email backup

[Marki2014]

I am using OS 10.5.8 and will be upgrading shortly to 10.6. I know how to backup my documents/files to a flash drive and then put them back on the upgraded OS. However, I have no idea how to backup or save all my emails so they can be put back into email when I have upgraded my OS. Any help with this will be greatly appreciated.

 

[chscag]

Use Time Machine or Carbon Copy Cloner. Going from Leopard to Snow Leopard is an easy update and should not disturb any of your emails. If you decide on Carbon Copy Cloner, be sure to download an older version which is compatible with Leopard.

 

[chas_m]

Was going to ask why the OP doesn't take the incredibly easy route of just using Time Machine. CCC is great, but it's $40 that the OP doesn't need to spend for this purpose when he or she has a backup system just sitting there waiting to be used.

 

[rubaiyat]

Time Machine does not always work and Carbon Copy Cloner (which does not cost $40) will secure a bootable backup for all eventualities.

Mail backup is harder on OSX than it needs be. The CCC backup has saved my bacon more than once.

Given that, I agree with chscag, that going from Leopard to Snow Leopard was not difficult and normal Migration Assistant moved everything for me. But it is wise to take precautions for when it doesn't all go smoothly.

 

[MacInWin]

Time Machine does not always work...

Nothing ALWAYS works, but TM is remarkably reliable, or has been, for me. Do you have some objective evidence that TM is unreliable? (Bear in mind, as I said, NOTHING always works.)

 

[rubaiyat]

Yes. I do support on another application Forum.

We have had multiple incidents where having gone though the O.P.'s case in detail, it is clear Time Machine lost the files or simply never recorded them in the first place. Also that restoration of installations and Systems was particularly problematic.

It is always hard to determine if backups are working consistently and reliably because the evidence to the contrary is only when it fails and then you have no precise knowledge of the exact sequence nor state of the files.

30 years of experience running large and small installations tells me not to rely on anything you can not trace.

I do not trust Time Machine, iCloud, Spotlight or most of the similar "magic" apps that Apple has spruiked over the years. Most of them Apple has cocked up one way or another, particularly anything to do with networking.

 

[MacInWin]

Yes. I do support on another application Forum.

We have had multiple incidents where having gone though the O.P.'s case in detail, it is clear Time Machine lost the files or simply never recorded them in the first place. Also that restoration of installations and Systems was particularly problematic.

Restoration of OSes is always ugly. It is far better to reinstall the OS, then restore the rest of the system. At least then you know you have a bootable system with all the essential components in place.

It is always hard to determine if backups are working consistently and reliably because the evidence to the contrary is only when it fails and then you have no precise knowledge of the exact sequence nor state of the files.

An untested backup is just a collection of files. Might be useful, might not. Making the backup is only step one.

30 years of experience running large and small installations tells me not to rely on anything you can not trace.

45 years here, running everything from my home network to managing a 24/7, we-never-close national defense data center with 6 mainframes and 23 mini servers and a worldwide network. BTW, we did have an outage at that center when all cooling (including backup units) failed simultaneously. Thermal shutdown on every machine within 1 minute because the temp in the center hit 140+ degrees (F) (it went off the edge of the recorder paper that stopped at 140). Took 8 hours to cool it back down to 75, which was when we restarted the equipment. Backups worked for that one! I was getting phone calls from the Pentagon hourly...

I do not trust Time Machine, iCloud, Spotlight or most of the similar "magic" apps that Apple has spruiked over the years. Most of them Apple has cocked up one way or another, particularly anything to do with networking.

I don't trust computers. Any of them. Too many ways to get borked. I make backups twice daily, to two different backup drives using two different applications (TM and CCC) and I test the backups once a month by booting from the CCC drive and restoring something from the TM drive. Still no guarantee, but it's better than nothing.

 

[rubaiyat]

I don't trust computers.

You and me both!

Familiarity breeds contempt.

I come across so many users now however who belive (encouraged by Apple and its sales people) that it will just do everything. Even where that seems highly unlikely.

Time Machine is the arch-typical example. Apple really makes users think it is an absolute unquestioning safety net. It isn't. iCloud is much, much, MUCH worse.

 

[MacInWin]

Oh, don't get me wrong, I love computers, and am constantly amazed at what they can do. But I don't trust them because they fail. iCloud isn't bad, but as a backup location it suffers from the same problem as all online backup services, namely, your data is in the hands of someone other than you. I prefer to keep my data in my possession. The downside of that solution is that if something happens to my home, my backups could be lost, but that's the risk I'm willing to take at this time. You pick your poison.

 

[pm-r]

Time Machine does not always work and Carbon Copy Cloner (which does not cost $40) will secure a bootable backup for all eventualities.

Mail backup is harder on OSX than it needs be. The CCC backup has saved my bacon more than once.

