How to Backup Content on a Gmail Account

You can back up content on a Gmail account by copying the files directly to your computer. Once the content is in your computer, you can make further copies of the contents of your Gmail account.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Internet access
• Computer

1. Get in the "Documents and Spreadsheets" section of Gmail. The home for this section of Gmail will display the contents of your edited spreadsheets and documents.
2. Check the box. Each document or spreadsheet has a box next to the file name. Mark the box so that you can back up the contents of your Gmail account to your computer’s hard drive.
3. Open the document or spreadsheet. Click on the document or spreadsheets’ file name.
4. Pull down the "File" menu. Drag down the menu to the "Save As" section. Select the file type to save your document or spreadsheet as and then click.
5. Confirm the download to your computer. Depending on your setup, you may have to choose a directory to save your backup files.

Tips & Warnings

• Copy your email into documents so you can backup all of your sent and received mail. Make sure to separate out the kinds of email into usable categories.
• You can also print from Gmail Documents and Spreadsheets, as well as from Gmail, so you can create a hardcopy backup of your Gmail account.
• Back up your account so that you can clean out your Gmail storage space from time to time. Although you get a generous amount of storage space, you can burn through it in a hurry with an active online presence.