IMAP Backup and Restore Operation in Python

Aspose.Email for Python offers the following methods of the ImapClient class to backup and restore messages:

• ‘backup’ method
• ‘restore’ method

This article demonstrates how to backup and restore messages using the ImapClient class.

Backup Messages

The code sample below demonstrates how to implement the backup ability into your project using the ‘backup’ method of the ImapClient class:

import aspose.email as ae

# Create an instance of the ImapClient class
imap_client = ae.clients.imap.ImapClient()

# Specify host, username, password, and set port for your client
imap_client.host = "imap.gmail.com"
imap_client.username = username
imap_client.password = password
imap_client.port = 993
imap_client.security_options = ae.clients.SecurityOptions.AUTO

# Get mailbox info
mailbox_info = imap_client.mailbox_info

# Get folder info for the Inbox folder
inbox_info = imap_client.get_folder_info(mailbox_info.inbox.name)

# Create an ImapFolderInfoCollection and add the Inbox folder info
infos = ae.clients.imap.ImapFolderInfoCollection()
infos.add(inbox_info)

# Specify the path to the directory
data_dir = "path/to/your/data/directory"

# Perform the backup operation
settings = ae.clients.imap.BackupSettings
settings.execute_recursively = True
imap_client.backup(infos, data_dir + "\\ImapBackup.pst", settings)

Restore Messages

The code sample below demonstrates how to implement the restoring ability into your project using the ‘restore’ method of the ImapClient class:

import aspose.email as ae

# Create an instance of the ImapClient class
imap_client = ae.clients.imap.ImapClient()

# Specify host, username, password, and set port for your client
imap_client.host = "imap.gmail.com"
imap_client.username = username
imap_client.password = password
imap_client.port = 993
imap_client.security_options = ae.clients.SecurityOptions.Auto

# Create RestoreSettings with Recursive set to true
settings = ae.clients.imap.RestoreSettings()
settings.recursive = True

# Specify the path to the directory
data_dir = "path/to/your/data/directory"

# Load the PST file
pst = ae.storage.pst.PersonalStorage.from_file(data_dir + "\\ImapBackup.pst")

# Perform the restore operation
imap_client.restore(pst, settings)

IMAP Backup and Restore Operation with MultiConnection

For tasks that involve a large amount of data or numerous email messages, Aspose.Email offers the ‘use_multi_connection’ property of the ImapClient class to optimize the performance of the IMAP operations by allowing the IMAP client to open multiple connections to the email server simultaneously. When MultiConnectionMode is enabled, the IMAP client can carry out various tasks (such as fetching emails, synchronizing folders, and backing up data) in parallel across different connections. This can lead to a significant reduction in the overall time required to complete operations. The following code snippets demonstrate how to enable MultiConnection mode for backup and restore operations.

However, it is important to note that the use of multiple connections may be subjected to limitations and policies set by the email server. Some servers may impose restrictions on the number of concurrent connections that can be made from a single user account to avoid overloading the server. Always check the terms of service or policies of the email provider to ensure compliance with their usage guidelines before enabling MultiConnectionMode.

Backup Messages with MultiConnection

The following code snippet demonstrates a backup operation with MultiConnection mode enabled:

import aspose.email as ae

# Create an instance of the ImapClient class
imap_client = ae.clients.imap.ImapClient()

# Specify host, username, password, and set port for your client
imap_client.host = "imap.gmail.com"
imap_client.username = username
imap_client.password = password
imap_client.port = 993
imap_client.security_options = ae.clients.SecurityOptions.Auto

# Enable MultiConnectionMode
imap_client.use_multi_connection = ae.clients.MultiConnectionMode.ENABLE

# Get mailbox info
mailbox_info = imap_client.mailbox_info

# Get folder info for the Inbox folder
inbox_info = imap_client.get_folder_info(mailbox_info.inbox.name)

# Create an ImapFolderInfoCollection and add the Inbox folder info
infos = ae.clients.imap.ImapFolderInfoCollection()
infos.add(inbox_info)

# Specify the path to the directory
data_dir = "path/to/your/data/directory"

# Perform the backup operation
settings = ae.clients.imap.BackupSettings
settings.execute_recursively = True
imap_client.backup(infos, data_dir + "\\ImapBackup.pst", settings)

Restore Messages with MultiConnection

The following code snippet demonstrates a restore operation with MultiConnection mode enabled.

import aspose.email as ae

# Create an instance of the ImapClient class
imap_client = ae.clients.imap.ImapClient()

# Specify host, username, password, and set port for your client
imap_client.host = "imap.gmail.com"
imap_client.username = username
imap_client.password = password
imap_client.port = 993
imap_client.security_options = ae.clients.SecurityOptions.Auto

# Enable MultiConnectionMode
imap_client.use_multi_connection = ae.clients.MultiConnectionMode.ENABLE

# Create RestoreSettings with Recursive set to true
settings = ae.clients.imap.RestoreSettings()
settings.recursive = True

# Specify the path to the directory
data_dir = "path/to/your/data/directory"

# Load the PST file
pst = ae.storage.pst.PersonalStorage.from_file(data_dir + "\\Outlook.pst")

# Perform the restore operation
imap_client.restore(pst, settings)