Given that, I agree with chscag, that going from Leopard to Snow Leopard was not difficult and normal Migration Assistant moved everything for me. But it is wise to take precautions for when it doesn't all go smoothly.

Sorry, and a heads up WARNING - the URL link to CCC sure isn't a normal CCC dmg and appears to be more like malware or even a Trojan to me with it's resulting "Installer"!!!

Besides, one would need the old CCC v. 3.4.7 which was free/donationware.

And hmmmm… "Yes. I do support on another application Forum. " - just a bit scary, with such advice and links.

 

[chscag]

Besides, one would need the old CCC v. 3.4.7 which was free/donationware.

The key word in your statement is "was" free, unfortunately, not anymore. Old version and new version look to be the same price: $40.00.

 

[rubaiyat]

Sorry I apologise for that.

I did a quick search and should have checked.

I have CCC 3.5.7 and it simply ticks off a delay before activating.

 

[pm-r]

The key word in your statement is "was" free, unfortunately, not anymore. Old version and new version look to be the same price: $40.00.

Unless one does some web searching for the old CCC 3.4.7 "free" version that would work for the OP and with Snow Leopard, and I don't know if it would work with later Lion+ versions as I don't think they did much if any testing with later OS X versions with it, and released the updated commercial versions.

It looks like this is a legit site for various versions including 3.4.7:
Carbon Copy Cloner 3.4.7 Download for Mac / FileHorse.com

But then again, how much is a good bootable backup worth with many different options - especially for recent OS X versions???

Ghee, I even made two donations when it was free and I've been using CCC almost since its first release in 2002 I believe.

 

[rubaiyat]

I made a hefty (extremely generous) donation, but it didn't help me when Bombich went commercial.

That was the cause for massive dissatisfaction in macupdate.com

I haven't had any problems with CCC v3.5.7 on OSX versions up to Mavericks. Can't vouch for Yosemite.

 

[pm-r]

Sorry I apologise for that.

I did a quick search and should have checked.

I have CCC 3.5.7 and it simply ticks off a delay before activating.

I believe that delay will happen until paid for, as CCC provides a 30 day free full working backup trial. And no doubt won't work even with the delay after 30 days.

 

[rubaiyat]

Actually I just tested it and it is starting all over again with the free trial. The delay gets longer the more free times you have used it.

I haven't used it for quite a while.

 

[Slydude]

This page on the Carbon Copy Cloner site has links to both the older and current version.

 

[pm-r]

This page on the Carbon Copy Cloner site has links to both the older and current version.

You'll notice that page is for the more recent Carbon Copy Cloner 3.5.7 and 4.x versions for Snow Leopard and later OS X versions. Both the commercial versions.

 

[chas_m]

Time Machine does not always work

For you maybe ...

and Carbon Copy Cloner (which does not cost $40) will secure a bootable backup for all eventualities.

I love CCC, but maybe you should try actually reading the link you provided. That is an outdated version of CCC that does not work properly with Yosemite. Try visiting the actual Bombich.com website and learn something today.

Mail backup is harder on OSX than it needs be.

No it's not. Your email is automatically backed up as part of a routine Time Machine backup -- there's literally nothing to it except turning it on. I'm sorry you can't seem to figure it out, but it's been working perfectly for me and literally tens of millions of other people for many years.

Again, CCC is another great tool and I in fact use that AS WELL as Time Machine, because sometimes having a bootable backup is very handy. But there is no need to try and promote the outdated donationware version you incorrectly pointed us to by falsely trashing another perfectly good, well-supported solution. The current version of CCC is worth every penny of the $40 Mike wants for it, and in fact upgraders who donated previously can get the latest version for half off!

 

[rubaiyat]

Time Machine has quite frequently failed for the users on my other forum, typically when needed most.

I am not using CCC for Yosemite, as I said. Nor am particularly interested in doing so. I have the same feeling about Yosemite as I had for Lion (skip it). I only use Yosemite where Apple forces me to to test what is wrong with their iWork apps, and for XCode/Swift.

You ignore that the O.P. wants to transition from OSX 10.5 to 10.6. They may not even be able to install Yosemite!

As I said my version of CCC works fine. I donated $50 and really object to paying more for the update.

Mail is harder on OSX than it needs to be for an enormously long list of reasons but principally it is being stored in a format that is not directly readable or archivable, which for simple content is frankly ridiculous. Exactly the same bad decisions Apple has made with nearly all of its current products, those it hasn't totally trashed. Products, no matter how bad, that it forces down its customers throats against their objections.

You may struggle with a lot of the bigger issues.

I have no idea what you do or how you do it, but I have been through this multiple times trying to explain professional usage as against what most users do with their software. It is an increasingly losing battle, in the face of the trivialisation of the Mac, because Apple makes enormously more money and has less "difficulties" with those who don't know what is going on.