Exporting Mail in Thunderbird
How to Setup Export/Import Tools in Thunderbird
Step 1
Download ImportExportTools-2.4.2.xpi
Step 2
Start Thunderbird
Step 3
In the Tools drop down menu select “Add-ons”
Step 4
In the Add-ons window click “Extensions” and then “install”
Step 5
Locate and double click on the ImportExportTools-2.4.2.xpi downloaded in step 1
Step 6
Restart Thunderbird
Step 7
In the Tools drop down menu select “ImportExport Tools”, then select “Options”
Step 8
In the ImportExportTools window, click “Export directories”. Then set the export folder for MBOX files. This is where your mail will be exported to. It is important to select a location that has sufficient space to backup your mail to.
Step 9
You have now installed and configured the export mail add-on to Thunderbird.
How to Export Mail
Step 1
Start Thunderbird
Step 2
Locate the mail folder you want to export and right click it
NOTE: This add-on can only export one folder at a time. If you attempt to export several folders simultaneously it will fail.
Step 3
If the folder has subdirectories, in the Import/Export submenu click “export folder with subfolders (with structure)”. If the folder does not have subdirectoies, in the Import/Export submenu click “export folder”
Step 4
In the bottom status bar of Thunderbird you should see “downloading message…” and a progress bar.
Step 5
Once the export process has been completed, you can export the next folder. For large folders, 100MB, the export process can take several minutes.
How to View Exported Mail
Step 1
Download mboxview-1.0.0.7 for Windows
Step 2
Extract the zip file and start Mboxview
Step 3
In the File drop down menu click “Select folder”
Step 4
Locate and double click the folder containing the exported mail. If you wish to access a subfolder, you will need to navigate down the folder tree to that folder.
Step 5
Your mail is now viewable in the Mbox Viewer
Step 6
To access attachments double click the email in the Mbox Viewer
How to Import Mail
Step 1
Start Thunderbird
Step 2
Right click on “Local Folders”
Step 3
In the Import/Export submenu click “Import mbox file”
Step 4
On the Files mbox import window, select “Import one or more mbox files, with its/their subdirectoy. Then press ok
Step 5
Locate the folder with the achieved mail and click “open”
Step 6
Your achieved mail folder has now been loaded as a local mail folder onto your computer. You can reply and forward these emails. Please be aware that these imported emails are saved locally and are not an IMAPed folder.