How to Backup Mozilla Thunderbird Emails into External Hard Drive

Top Methods to Backup Mozilla Thunderbird Emails into an External Hard Drive Natively or Professionally

If you are a Thunderbird user,then the backup is something you might want to create depending on different circumstances. There are many reasons why users choose to create a backup,however,the main idea behind creating a backup is mostly for protecting the emails and related data from unwanted corruption,malware attack,or even hard drive disasters. There are chances that your computer system might get damaged that will create problems for you in accessing your Thunderbird data.

In all these cases,there are chances that you might lose all your data or it will become inaccessible. However,the users have already created a backup for the Thunderbird files in an external drive,user can easily retrieve every single file and can access the back on the new computer system.

Ways to Backup Mozilla Thunderbird Emails

There is not just one,but many ways to create a backup of Mozilla Thunderbird emails to an external drive. Thunderbird offers standard built-in options to export data,executing them manually can sometimes be boring,restricted by file size limitations,or too technical for users. Below,we breakdown down both the manual approaches and an automated method.

• By Exporting Thunderbird Emails to Different file Formats:For this method,users will have to add a particular add-on to make the thunderbird functional to emails and related files.
• By Creating a Backup of Thunderbird Profile:Thunderbird has an inbuilt specification that saves the data automatically to where it originally belongs,i.e. in the User's Profile Folder. It copies all the content and past them to backup file as per the convenience of the users.
• The Best and the most Effective Option:The third way,rather the best way to create a backup of these files is by using a third-party tool. Softaken tool for MBOX mailbox converter is the best tool to create a backup of Mozilla Thunderbird Emails to Outlook PST file format and can be saved at any location in your computers.

Quick Comparison of Methods:

• Method 1:Best for selective email backup,supports multiple formats
• Method 2:Complete profile backup,includes all settings and data
• Method 3:Professional solution,supports bulk conversion and multiple formats

Method 1- Exporting Thunderbird Emails via ImportExportTools NG

The modern Thunderbird releases basic zipped exports,it doesn't provide control for saving single mail folders without an extension. To avoid this limitation and save folders to an external hard drive in standard formats,users can use the free ImportExportTools NG add-on. This add-on allows user to export all selected emails.

• Begin with launching Mozilla Thunderbird on your computer system
• Click on the 'Display the Thunderbird Menu" icon that will be present on the top-right corner of the software.

Now select the Add-ons>>Add-ons from the drop-down menu. Once done,it will open a new window in your screens with the tool's interface.

• Now click on the Get Add-ons button and head towards the Add-ons Manager window.

• After this,you can either select the ImportExportTools add-on under the Featured Add-ons or you can also click on the Browse all add-ons buttons and then head towards the ImportExport add-on.

• Now click on the Add to Thunderbird tab to proceed further

• Once done,click Install Now button when the dialog box appears on the screen

• Once users have successfully installed the add on to the Thunderbird client,click on the Add-Ons manager tab and hit the Restart Now button to complete the process.

• Right-click the Inbox where user want to export the files and select ImportExportTools>>Export all message s in the folder>>EML format.

• Users must select the type of file from the list at their convenience to save the emails. In case you want to able to import your backup files from Thunderbird to an external file. The users wish to import backup to a new machine,select the EML format option. However,the users wish to retrieve emails in their original file format and all the attachments,select the HTML format option.
• Select a destination directory in the next step where you want to save the backup of your files and hit the Select Folder tab.

This is how you will able to create these backup files and save them into the desired destination directory.

Method 2- Manually Copying the Thunderbird Profile Folder

The next option you have is to create a complete backup of the Thunderbird profile to create a backup of the emails and the mailbox data. Your thunderbird profile saves all the information that is related to your account and this includes your emails,mailboxes,attachments,settings,etc. When you create a backup of the Thunderbird profile,you can simply copy the content of the profile's folder and paste it to a new folder anywhere in the external drive. Here are the steps to execute the process:

• Launch Thunderbird
• Now click on the Display the Thunderbird Menu' tab

• Head towards the Help>>Troubleshooting Information. This will launch the Troubleshooting Information window in a separate tab within the tool.

• Look under the Application Basics section,find the Profile Folder row,and click the Open Folder button

• After clicking on the Open Folder button,the launching process of the user's Profle Directory will begin and once it is launched,it will have a particular name format that will contain a line of random characters followed by the profile name.

• Exit this folder and copy the User's Profile and paste it to a directory of your preference.

The location where you copy and paste the User's Profile Folder can be any location on an external drive or in your computer where you want to have a backup of the emails and related files.

Method – 3 Backing Up Thunderbird Professionally Using Softaken

So far in this article,you have encountered two manual methods that can be used to create a backup of Thunderbird emails and other related data. However,if you have noticed,all these manual methods are too complicated and might result in discrepancies if you are not comfortable following a technical process. These methods do not just eat up most you're your time but might also result in many more difficulties if they are not executed properly.

This is why it is highly recommended to use a third-party professional tool that is quick and effective in creating a backup of your data. The third-party tool can easily convert your Thunderbird MBOX files into various file formats that are supported by most of the email client applications such as MS Outlook and Windows Live Mail. Hence,to create a backup of Thunderbird files,we will recommend you to use Softaken MBOX to PST converter tools.

This tool is one of the most recommended and used tools worldwide as it offers a seamless and hassle-free way to convert MBOX mailbox format. This tool further supports multiple MBOX files migration at once and does not lag during the process. One of the best features of the Softaken MBOX to PST Converter is its feature design for transitions. Key functionalities include:

• Auto-Load Capabilities:It can scan and detect Thunderbird profile locations,careful from searching through hidden system files.
• Previews:Before committing to a backup,the software settles a live grid view of all folders,emails,metadata,and embedded attachments.
• Multi Format Export:converting MBOX to Outlook PST,it exports emails to independent files.
• Risk-Free Evaluation:Softaken provides a free trial version allowing users to experience the application by processing up to 25 email items per folder.