Best Methods to Export SmarterMail to PST – Easy Steps

Many IT teams’ first interruption while planning migration is their email servers. SmarterMail has lightweight mail server capabilities and is an excellent solution for small to mid-sized businesses. But it gets quite complicated when trying to export all emails from SmarterMail to Outlook. Fortunately, IT admins, once they understand what to do, won’t have issues exporting. This guide explores both the manual way and an IMAP Backup Tool to export SmarterMail to PST smoothly.

Generally, the reason why companies with SmarterMail as their email system face gridlock is due to Outlook’s compatibility. Since the latter only supports the PST (Personal Storage Table) format. So, this export becomes critical and needs effective measures.

Export SmarterMail Emails to PST: Why?

This transfer is needed to ensure proper compliance, accessibility, and integration of the data across platforms. The specific reasons for this are:

  • If you are migrating from SmarterMail to Outlook or Exchange, you are required to export your emails in a PST format.
  • PST files can easily act like standalone archives, and moving emails to a PST file makes that process easy for many compliance audits.
  • If you migrate SmarterMail to Office 365 or Exchange Online, you’re most likely using PST exports in your original migration before hitting the cloud.
  • Lastly, PST files are portable and can be restored to any mail server, making them a more favorable backup container.

Case Study to Export SmarterMail to PST

Imagine you’re the IT admin overseeing 500+ employee accounts on SmarterMail. Suddenly, the CEO calls asking for everything to be switched to Outlook within 2 weeks. Would you want to:

  • Try to export the mailbox one by one at a time manually (which means you’ll probably not make the deadline),
  • Or find an automated solution that can do the entire lot in a single process instead?

This is where most IT admins stop and ask the query we all have in real time:

“How do I export my SmarterMail emails to Outlook PST without losing data or spending days exporting manually?”

In the following section, go through both the manual and professional software to decide what you prefer to use.

Traditionally Export Emails from SmarterMail to PST

If you only have a few mailboxes to deal with, this manual method will work. SmarterMail uses IMAP, and you can set it up in Outlook to extract the mailbox data. Later, export the extracted folder to a PST file.

Steps to Export SmarterMail to PST Manually:

  1. In Outlook, click File to go to the Add Account → Add Account option.
  2. There, choose Let me set up my account manually and select the IMAP option.
  3. Further, input the SmarterMail server entries (mail server, port, SSL, credentials).
  4. Click Finish, and once the mailbox is synced, you can ensure all folders (Inbox/Sent/Draft) are displayed.
  5. Afterward, click File in Outlook and then Open & Export -> I/E wizard.
  6. Later, with Export to a File, move ahead and pick the resultant Outlook Data File (.pst).
  7. Click Next and select SmarterMail folders to export. Again, tap Next.
  8. In the end, choose your destination location and tap Finish to export.

This is the basic solution that lets you freely export data between SmarterMail and Outlook. But it is not a completely reliable solution. Here’s why→

Drawbacks of the Manual Method

  • Takes too much time for large and bulky SmarterMail mailboxes.
  • A stable internet is required for full synchronization of the email clients.
  • High risk of incomplete export or lost data if the connection breaks.
  • Users need an active Outlook profile and knowledge to use it.

Automatically Export SmarterMail to PST

For enterprises and businesses with large and bulky SmarterMail mailboxes for multiple users, we have a smart solution. It is the professional SysInfo IMAP Email Backup Tool. This software moves emails, contacts, calendars, and other data items between email clients and can also save them in different formats. Additionally, it allows their preview and saves time, cost, and effort, with its self-explanatory interface. Moreover, the tool can be used on all Windows/Mac/Linux OS with ease while preserving data integrity and offering custom filters.

Working Guide to Convert SmarterMail Emails to PST

  1. Launch SmarterMail to Outlook Converter and opt for Single/Batch mode.
  2. After that, use your SmarterMail email, password, host, and port to log in.
  3. Then, check the folders from the tree view and select to export. Tap Next.
  4. Later, from the file formats list, pick the PST and click Next to apply filters.
  5. Finally, with the Start Process button, you can complete the export.

Export SmarterMail Emails to PST: Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Some common issues that you may face and the best solution for them are as follows:

  • Data Loss & Permission Issues
  • PST Corruption, especially for those greater than 50 GB
  • Mismatched Outlook and PST Versions
  • Overlooked Timestamps and Other Metadata

If you identify them, you save a lot of time, but manual export will not help with these. So, use the dedicated tool to avoid these pitfalls.

Conclusion

The decision to export SmarterMail to PST is not just a migration, but a resilience strategy. IMAP sync can fill the void to facilitate small exports; however, as mailboxes grow, they fail to provide accuracy. So, the benefit lies in choosing a dedicated tool to future-proof email continuity, mitigate risk, and allow businesses to thrive. When done correctly, migration may not entail disruption and can be a transformation.

FAQs

Q. Can I export SmarterMail contacts and calendars with emails to Outlook? 

Ans- Yes, if you configure Outlook, you can sync calendars and contacts as well. Although the IMAP Mail Backup Tool does it more reliably and securely.

Q. Is the manual IMAP way to export emails from SmarterMail to PST safe? 

Ans- It is safe, but it is also slow and contains a risk for larger mailboxes. Encrypted (SSL/TLS) can be a consideration to protect data while syncing. But it is best to use an IMAP Backup Software to avoid all human errors and other risks.

Q. What is the fastest way to convert SmarterMail emails to PST in bulk? 

Ans- The fastest and most accurate way to export multiple SmarterMail to PST is with an expert SmarterMail to PST Conversion Tool.

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About The Author:

Suman Rawat is a technical content writer and expert in the fields of email migration, data recovery, and email backup. Her passion for helping people has led her to resolve many user queries related to data conversion and cloud backup.

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