Answers before you archive.

BackMyMail for macOS and Windows is in preview. Public release and real-provider acceptance checks are still pending.

The app includes guides for Gmail, Outlook.com, Yahoo, iCloud, and other IMAP accounts. Google and Microsoft browser sign-in requires distributor OAuth registrations. Real-provider acceptance is still a release check.

Check your provider’s IMAP settings, app-password requirements and account restrictions. Browser sign-in depends on configured OAuth registrations. Use the setup guide, then contact us with the error text and app version, with private information removed.

No. Download uses read-only mailbox access and does not mark messages as read, move them, or delete them. Cleanup is a separate action with copy verification and explicit confirmation.

Yes. Saved mail stays on your computer. You can read, search, print, and export it without reconnecting your provider.

Original messages are saved as .eml files. Export to .eml, .mbox or PDF when you need to share a record or use another tool. You can also import an mboxrd mailbox, including Google Takeout, without changing the source file.

A single disk is still a single point of failure. Keep a separate backup on another drive and check that you can restore it. BackMyMail supports portable backups with separate passphrase encryption. Keep that passphrase somewhere safe.

No. Daily and weekly schedules run while BackMyMail is open. A missed run is considered once after the app opens again.

Archive files and the index are readable while the disk is unlocked. On macOS, create an encrypted disk image in Disk Utility, unlock it, then let BackMyMail verify and copy the archive there. Disk Utility can save its password in Keychain. FileVault or BitLocker protects the working disk; portable .tar.age backups use a separate passphrase.

Yes, the desktop app supports composing and sending through your configured email provider. Sending needs a connection and the provider’s authentication. The website does not send your mailbox messages, and your mail does not pass through a BackMyMail relay.

Yes, on up to 2 computers of the same platform: enter the same key in Settings › License. To free a computer, remove the license there or in Polar’s customer portal. A macOS license does not unlock Windows, and a Windows license does not unlock macOS.

Archiving alone does not change your provider plan or bill. After verifying your archive and separately confirming cleanup, you may be able to postpone a storage upgrade. The calculator estimates that avoided extra cost, minus your license and any extra storage; your current plan remains payable.