Hi there!
I have a new corporate MacBook Air M1 running Ventura 13.3 that I am migrating to from a MacBook Pro running Ventura 13.3. Because it's a corporate device, I'm not able to leverage iCloud to transfer over a significant number of data I have in my Notes App.
Is there a way to migrate LOCAL Notes between MacBooks?
Thanks!
The other option would be to export them as a PDF by selecting the note and going to the File menu and export as PDF. You can then import them from the same menu.
I do understand it would be ideal to transfer the file from your Library folder directly into your new Mac, but the permissions of the files may not work when opening in the new Mac. I assume you tried transferring the whole group.com.apple.notes folder from the Group Containers folder in Library. After you moved it over did you try checking the Permissions using Get Info to see if it still showed your previous name. I caution you to make backups of the files you move so they can be easily put back if something goes wrong. Again, this is experimental and I have not heard of it being done before.
The other option would be to export them as a PDF by selecting the note and going to the File menu and export as PDF. You can then import them from the same menu.
I do understand it would be ideal to transfer the file from your Library folder directly into your new Mac, but the permissions of the files may not work when opening in the new Mac. I assume you tried transferring the whole group.com.apple.notes folder from the Group Containers folder in Library. After you moved it over did you try checking the Permissions using Get Info to see if it still showed your previous name. I caution you to make backups of the files you move so they can be easily put back if something goes wrong. Again, this is experimental and I have not heard of it being done before.
I had thought of that, but unfortunately, it's been disabled at my company as a Data Loss Prevention (DLP) factor.
I can't use Airdrop, I can't use iCloud, I can't use direct network transfer.
I do have the ability to transfer files via OneDrive, so that's my primary vector. I've tried to look online to find where the files are stored, and the SQLlite file is in the Library, but I can't get it to import or be recognized by my new machine. :(
I copied three ~/Library/Group Containers/group.com.apple.notes* directories from one computer to another and it worked. Very good suggestion!
Are you able to use AirDrop?
You can select a Note and choose the Share button to Airdrop. Make sure to select the Send as Copy option instead of Collaborate in the drop down menu. It will then be placed in the Notes app of your new Mac. The only problem is you can only do one note at a time, but it is very convenient and will get the job done.
Thanks! I'll try the PDF export / import, and see how that goes, and I'll also check the permissions. Interesting point on that, I hadn't considered that the accounts wouldn't match!
Need to migrate Notes to a new Macbook - Can't use iCloud
