)

.../Preferences/com.apple.mail-shared.plist (file)

.../Preferences/com.apple.MailMigratorService.plist (file)

.../SyncedPreferences/com.apple.mail-com.apple.mail.vipsenders.plist (file)

.../SyncedPreferences/com.apple.mail.plist (file)


for Keychain

.../Keychains (folder)


I arrived at this with a fair amount of trial and error. I had backed up my old user folder (all the folders, including the Library folder) with both Time Machine and a manual copy. I played around with these on a separate, dummy user account (so I could delete it and have my nice, pristine, clean install still there once I figured it out). Finally, let me also say - BAD on you Apple for making this so complicated. Email software is one of those things that should remain elegant, even at the architecture level. Quit complicating things.

48 replies
Question marked as Best reply

Nov 6, 2015 7:27 AM in response to maxmaxie

This is tricky, but I just figured it out. I'm surprised Apple doesn't have good documentation on this. The trick lies in TWO things - migrating both your Apple Mail Items AND the Internet Account Items. Before Yosemite, your email accounts were all contained in the Apple Mail folders. However, now they have been separated so if you JUST manually migrate the Apple Mail stuff, without the Internet Accounts, then Mail will open and you'll just get your a nakedn iCloud Inbox that will start to load your most recent emails. Also, it helps to copy the Keychain folder over so you don't have to re-enter all your passwords (in Mail or other places as well).


These are the files you need to copy over from your user's Library folder:


for Internet Accounts

.../Accounts (folder)


for Mail

.../Mail (folder)

.../Mail Downloads (folder)

.../Containers/com.apple.mail (folder)

.../Preferences/com.apple.accounts.plist (file)

.../Preferences/com.apple.accountsd.plist (file)

.../Preferences/com.apple.mail-shared.plist (file)

.../Preferences/com.apple.MailMigratorService.plist (file)

.../SyncedPreferences/com.apple.mail-com.apple.mail.vipsenders.plist (file)

.../SyncedPreferences/com.apple.mail.plist (file)


for Keychain

.../Keychains (folder)


I arrived at this with a fair amount of trial and error. I had backed up my old user folder (all the folders, including the Library folder) with both Time Machine and a manual copy. I played around with these on a separate, dummy user account (so I could delete it and have my nice, pristine, clean install still there once I figured it out). Finally, let me also say - BAD on you Apple for making this so complicated. Email software is one of those things that should remain elegant, even at the architecture level. Quit complicating things.

Jul 10, 2017 3:54 PM in response to maxmaxie

I imagine this question is still popping up for people because it's July '17 and I just had the same issue. I'll chime in for the sake of adding an option to the mix, because I was able to get my mail migrated this way:


1 - I used the migration assistant to transfer most of my files from a many-times-rebuilt/modified MBP running El Capitain to a new MBP running Sierra. I only needed my mail and iTunes music folders and tried to just select parent folders that contained them.


2 - iTunes files were nowhere to be found after the migration, but Apple Mail mostly turned out OK. The issue was that no signature files made the trip, nor did a large previously imported folder that had lived in the "On My Mac" section of the Apple Mail sidebar for a while and been successfully transferred previously. I desperately needed that folder.


3 - I repeated the migration with the same results, and tried about 6 other solutions, including the ones in this thread. Same results. (The main issue I had was that the Import function in Apple Mail could not find the Library. Couldn't figure out how to unhide it when in the Apple Mail Import box.)


4 - Point of clarification -- all the files I needed actually made it through to the new MBP. So I had the files, but Apple Mail wouldn't find/recognize/load the mailboxes. I knew that the import folder I needed was in Library/Mail/V3. Ultimately, I copied the folder onto my desktop and imported it from there. Foolishly simple, but I was stuck on trying to get Apple Mail to import it the "right way" and it didn't occur to me for more than a day of trying things out to just do that. Sigh.


Anyway, hope this helps someone.


lkab

Aug 11, 2017 6:19 PM in response to kenyatta4

I picked up a new 27" iMac this week and a restore from my SuperDuper backup wouldn't let me boot up (first time I ever saw the prohibitory sign). So plan B was a clean install of everything. Probably not a bad idea as it gets rid of the cruft.


I did eventually manage to get my folders back. Not sure if it was the tips from Apple_Mikey or the brute force importing the mail folder. I know there were a lot of messy folders afterwards. I just needed to find the "Mail Folders" folder and delete the rest.


It's made me re-think my whole email setup, and I may eventually transfer everything, sub-folders and all, to IMAP. Shame on Apple is right. There should be an easier way to do this.

Aug 14, 2017 10:31 AM in response to maxmaxie

Hi. First, I'm not an expert, but not a doofus either. Am I correct in thinking that Diponti's list of files works well? I ask because I spend half the year in Mexico and have a separate MAC desktop there. If I put all those files on a stick, and import them to the Mexico computer, and vice versa, will I have the same email set up? I use many folders for long term storage on my MAC and want them copied.


Also,, can I use Chrono Sync to do all this?

Cheers,


Michael

Oct 21, 2017 8:10 AM in response to Diponti

Thanks for this consolidated list. Just to share my experience, last week I followed the steps on a client's MBP to migrate from High Sierra to Sierra, which didn't work. Mail was empty when I opened it after following the steps. I gave up in the end and used Emailchemy to export and import back the mailboxes. Exporting the mailboxes via Mail itself is not applicable in this case because my client has nested mailboxes.


