Extract text from Apple Mail location files (MAILLOC)
To convert MAILLOC location files to another format, you need Apple Mail or other System software.
To convert other file formats to the "Mail System File" file type, you need software like Apple Mail or a similar tool.
The .MAILLOC file is an XML-based placeholder used by Apple Mail to track the directory location of email attachments. When you receive an email with a large attachment or rely on iCloud to optimize Mac storage, Apple Mail sometimes leaves a .MAILLOC file in the mailbox folder instead of the actual file.
This format is proprietary to macOS and iOS ecosystems. The biggest disadvantage of a .MAILLOC file is that it does not contain the actual attachment data. It only stores metadata and file paths. If you try to open it on a Windows PC or upload it to standard online converters, they will fail because the media payload is missing. Users often face frustration when migrating mailboxes, expecting to find their attachments but finding these tiny XML pointers instead.
Because it is structured as XML, the best conversion targets are plain text formats like TXT or XML. Converting it to a document or image format is impossible.
This file format is difficult to open or convert correctly outside of Apple Mail. Often, only the original software can properly resolve the path and fetch the real attachment data from Apple's servers or your local cache. However, you can use convert.guru. Just drag and drop your file to identify the format, view it, and convert it when possible. Our engine can inspect the file and show the internal text. Since our analysis detects the underlying XML format, viewing the text to find where your real attachment went is fully supported.
Convert.Guru analyzes your MAILLOC file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted PLUGINPAYLOADATTACHMENT, RFC822 and IDENTITY files.
If you want to convert MAILLOC file to TMP, TEMP, CACHE, LOG, BAK, OLD, NEW, PART, DOWNLOAD, CRDOWNLOAD, LOCK or PID, you can use Apple Mail or similar software from the "Email Attachment Location Pointer" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DEVICE, CACHE, SOCK, SYMLINK, PID, MOUNT, FIFO, LOG, PIPE, TMP, JUNCTION or TEMP files to MAILLOC, try Apple Mail or another comparable tool in the "Email Attachment Location Pointer" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our MAILLOC converter.