How to transfer Mail from old machine to new FreeBSD box ....

[Polytropon]

On Tue, 12 Aug 2014 11:58:46 -0400, Paul Kraus wrote:
> Did you remember to install and setup your IMAP server?
> I use dovecot. Remember to use the same format on the
> new box (either MailDir or Mailbox, whichever you used
> on the old).
> 
> Or just setup the IMAP server on the new box, configure
> your email client to see both, and use it to move the
> email over.

For locally stored or cached messages, use Thunderbird's
import and export feature. It's often easier than to copy
the whole subtree vs. dealing with those strange account
"hashes".

Does Thunderbird use mbox or MailDir storage format? I'm
not sure. Maybe only the import step is needed if it's
mbox and you've copied the mailboxes...

And make sure you also configure your account(s) as on
the old system. Maybe it's not possible to transfer those
settings (huge version difference). Keep the old system
going for reference as long as you don't have the new
one up and running. If you're using IMAP, it should be
quick and easy, maybe re-caching the messages is needed.



-- 
Polytropon
Magdeburg, Germany
Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0
Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ...