Python script to download all gmail attachments.

dlAttachments.py

# Something in lines of http://stackoverflow.com/questions/348630/how-can-i-download-all-emails-with-attachments-from-gmail
# Make sure you have IMAP enabled in your gmail settings.
# Right now it won't download same file name twice even if their contents are different.

import email
import getpass, imaplib
import os
import sys

detach_dir = '.'
if 'attachments' not in os.listdir(detach_dir):
    os.mkdir('attachments')

userName = raw_input('Enter your GMail username:')
passwd = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ')

try:
    imapSession = imaplib.IMAP4_SSL('imap.gmail.com')
    typ, accountDetails = imapSession.login(userName, passwd)
    if typ != 'OK':
        print 'Not able to sign in!'
        raise
    
    imapSession.select('[Gmail]/All Mail')
    typ, data = imapSession.search(None, 'ALL')
    if typ != 'OK':
        print 'Error searching Inbox.'
        raise
    
    # Iterating over all emails
    for msgId in data[0].split():
        typ, messageParts = imapSession.fetch(msgId, '(RFC822)')
        if typ != 'OK':
            print 'Error fetching mail.'
            raise

        emailBody = messageParts[0][1]
        mail = email.message_from_string(emailBody)
        for part in mail.walk():
            if part.get_content_maintype() == 'multipart':
                # print part.as_string()
                continue
            if part.get('Content-Disposition') is None:
                # print part.as_string()
                continue
            fileName = part.get_filename()

            if bool(fileName):
                filePath = os.path.join(detach_dir, 'attachments', fileName)
                if not os.path.isfile(filePath) :
                    print fileName
                    fp = open(filePath, 'wb')
                    fp.write(part.get_payload(decode=True))
                    fp.close()
    imapSession.close()
    imapSession.logout()
except :
    print 'Not able to download all attachments.'

People using python 3.+++, you will have to make slight edits to the print option i.e from print 'Not able to sign in!' to print('Not able to sign in!'), raw_input to the input function i.e input('Enter your password'). The rest works like a charm.

Hi All,
Thanks for your answers,it is very helpful and i need at least one example for download attachments form hotmail(any microsoftmail-without configured in my lappy only from servers) and office 365 accounts and it has two step authentication
Thanks again
Regards
Jaaan

How to authenticate hotmail and live accounts .Please give me an example.

Thanks

I am using Python 3.5 and found I needed to use

mail = email.message_from_bytes(emailBody) # instead of mail = email.message_from_string(emailBody)

to get it working.

How to authenticate office365 and microsoft accounts through python

Anyone got it working for gmx.com? (I don't use google)
If anyone modified it to work it with gmx.com, please share :-)
Just changing form:
imapSession = imaplib.IMAP4_SSL('imap.gmail.com')
to
imapSession = imaplib.IMAP4_SSL('imap.gmx.com')
didn't work

hi, i have this error
Not able to download all attachments.

change in line 38 UTF-8
change in line 25 'UNSEEN FROM "XXX@gmail.com"'

but continue this error
Not able to download all attachments.

For anyone else who stumbled upon this:

• If you want a label, change line 24 to read res = imapSession.select('<label_here>')
• Create an "app specific password" for gmail in your general google account settings
• Make sure your python is version 2, or be prepared to make changes

It does not work, and I dont have idea why.
Even this code is working well
import smtplib

server = smtplib.SMTP('smtp.gmail.com', 587)
server.starttls()
server.login("Name1", "passwrd")

msg = "HEj"
server.sendmail("Name1", "Name2", msg)
server.quit()

So it should means that gmail is set up well

Guys can I ask how you can download attachment from specific person?
What code do I add?
Thank you

I'm using it with python 3.6 and it works fine with just a few adjustments:

• line 14 change "raw_input" to "input"
• line 24 change "[Gmail]/All Mail" to "inbox" (or whatever label you want)
• line 38 change "email.message_from_string" to "email.message_from_bytes"

I cannot get this to work.

Ihave done gmail / inbox
string / bytes
etc.

I find the right emails and all of that but still nothing.

get_payload does not seem to do anything.

Suggestions?

Thank you.

Anyone got this to work with gmail recently? Keen on something like this

how to filter by date?

how to change line 38? so it will support UTF-8?

@lewisde how to change line 38? so it will support UTF-8?

Anyone got this to work with gmail recently? Keen on something like this

Done

keep getting raise EOF parsing error on python 3,X

Works on Python 3.7 with several changes:

Line 38: mail = email.message_from_bytes(emailBody)

changed the raises to raise Exception("Not able to sign in!"), raise Exception("Error searching Inbox.") and raise Exception("Error fetching mail.")

Line 18: imapSession = imaplib.IMAP4_SSL('imap.gmail.com')

changed userName = input('Enter your GMail username:') to userName = "XXXXXX@gmail.com"

changed passwd = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ') to passwd = " "xxxx xxxx xxxx xxxx" (had to get an application specific password for this to work. My Gmail password would not work.)

changed detach_dir to .\picture folder/Email Attachments/ to keep the attachments from being saved to current path

A working script thanks to @baali - https://gist.github.com/kngeno/5337e543eb72174a6ac95e028b3b6456

Amazing Working Script Thanks To @baali

Easier and updated script:

https://gist.github.com/x011/d6c346debe22f5fec9e4499643ae1050

Dears
usful code to check old pictures, thanks, however
When I ran the code it printed the email username and did not do anything more.

This is awesome! Thank you

Hi,
Does anyone find this repo working? I think I am stuck with the login that throws me exception

typ, accountDetails = imapSession.login(userName, passed)

can anyone help?

thank you

Hi @chaohuichen,

Have you tried this? https://gist.github.com/kngeno/5337e543eb72174a6ac95e028b3b6456

Also from @x011on flagging particular emails
https://gist.github.com/x011/d6c346debe22f5fec9e4499643ae1050

Hi,
Does anyone find this repo working? I think I am stuck with the login that throws me exception

typ, accountDetails = imapSession.login(userName, passed)

can anyone help?

thank you

Hi @chaohuichen,

Have you tried this? https://gist.github.com/kngeno/5337e543eb72174a6ac95e028b3b6456

Also from @x011on flagging particular emails
https://gist.github.com/x011/d6c346debe22f5fec9e4499643ae1050

Hi,
Does anyone find this repo working? I think I am stuck with the login that throws me exception
typ, accountDetails = imapSession.login(userName, passed)
can anyone help?
thank you

Thank you @kngeno. the second gist link works!

Trying this in 2022 and always getting the 'Not able to download all attachments.' error. I read that in May 2022 google does not give the options to allow access to less secure apps, which fixed the problem for other users here. Does anyone know how to make this work in 2022?

Any help is much appreciated. Thanks!

Trying this in 2022 and always getting the 'Not able to download all attachments.' error. I read that in May 2022 google does not give the options to allow access to less secure apps, which fixed the problem for other users here. Does anyone know how to make this work in 2022?

Any help is much appreciated. Thanks!

If mail is something like test@test.com
Less secured app option is still available

For mails like anything@gmail.com you should use "app password"

Thanks for the reply! For App password, would I just use it in place of the regular password in the script above?

I tried that but am still getting the same issue.