Harvard-MIT Data Center

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As users rely more on their email as a method storing and archiving important information, backing up email becomes an extremely important task. Please read through any of the applicable paragraphs in this secion, and follow the steps to back up your email on a regular basis.

Archiving Email in Thunderbird

Backing up email in Thunderbird is done through archiving folders.

When you reach the limit of your email quota, or just feel like cleaning up your mail folders on the server, it can be helpful to store some of your important messages locally. This enables you to remove messages from the server, while still keeping them available for future reference. It should be noted though, that after the messages are removed from our email servers, they no longer are being backed up by us. This means any archived messages that are lost probably cannot be retrieved.

To archive email:

1. Launch Thunderbird.
2. Click Local Folders, located under the All Folders column on the left.
3. Click the File menu, click New, and then select Folder.
4. In the Name field, type Archived Email and then click OK.
   A new folder appears under your Local Folders. This is the location in which your archived mail is stored.
5. To move messages into your Archived Email folder, right-click any message, click Move To, then click Local Folders and select Archived Email.
   Alternataively, you can drag and drop messages from your folders on the server to your local Archived Email folder.

Backing up Your Address Book in Thunderbird

Backing up your address book in Thunderbird is done through exporting your addresses. See Exporting Email and Addresses for more information.

Backing up Your Thunderbird Profile

One of the best ways to ensure that you have all your important Thunderbird information is to back up your entire profile. Follow these steps to copy your Thunderbird profile to a backup location:

1. In Windows, double-click the My Computer icon, then double-click your system drive (usually C:).
2. Double-click the Documents and Settings folder, then double-click the folder that is is labeled with your Windows username.
   Your account folder opens.
3. In your account folder, you should see a folder called Application Data.
   If you do not see this folder, follow these steps to view hidden files:
   1. Click the Tools menu on top, and select Folder Options.
   2. Click the View Tab, and then click the Show Hidden Files and Folders option.
   3. Click OK to close the window.
   4. Double-click the Application Data folder, which should now be visible.
4. Double-click the Thunderbird folder, then right-click on the Profiles folder and select Copy.
5. Navigate to your backup location, then right-click and select Paste.
   This copies all of your Thunderbird profiles over to your backup location.

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The following topics guide you through common export operations in Thunderbird. These can be useful for backing up data, or migrating from your old mail client to Thunderbird.

Exporting a Text File Address Book in Thunderbird

1. Launch Thunderbird.
2. Click the Address Book icon at the top.
   The Address Book window opens.
3. In the column on the right, click the Address book that you choose to export.
   The default address book is called Personal Address Book.
4. Click the Tools menu at the top of the Address Book window, and then select Export.
5. Navigate to the location in which you choose to save the file. Pick a place where you will be able to find it later.
   Then, enter the following in the available fields:
   • File Name - Address_Backup
   • Save as Type - LDIF
6. Click Save.
   A backup file called Address_Backup.ldif is saved in the location you specified.

Exporting Email in Thunderbird

Thunderbird stores your email files in a format that is readable by most email clients, so going through a separate exporting procedure is unnecessary. To export your mail files, copy the files in your profile folder to a backup location:

1. In Windows, double-click the My Computer icon, and then double-click your system drive (usually C:).
2. Double-click the Documents and Settings folder, and then double-click the folder that is has your Windows username.
   Your account folder opens.
3. In your account folder, you should see a folder called Application Data. if you do not see this folder:
   1. Click the Tools menu on top, and select Folder Options.
   2. Click the View Tab, and then click the Show Hidden Files and Folders option.
   3. Click OK to close the window.
   4. Double-click the Application Data folder, which now is visible.
4. Double-click the Thunderbird folder, and then double-client the Profiles folder.
5. In the Profiles directory, you should see a folder called xxxxxxxx.default (where xxxxxxxx is a random set of characters). This is your default profile folder. Double-click this folder to open your profile, and you should see a Mail folder. This contains all your mail files.
6. Copy your Mail folder to your backup location to back up your mail files.

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The following topics describe common import operations in Thunderbird. These can be useful for restoring backed up data, or migrating from your old mail client to Thunderbird.

Importing a Text File Address Book in Thunderbird

1. Launch Thunderbird.
2. Click the Tools menu at top, and then select Import.
3. Select Address Books, and then click Next.
4. Select Text file (.LDIF, .tab, .csv, or .txt,), and then click Next.
5. Browse to the location of your exported address book and select the file you choose to import.
6. Click Finish.
   A new address book is created in your Thunderbird account, with the name of the text file you imported. You can drag and drop address entries from this new address book to any other address book you currently use in Thunderbird.

Importing Email in Thunderbird

1. Launch Thunderbird.
2. Click the Tools menu at the top, and then select Import.
   The Import Wizard appears.
3. Select Mail, and then click Next.
4. Select the mail program from which you choose to import.
   Thunderbird guides you through the rest of the import process.