It can be fun to switch from IBM Lotus Notes to Apple Mail, but then you find out that your emails are stuck in a format that Apple Mail can't read. Apple Mail uses EMLX files, but Lotus Notes saves everything in NSF files. You will need to convert your files because they don't talk to each other directly.

In this guide, I'll show you how to move your emails safely manually from NSF to EMLX without any struggle and data loss.

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What are NSF and EMLX files?

NSF - This file, made by IBM Lotus Notes, has emails, contacts, calendars, and other mailbox contents all in one place.

EMLX - Apple Mail employs the EMLX format, which maintains each email as a distinct file. This makes it easier for macOS to handle messages.

You can't just rename the file and expect it to operate because these formats are set up in different ways. It is required to do a correct conversion.

Migrating NSF to EMLX Manually

Lotus Notes doesn't have a built-in way to export directly to EMLX, so we'll do it in two steps:

• You can send emails from Lotus Notes to a format like MBOX.
• Import the MBOX into Apple Mail, which will convert it to EMLX on its own.

Step 1: Export Emails from Lotus Notes

• First and foremost, Lotus Notes must be installed on your computer.
• Second, Mozilla Thunderbird or any email application that works with MBOX.

How it works:

• Open Lotus Notes and the mailbox you want to move.
• Select Export from the File menu.
• Select a place to save the file and choose either Structured Text or Comma-Separated Value (CSV) as the format for the export.
• Keep the file you exported.
• Use the Import function in Mozilla Thunderbird to bring in the CSV/Structured Text file.
• Find the MBOX file that Thunderbird utilizes once the messages show up.

Step 2: Add MBOX to Apple Mail

• Start Apple Mail on your Mac.
• Choose File > Import Mailboxes.
• Choose MBOX files and then click Continue.
• Find the MBOX file you obtained from Thunderbird and click on it.
• Apple Mail will put the emails in a new folder.
• Apple Mail saves messages in EMLX format on its own, thus, the conversion happens in the background.

Step 3: Find EMLX Files (If You Need Them)

If you want the EMLX files themselves

• Open Finder and go to the Library folder. If you don't see it, use Command + Shift + .
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• CopyEdit ~/Library/Mail/Vx/Mailboxes/
• The "Vx" section will be different depending on what version of macOS you have.
• The.emlx files for each message are contained within.

Things to Remember When Using the Manual Method

The steps above do work, however, they do have some problems:

• It takes time, especially if you have a lot of messages.
• There is a chance of losing data; formatting or attachments might not get through completely.
• You need to use several programs and look in hidden directories.
• You have to do the same thing over and over for each NSF file or mailbox.

It's not too hard if you only have a few texts to shift. But it can get annoying very quickly when there are a lot of migrations.

There is a shortcut if the manual way seems like too much labor. The Trustvare NSF to EMLX Converter can do everything in only a few clicks.

This is what it has to offer:

• You can migrate files directly from NSF to EMLX without going via MBOX.
• It keeps attachments, formatting, and metadata the same.
• With batch conversion, you can move more than one NSF file at a once.
• Simple to use, even if you've never moved emails before.

If you want speed, accuracy, and no trouble, this is a superb solution, especially for big or business-critical email archives.

Final Thoughts

It doesn't have to be hard to move from Lotus Notes to Apple Mail. The manual way can get the task done for free if you're okay with doing some technical effort. If you care about your time and want to avoid making mistakes, though, using a program can make the procedure easy and stress-free.

Either way, your emails will be neatly stored in EMLX format in Apple Mail, ready for you to use on your Mac.