Does Carbonite Backup My Emails?

“Does Carbonite backup my emails?” As emails are fast becoming a staple in our everyday life, a common concern of many Carbonite users is whether the Carbonite system includes emails in its regular backup process. Well, you need wonder no more as this definite answer should put all doubts and worries to rest: Yes, Carbonite backs up emails.

Emails backed up by default

Even in the Carbonite website, this matter is addressed quite clearly. As a matter of fact, the first question asked (and answered) in the Frequently Asked Questions section is “What does Carbonite back up?” and the answer given pretty much says it all:

“By default, Carbonite backs up everything in your Documents and Settings folder (called Users in Windows Vista), including documents, photos, email and data files from applications, such as Quicken, Money, etc…Once a subscription is purchased, music is also added to the list.“

However, there may also be cases wherein Carbonite is not automatically defaulted to include email during the backup process. The first instance is if during installation, you chose the option ‘I’ll manually select what to back up later‘ instead of the more convenient ‘Automatically back up My Documents and Desktop.‘ The second case is when your file size is greater than 4GB, as the default backup does not include files greater than 4GB. In this case, you would need to manually select your email data file for backup. This holds true for both Windows and Mac users.

To check if your emails are already being backed up regularly, browse to the directory and folder that contains your file mails. If there are colored dots on the file icons, this means that these files are either backed up already or set up for scheduled backup by Carbonite.

How to manually select email files for backup

For Windows Outlook and Outlook Express

You will only need to do this if the folders or files do not have colored dots indicated on them. To initiate backup, right-click every file that you want included and select ‘Back this up‘ from the Carbonite context menu.

For Microsoft Outlook, you can most likely find the files stored in C:\Documents and Settings\{your_user_name}\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\.

For Microsoft Outlook Express, there’s a bit of difference in the file path as Outlook Express typically stores the address book in one location and the email files in another.

• For your address book, check in C:\Documents and Settings\{your_user_name}\Application Data\Microsoft\Address Book\.

• For email files, check in C:\Documents and Settings\{your_user_name}\Local Settings\Application Data\Identities\{long_alphanumeric_code}\Microsoft\Outlook Express\.

For Mac

Browse to your email folders or files.

Entourage is typically located in: Macintosh HD/Users/{your_user_name}/Documents/Microsoft User Data/Office 2008 Identities/Main Identity/Database. To manually select your email for Carbonite backup, control-click on the Database file and select More> Carbonite>Back this Up.

Mac Mail is found in: Macintosh HD/Users/{your_user_name}/Library/Mail. For manual Carbonite backup selection, simply control-click on the Mail folder and select More>Carbonite>Back this Up.

Lastly, note that {your_user_name} will obviously vary and will likely show the user name that you entered when your computer was initially set up.

Maximize your use of Carbonite by ensuring that all your important files are being backed up. Whether by default or manual selection, you won’t need to ask “Does Carbonite backup my emails?” again because you now know that it can and it will.