Again up messages utilizing this free instrument for the Mac

You possibly can again up your textual content messages (and iMessages) with iMessage Exporter, a free instrument for the Mac. Whether or not you need to protect your loved ones message historical past for sentimental causes, or must hold dialog data for enterprise, iMessage Exporter will get the job performed.

You may already again up your messages in iCloud, however Apple costs an arm and a leg for house. It can save you house (and cash) by making a neighborhood backup and clearing out your cloud storage.

Hold studying or watch our video to see how.

The best way to again up your textual content messages

Backing up your gadgets, images and information is all the time a good suggestion — however there aren’t loads of instruments for backing up texts. Nonetheless, all of that is potential utilizing an open supply instrument.

iMessage Exporter will create a neighborhood backup together with your full dialog historical past which you could search and skim by way of. It saves it in a wealthy file format that appears so much like an everyday iMessage thread. You possibly can select to incorporate all attachments and photos for optimum backup, or retailer it in plain textual content for optimum effectivity.

In case you again up your messages to a Mac, then you may comfortably delete your previous messages out of your telephone, saving house.

Desk of contents: The best way to again up your textual content messages

1. Obtain iMessage Exporter
2. Approve iMessage Exporter in Safety Settings
3. Again up messages utilizing the Terminal
4. Filter out your previous messages from iCloud
5. Delete your messages backup

Obtain iMessage Exporter

iMessage Exporter is a small, command-line instrument that you simply run out of your Mac’s Terminal. Which means it’s barely extra sophisticated than merely downloading an app. Nonetheless, I’ll stroll you thru the method of utilizing it. You simply want a Mac.

First, go to GitHub’s Releases web page to obtain iMessage Exporter.

In case you use a more moderen Mac with an Apple silicon chip, click on imessage-exporter-aarch64-apple-darwin.tar.gz. In case you personal an older Intel Mac, click on imessage-exporter-x86_64-apple-darwin.tar.gz. (In case you’re unsure, click on  > About This Mac to double-check what sort of processor is inside your machine.)

Approve iMessage Exporter in Safety Settings

Subsequent, open your Downloads folder and double-click on the .tar file to unzip it. It’s best to see a black icon that claims imessage-exporter. Double-click on this to run iMessage Exporter for the primary time.

You’ll most likely get a pop-up message saying you may’t run it. Click on OK.

Subsequent, open System Settings (aka System Preferences on older variations of macOS) and go to Privateness & Safety. Scroll down under the large record and also you’ll see a message that claims imessage-exporter “was blocked as a result of it isn’t from an recognized developer.”

Click on Open Anyway, then click on Open on the dialog field.

Ensure you additionally return to System Settings, scroll again as much as Full Disk Entry and allow iMessage Exporter for Terminal.

Again up messages utilizing the Terminal

Now you’re able to get began and really again up your messages. Click on on the Terminal window that opened if you ran the instrument. You possibly can go away it open as a reference.

Open a brand new Terminal window by hitting Command-N (⌘N), then kind in cd Downloads. (“cd” stands for “change listing.”) This could level the Terminal to the identical folder the place you downloaded imessage-exporter.

To make a backup of your iMessages, simply kind in ./imessage-exporter -f html -m YourFirstName with your personal title instead of “YourFirstName.” (“YourFirstName” replaces your telephone quantity within the export with your personal title, making the export simpler to learn.)

You will have a number of choices for tweaking precisely how your iMessage are backed up:

• If you wish to embrace photos and movies, this may considerably improve the dimensions of the file you generate, nevertheless it’ll be a extra full backup. To try this, run the identical command as above however add -c clone to the tip.
• If you need a plain textual content backup as a substitute of a formatted HTML file, substitute html with txt
• If you wish to save the backup on to a distinct location as a substitute of your House folder, add -p /folderpath/

Except you specify a distinct location, the backup will go in your House folder. Click on the Finder icon and hit Shift-Command-H (⇧⌘H) to leap there.

Filter out your previous messages from iCloud

After you make your native iMessage archive, you may need to unlock some iCloud house. To try this, open Messages. Within the menu bar, go to Messages > Settings (on older variations of macOS, it’s referred to as Preferences). Simply change Hold Messages from Endlessly to One Yr.

From an iPhone, go to Settings > Apps > Messages and scroll down to search out the identical setting.

Delete your messages backup

In case you mess up and also you need to run iMessage Exporter once more with completely different settings, or in case you don’t assume you want the backup, it’s straightforward to delete the backup file you created.

By default, iMessage Exporter places it in your House folder. Click on on the Finder and hit Shift-Command-H (⇧⌘H) to carry it up. Simply drag the “imessage_export” folder to the Trash and empty the trash.

Fairly good, however with limits

The instrument is helpful, nevertheless it has a couple of limitations. First, utilizing the Mac Terminal is difficult for individuals who aren’t fluent in command-line interfaces. (It actually wouldn’t take a lot work to whip up a small interface in SwiftUI, if any person felt as much as the problem.)

It’s comprehensible, however nonetheless annoying, that iMessage Exporter can’t pull involved names. Nonetheless, this instrument gives you a fast and simple technique to again up these messages of yore so it can save you them for eternity with out paying Apple for storage.

We initially printed this text on the best way to again up messages on April 26, 2023. We up to date it with new info.