Backing up emails

[Dave2002]

Or your provider messes things up ! Then you're well and truly stuffed.

I thought you were the one who has been stuffed, which is why you’re asking for ideas here.

[johnb]

When discussing backing up emails doesn't it depend, at least in part, on whether one is using IMAP or POP3 (in the latter case the emails are stored on one's own computer rather than the server).

[Anastasius]

When discussing backing up emails doesn't it depend, at least in part, on whether one is using IMAP or POP3 (in the latter case the emails are stored on one's own computer rather than the server).

That's what I intended to say in the OP, John, but perhaps could have been clearer. The main point of posting was to try and alert those computer users using IMAP from thinking that when they backed up their computer, that their emails were also backed up at the same time.

[Anastasius]

Yes. But so far so good and I am the one more likely to be messing up, which I did more than once using Thunderbird as a client. ......

Mmmm...I know what you mean. There is a rather sneaking feeling at the back of my mind that I might..just might, you understand, set in motion that tsunami myself on the email server very, very late at night.

That's another drawback of IMAP...once you set things off, I don't think you can stop them. At least doing something on the Mac, there is often the option of that wee little X

[Anastasius]

..... For Sent email - if you don't trust or want to trust the service provider, you can send a copy of each outgoing email to one of your email accounts (maybe with a different provider), and then force a download from there. That method would increase your data traffic. I'm not sure if it's possible to force a local copy of any Sent mail - assuming that isn't what already happens.

Sorted. Easily done in Apple Mail. Select the Account > Composing and tick the Automatically Cc(or Bc) myself. That sends a copy of every sent mail to your inbox.

Then Create a Mailbox (call it CopySent) on OnMyMac.

Next create a rule that any incoming email where From is youremailsendingaddress@whereveryouare and Move it to CopySent

TaDa.