How can you do a Gmail backup?

We all love Gmail, don’t we? It would be wonderful if we can backup Gmail emails too. Well, Gmail backup can be done by many methods. We will look at those in detail so that you can choose the option that suits you best.

Backup Gmail emails using a mail client:

If you are using a mail client like Microsoft Outlook or Mozilla Thunderbird, you can download the entire set of emails in your Gmail to a data file. To achieve this there are few modifications that has to be done in the Gmail account settings:-

1. Sign in to Gmail using your username and password.
2. Click Settings at the top of any Gmail page, and open the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab. Again for you see the Settings option (with a gear symbol) you need to be sure that Gmail is running in the standard view and not Basic HTML view.

3. Select Enable POP for all mail (even mail that’s already been downloaded). Click Save Changes.
4. Open the mail client that you’ve configured for Gmail, and check for new messages. Gmail emails are downloaded in batches, so it may take time for all the emails to appear in your mail client.

NOTE: Messages labeled Spam and Trash aren’t downloaded. To backup these messages you have to move them to your inbox or All Mail.

Backup Gmail emails using the Google Takeout tool

Google offers a facility to export and download your data from the Google products you use, like your Gmail, calendar, and photos. By performing a few simple steps, you can not only create a Gmail archive to backup Gmail mails and other records, you can also use the Gmail archive in another service. This facility is called Google Takeout.

Configure the TakeOut tool to include Gmail archive:-

1. Visit the TakeOut tool page by using the following link and login to using your Gmail credentials. https://takeout.google.com/settings/takeout

2. Scroll down to “Mail” and click the drop-down arrow adjacent to it. Make sure that “Include all your mail” option is selected.and Select Next.

3. Choose your archive’s “File type.” and click “Create archive”

NOTE: By default, the Gmail archive in the mbox format.

Backup Gmail emails and have the link mailed

When your archive is created you can get an email with a link to its location sent. Depending on the amount of information in your account, this could take a few minutes or several hours.

1. For “Delivery method,” select Send download link via email.
2. Choose Create archive.
3. In the email that arrives, click Download archive.
4. To download your data, follow the onscreen instructions to download your Gmail archive.

Backup Gmail email to Google Drive

You can also backup Gmail email by adding the Gmail archive to Google drive. In this case the total size of the Gmail backup will be reduced from the free space in your Google drive. Your data will count toward your storage.

1. For “Delivery method,” select Add to Drive.
2. Choose Create archive.
3. In the email that arrives, click View in Drive. You will see a folder with your data organized by product.
4. To download the relevant data (in our case Gmail), at the top of the screen, select Download.

Backup Gmail email to Dropbox

You can also backup Gmail email to Dropbox. In such case, Google will upload your Gmail archive to Dropbox and email you a link to the location of this Gmail backup.

1. For “Delivery method,” select Add to Dropbox.
2. Choose Link account and create archive.
3. You’ll be directed to Dropbox. Sign in to your Dropbox account if prompted.
4. In the Dropbox window that asks if Google Download Your Data can access its own “Apps” folder in your Dropbox, select Allow.
5. To keep your data private, make sure you’re not sharing this Dropbox folder with anyone else.
6. In the email that arrives, click View in Dropbox. You’ll be taken to the Dropbox folder containing your Gmail archive.
7. To download your data, follow Dropbox’s steps to download files.

Backup Gmail email to OneDrive

Gmail backup feature also gives you the option to have the Gmail archive uploaded to Microsoft OneDrive and then email you a link to its location.

1. For “Delivery method,” select Add to OneDrive.
2. Choose Link account and create archive.
3. You’ll be directed to Microsoft. Sign in to your Microsoft account using the appropriate credentials if prompted.
4. In the Microsoft window that asks if Google Download Your Data can access your info, select Yes.
5. To keep your data private, make sure you don’t share this OneDrive folder with anyone else.
6. In the email that arrives, click View in OneDrive. You’ll be directed to the OneDrive folder with your Gmail archive.
7. To download your data, follow OneDrive’s process to download files.

As you see from the steps above, Google itself gives you 4 different options to have your Gmail backup done and the location mailed to you. You can make use of the options that best suit you. I would like to remind you that DropBox and OneDrive are third-party to Google and hence, Google will show up as a linked app in their respective security settings. You can remove Google as a linked app at any point of time.