📧 Email Backup

Automatically export your MikroTik router configuration and send it via email. This is essential for disaster recovery and maintaining offsite backups of your network setup. This guide shows you how to configure SMTP settings and create a scheduled backup script that emails your configuration file daily.

Prerequisites

✅ MikroTik RouterOS device with email service enabled
✅ Gmail account (or SMTP server credentials)
✅ Router has internet connectivity
✅ System time is set correctly (for date-stamped backups)
✅ Access to RouterOS console (SSH, WebFig, or WinBox)

info

This guide uses Gmail SMTP. If using a different email provider, adjust the SMTP settings accordingly.

Configuration Steps

Option A: Terminal Configuration

Access the terminal via SSH, console, or WebFig terminal
```
ssh admin@your-router-ip
```
Configure SMTP settings for Gmail:
```
/tool e-mail
set address=smtp.gmail.com \
    from="your-email@gmail.com" \
    password="your-app-password" \
    port=587 \
    start-tls=yes \
    user="your-email@gmail.com"
```
warning
For Gmail: Use an App Password, not your regular Gmail password.
- Enable 2-Factor Authentication first
- Generate an app-specific password
- Use that 16-character password in the password field

Create the backup script:

/system script add name="email-backup" source={
    :local email "your-backup-email@example.com"
    /file remove [find name=export.rsc]
    /export file=export
    /tool e-mail send to=$email \
        subject="$[/system identity get name] $[/system clock get date] export" \
        body="Configuration backup - $[/system clock get date]" \
        file=export.rsc
}

Schedule the backup (daily at 2 AM):

/system scheduler add name="daily-backup" on-event="email-backup" start-time=02:00:00 interval=1d

Option B: WebFig Configuration

Navigate to Tools > E-mail:
- Address: smtp.gmail.com
- Port: 587
- From: your-email@gmail.com
- User: your-email@gmail.com
- Password: your-app-password
- Start TLS: ✓ (enabled)
- Click Apply
Add the script via System > Scripts:
- Name: email-backup
- Paste the script from Option A step 3
- Click Apply
Schedule the job via System > Scheduler:
- Name: daily-backup
- On Event: email-backup
- Start Time: 02:00:00
- Interval: 1d
- Click Apply

Verification

Test the email configuration:

/tool e-mail send to="your-backup-email@example.com" subject="Test from Router" body="Email service is working"

Check your inbox within 1-2 minutes.

Run the backup script manually:
```
/system script run email-backup
```
Verify you receive the export file via email.
Check the export file exists:
```
/file print
```
You should see export.rsc in the file list.
Verify scheduler is active:
```
/system scheduler print
```
Confirm daily-backup is listed and enabled.

Troubleshooting

Issue	Cause	Solution
"Email not sent" error	SMTP credentials incorrect	Verify Gmail app password is correct; check if 2FA is enabled
"Connection timeout"	SMTP port blocked	Ensure port 587 is open; try port 25 or 465
"TLS negotiation failed"	Start TLS setting mismatch	Confirm `start-tls=yes` is set; try `start-tls=no` if using port 465
Email arrives late/never	Scheduler not running	Check `/system scheduler print`; verify system clock is accurate
"Permission denied" on file removal	Export file locked	Wait a few seconds; try script again
Wrong identity name in subject	System identity not set	Set identity: `/system identity set name="MyRouter"`

Completion

✅ Your router now backs up automatically!

Next steps:

Test the scheduler by checking your email tomorrow at the scheduled time
Add additional recipients to the script (comma-separated in to field)
Consider rotating old exports to conserve storage: if ($[/file get [find name=export.rsc] size] > 5M) then { /file remove [find name=export.rsc] }
Back up the export file locally to a secure location

Prerequisites​

Configuration Steps​

Option A: Terminal Configuration​

Option B: WebFig Configuration​

Verification​

Troubleshooting​

Completion​