Backup all messages (including attachments) from an iPhone to free up space while allowing you to retain all of your conversation history. This script provides the ability to extract messages from your phone and store them freely in a zip file. This zip file can be later viewed in a companion web app or as a static HTML website.
usage: main.py [-h] [-o OUT] [--html] input
Backup messages from an iPhone
positional arguments:
input the directory path containing the iPhone backup
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-o OUT, --out OUT the name of the output file
--html create an HTML website from the backup
Step 1. Clone this repository:
> git clone https://github.com/joeylemon/imessage-backup.git
> cd imessage-backup
Step 2. Set up the Python virtual environment and install requirements:
> python -m venv venv
> source venv/bin/activate
> pip install -r requirements.txt
First, create an unencrypted backup of your iPhone directly onto your computer (how to do this?). Then, find the path to the folder containing your backup and pass it to the script:
> python main.py "E:\Users\Joey\Apple\MobileSync\Backup\12345678-000919512230001E" -o backup.zip
This will create a file named backup.zip containing the following directory structure:
backup.zip
--> chats/
--> chat_1634.json
--> chat_1695.json
--> attachments/
--> 0AB09373-F366-4D3B-85FC-1ABA33EE534F-jpeg-image-xIcbg.jpeg
--> 3A5AD82C-1CE0-404E-86D4-149522201EDB-FullSizeRender.jpg
The chats/ directory contains files representing every conversation on your phone, with information including the title, the participants, and all the messages ever received in it. All messages that were sent with attachments contain the path to the attachment stored in the backup.zip file.
You can create a static HTML website to view your messages by using the --html flag:
> python main.py "E:\Users\Joey\Apple\MobileSync\Backup\12345678-000919512230001E" -o backup.zip --html
This will create a directory named backup (the same name as your zip file without the extension) containing an HTML website that you can view in your browser. Open the index.html file to start browsing your messages.
The website features:
- A list of all your conversations, sorted by date
- Search functionality to find specific chats
- Individual chat pages showing the full conversation history
- Display of images and other attachments
- Mobile-friendly responsive design