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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

Reply
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

Dec 8, 2016 5:34 AM in response to NYC2LA

You'll get lots of files within lots of files and you'll have to recreate accounts an manually move mails to them. No thank you.


I's possible to migrate from Mac to Mac. All answers were given.


Problems occur if you forget .../Accounts (folder) and if permissions are wrong.

Easiest way to get permissions right is by creating a user account with exactly the same user/account name

Manual Mail Migration

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