A brand new free command-line software exports your iMessage chats, SMS texts and attachments in plain textual content or HTML format for straightforward looking out and backup.
- A free new open-source utility, dubbed imessage-exporter, can conveniently export all of your iMessage and SMS conversations and attachments.
- All the Messages app database may be exported in plain textual content format (TXT) or as a webpage (HTML) for straightforward reference, looking out and backup.
- Exporting the Messages app database in HTML permits you to browse your exported conversations and attachments in an internet browser like Safari.
Introducing imessage-exporter
As famous by MacGeneration.fr, after getting your iMessage knowledge exported in both TXT or HTML format, it’s tremendous simple to browse your chats in Safari.
As Apple’s Highlight search characteristic indexes each textual content information and webpages saved regionally on the disk, you may shortly discover any iMessage chat by key phrase.
Find out how to save your iMessage knowledge with imessage-exporter
As a command-line software, imessage-exporter is executed by means of the Terminal app in your Mac. It’s accessible to obtain from GitHub in two variations—one is for Apple silicon Macs (“aarch64”) and the opposite is for Intel-based Macs (“x86_64”).
Upon getting the right model put in, run the next Terminal command to export your iMessage database as a textual content file:
imessage-exporter -f html
Operating this command will save your Messages conversations and attachments as separate HTML information inside the ~/imessage_export/ folder in your Mac.
To export the Messages database as a TXT file as a substitute:
imessage-exporter -f txt
Relying on the scale of your Messages database, exporting all of your conversations and attachments could take some time. You’ll lose styling (daring, italics, and so forth.) by exporting in plain textual content format, however metadata like date stamps and reactions can be retained.
Exporting as TXT as a substitute of HTML is far sooner, however understand that no attachments can be saved on this format and chats received’t retain styling.
For additional info, learn the GitHub documentation.
How’s imessage-exporter helpful?
Importantly, this software wasn’t conceived as a solution to again up your iMessages database, though nothing precludes you from utilizing it for that objective.
There are higher methods to browse and again up your iMessage chats, like iMazing. However the fantastic thing about imessage-exporter is that it exports the Messages database in file codecs that work out of the field without having any explicit app.
Moreover, imessage-exporter is a handy solution to collect, search and reference any photos, movies and different attachments despatched through iMessage. You may as well browse iMessage attachments within the Messages app, however the course of is cumbersome.
