How can I backup an IMAP mailbox before my email account gets permanently deactivated?

Steven Miller 60 Reputation points
2026-08-03T07:03:00.8433333+00:00

My company recently informed us that our old email service will be discontinued next month, and all employee accounts will be deleted after that. My mailbox contains nearly six years of project discussions, invoices, client approvals, and important attachments that I still need for future reference.

Since the account uses IMAP, I know the emails are stored on the mail server instead of my computer, which makes me nervous about losing everything once the account is removed. I don't want to manually forward thousands of emails or download them one by one.

I'm looking for a reliable way to create a complete local backup that keeps all folders, attachments, dates, and email formatting intact. Has anyone been in a similar situation? What method or software worked best for you?

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  1. Demi Nguyen 1,585 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-08-03T07:42:50.0566667+00:00

    Hello @Steven Miller,

    Thank you for explaining the situation. I understand why you want to preserve the mailbox before the company permanently deactivates the old email account.

    A suitable option is to export the mailbox to an Outlook Data File (.pst). This creates a local copy of the selected email folders and can preserve messages, attachments, dates, and folder organization. The PST file can later be opened in Outlook or used to move the mailbox data from one account or device to another.

    Please follow the instructions in the article below: Export emails, contacts, and calendar items to Outlook using a .pst file | Microsoft Support

    Before starting the export, please allow Outlook sufficient time to synchronize all mailbox folders and older messages from the IMAP server. When selecting the mailbox for export, make sure to include all subfolders. After the export is complete, I recommend opening the PST file in Outlook and checking several older messages and attachments to confirm that the required data was exported successfully.

    Since this is a company mailbox containing project discussions, invoices, client approvals, and other business information, please obtain approval from your company’s IT administrator or data-compliance team before creating or retaining a local copy. Your organization may have specific security, retention, or confidentiality requirements governing how company data can be exported and stored.

    I hope this information helps you create a reliable backup of your mailbox and preserve the important data you may need for future reference.

    Kind regards,

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