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Feel confident that your photos, files, mail, and more are safely on your new Surface. Note: Some of the info on this page doesn’t apply to Surface Laptop running Windows 10 S. We’ll point out where things don’t apply. Get to files you’ve stored in the cloudAny files you’ve saved to iCloud, OneDrive, Dropbox, or another online storage service by using your Mac will also be available on your Microsoft Surface. Just visit the site for the service you use and sign in, or download the app for the service you use from Microsoft Store. Move files stored on your MacFor files stored locally on your Mac, you’ll need to copy them to your Surface by using an external drive. The drive must be compatible with both Mac and Windows—we recommend using a USB drive (USB 3.0 will be the fastest). Note: For Surface Laptop running Windows 10 S: You can only open files using apps from Microsoft Store. Some of the files from your Mac might not have associated apps in Microsoft Store, so you might not be able to open them on Surface Laptop. Get a USB drive with more storage than the storage used on your MacHere’s how to figure out what size hard drive you need:
Ready to move your files? Let’s do it!Note: If you have more than one user account on your Mac, you’ll need to follow these steps for each account. You’ll probably also want to create separate accounts on your Surface. Learn how to set up accounts. Copy photos to the external drive
Copy photos to your Surface
Tip: To get to your photos on your Surface, type Pictures in the search box on the taskbar. Or, try the Photos app. Copy music, documents, and other filesBefore you start, figure out what files you want on your Surface. On your Mac, open Finder, and then on the menu bar at the top of your screen, select Go and then Home. Note: Almost everything you move from your Mac will work with corresponding Windows apps on your Surface, but files created with Apple apps (like GarageBand or iMovie) won’t work on Surface. iWork files can be exported and opened with Microsoft Office (Pages to Word, Keynote to PowerPoint, and Numbers to Excel). Keep this in mind when you’re deciding what to copy to your Surface. When you’re ready, here’s how to copy your files. Copy files to the external drive
Copy files to your Surface
Access your email, contacts, and calendarUse your browser to get to webmailIf you use webmail (like Gmail, Yahoo!, iCloud, or Outlook.com) and you like using a browser to check your mail, just open Microsoft Edge, go to the website, and sign in. Use the Mail app on Surface for all your mail accountsLike Apple Mail on your Mac, the Mail app on Surface can be used for all your email accounts, including Outlook, Gmail, Yahoo!, and other mail accounts. Here’s how to add them:
Access your contacts and calendarGetting to your contacts and calendar from your Surface depends on which type of mail account you use. If you use Get to your contacts using… Get to your calendar using… Hotmail.com, Live.com, or Outlook.com The People app The Calendar app Gmail The People app Gmail.com iCloud.com, Me.com, or Mac.com iCloud.com or the iCloud for Windows app* iCloud.com or the iCloud for Windows app* Yahoo! The People app Yahoo.com *The iCloud for Windows app doesn’t work on Surface Laptop running Windows 10 S. For more info, see Set up email and calendar. Use Microsoft Outlook or EntourageIf you use Microsoft Outlook or Entourage on your Mac, you can use Microsoft Outlook on your Surface in the same way. Learn how to set up email accounts in Outlook 2016 for Windows. Note: For Surface Laptop running Windows 10 S: Microsoft Outlook and Entourage aren’t available in Microsoft Store, so they won’t work on a Surface Laptop running Windows 10 S. Instead, add your email accounts to the Mail app. See the section to see how. Transfer your web browser favorites to SurfaceNote: For Surface Laptop running Windows 10 S: This section (including all of the sub-sections) doesn’t apply to Surface Laptop running Windows 10 S. Instead, go to Add a site to my favorites in Microsoft Edge. Sync Safari favorites with iCloudIf you use Safari on your Mac, sign in to the iCloud for Windows app on your Surface. Your Safari favorites are automatically added to Microsoft Edge. Open System Preferences on your Mac and make sure iCloud is set up to sync Safari favorites. Import favorites into Microsoft EdgeIf you use Chrome or Firefox on your Mac, it’s just a few short steps to import your favorites to Microsoft Edge, the browser designed for Windows 10. Microsoft Edge is more battery efficient than Chrome (up to 32%) and Firefox (up to 75%). Here’s how to import your favorites:
Note: If you don’t have Chrome or Firefox installed on your Mac, you won’t see them listed under "Import favorites." Sync favorites from Firefox or ChromeIf you’d prefer to keep using Firefox or Chrome as your browser, here’s how to sync your bookmarks on all your devices, including Surface: |