Switching email hosting service
I've been using the same web hosting and email service for over 20 years -- a long time such that I've been on their "legacy" server for a number of years now. I've hesitated to switch to a new service, because they said they are not able to transfer my old emails to the new account.
I called them a couple of days ago on a different issue, and they advised me to migrate my account to a new service, promising that they now have the means to transfer my old emails. Thankfully I asked them to hold off, because I later got an email from their "escalated support team" that apparently I would need to backup all my email content, as it will not be transferred if I migrate to a new service.
My question is: How do I backup my emails so that they are still accessible if I switch to a new email hosting service? I am not at all tech savvy so any help would be most appreciated!
All Replies (3)
If they can transfer your full account from one hosting server to another, your email should be accessible after the transfer as IMAP account, which is what I presume you are using. Only they can confirm that for you. For your personal backup, check in synchronization&storage that the folders are available for download and also verify that you have set sync all messages regardless of age. Then, click File>offline>download to ensure all messages are downloaded intact. Once you are sure that you have all messages. create local folders for each of the downloaded folders and copy to the local folders. That ensures the messages will not be deleted during any account activity during the move. This is a backup, so I encourage doing a backup of the profile for added safety.
If the web host staff move the mail successfully, you will not need this backup, but if they are unable to do it, you can enter manage the mail from local folder or upload to the new server. Doing that can be problematic, as IMAP isn't designed for high volume uploads. You could upload in small batches, or create a manual filter as that would slow the process slightly.
Thanks so much @david for your reply. I will give it a try and fingers crossed that I don't botch it up!
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