I just got a new iMac yesterday to replace my old one which is on El Capitan (10.11.6), the new iMac came with Sierra (10.12.6), followed the list and the migration worked! Note 1 or 2 of the files from the list were not in my old and some of the files were dated to years back but I copied them to the new machine anyways. I also chose not to copy my keychain across because I want to start fresh and don't mind entering the passwords again.


Miss the days when you only need to copy the Mail folder and the plist file.

Oct 21, 2017 9:24 PM in response to Diponti

Hi Diponti. very useful your information. Excuse me, I have some questions.Like you, I'm going to migrate to another computer(and system) manually my mail account from Yosemite. I have a backup. I have a folder V2 with my accounts POP and IMAP and the old mail and attachments, must I copied on V4(Sierra?) this one. When I copy the old files to new localization I must delete the file to remplace and copy the old file?. Finally when I'll open Mail I have to make some change? excuse me, I'm not an experte


Luis

Nov 12, 2017 8:07 AM in response to Diponti

Great explanation! And it worked!!

In my case, using iCloud, in System Preferences > iCloud I disabled the option to sync Mail accounts and made sure, syncing keychains was enabled. So I didn't copy the ~/Library/Keychains folder.


Also, after all the copying was done, I restarted the Mac and only then did I open Mail.


Jumping from Sierra to High Sierra I ended up with everything working, except Mail's own preferences, which came up blank (seems to be a common problem). I then closed Mail, deleted ~/Library/Containers/com.apple.mail and restarted Mail. I just had to redo some settings, like showing the sidebar.

Nov 20, 2017 9:41 PM in response to apple_mikey

I have read through this entire thread and see posts from people saying Migration Assistant doesn't work. My experience has been positive with Migration Assistant in more than half a dozen migrations, most of them more or less incremental step ups in Mac OS, but also the following ones going from:


10.6.8 to El Capitan 10.11 -- in ONE Migration step, all emails came over including POP and gmail (IMAP)

10.8.5 to Sierra (10.12) -- also no issues in Mail migration


The IT crew in my place of employment, where we have several thousand Macs in use (mostly laptops) standardly uses Migration Assistant to move accounts including email to new Macs when they are replenished, every 2 to 3 years. People here use either Outlook or Apple Mail for their emails. This migration process is successful, people here have many tens of thousands of emails and would never tolerate a partial or incomplete migration.


These piecemeal migrations by hand can be made to work but it sounds problematic and as new OS's come out, likely to not work without more work.


What about this:

(1) Make a clone of the old system (use Super Duper, or CCC, or even Disk Utility)

(2) Boot from and log into the old system clone and basically simplify the user account of interest here so it has NOTHING except email. Remove everything else. Preferences, etc. This is actually not hard to do.

(3) On the new system, use Migration Assistant to migrate ONLY the user from the stripped down clone, all it has is the email left to migrate. If you don't trust Migration Assistant to do other things, uncheck the options to migrate Applications, other Settings, etc. Just that one user and its email.

(4) Then manually add whatever else you want to bring over to the new system after verifying that email still works on the new system and all emails are still there.


I feel like this process might take less time than the tortuous "by hand" email migration efforts described earlier, but I am probably biased because I see Migration Assistant used successfully virtually every day at my workplace.

Nov 6, 2015 8:31 AM in response to apple_mikey

I haven't tried this yet... but wow if you are correct. Sounds like you did your homework!!


So - you had to move the entire com.apple.mail folder within containers? - I used to just move the com.apple.pst file and the mail downloads folder from here...


I looked around another Yosemite computer just now...


I don't see the following items you list:

.../Preferences/com.apple.accounts.plist (file)

.../Preferences/com.apple.MailMigratorService.plist (file)

.../SyncedPreferences/com.apple.mail.plist (file)


Is this a concern? - not sure why you have them and I don't...


Regarding the keychains folder - I love the idea of moving this one so as not to have to re-enter many passwords... but in the past this wasn't possible and/or gave many other issues when moving between computers... login keychain issues, etc. - what is your experience with this?


I have spent so many hours testing this manual email move for a client who just got new computers. I also reached out to most of the 'gurus' on Apple Mail that I know who are extremely knowledgeable on Apple Mail. What was so strange was that everyone gave the response to just use the migration tool. I guess they don't work for other clients like I do. Just using the migration tool is so the wrong answer... What if the client just got a small Macbook and only wants to move his email data from a bigger desktop? Not everyone is completely iMAP!!


I hope to hear from you further. This is really exciting and helpful!!


THANKS!!

Nov 6, 2015 9:02 PM in response to apple_mikey

What does apple expect people to do migrating from Mavericks? I suppose a trip to Yosemite first.

I had not setup iCloud yet for this user but there wasn't a single account visible. The V3 folder was packed with email of course but no accounts populated.


I will move her email to yosemite Mac first then try your method.


Sure hope it works. I too am surprised there isn't more on this topic in the forums.

Nov 18, 2015 3:11 PM in response to apple_mikey

UPDATE: If you follow my solution above, you may find that your emails all transfer but that searching is isn't working properly. This is because mail needs to re-index the imported mail folders. To do so, go to .../Library/Mail/V3/MailData/ and delete all files starting with "Envelope index". There are probably 3-5 of them. Then launch mail again and it will start reimporting all your mail all over, but this time, it will build a full index of all your messages as you do so, so the search function works properly (ie: doesn't ignore certain emails or all emails beyond a certain date). Hope this helps.

Manual Mail Migration

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