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BusyContacts is no longer showing Apple Mail activity after an update

If Apple Mail messages used to appear in BusyContacts and now they don’t (especially after updating BusyContacts or macOS), it usually means you were relying on the legacy Apple Mail plug-in.

Newer BusyContacts versions use a MailKit-based Apple Mail extension called BusyContacts Mail Assistant (macOS 12+).

Fix (macOS 12+)​

  1. In BusyContacts, enable capture in BusyContacts > Settings > Integrations > Mail.
  2. In Apple Mail, enable the extension:
    • macOS 13+: Mail > Settings > Extensions
    • macOS 12: Mail > Preferences > Extensions
  3. Quit and relaunch Apple Mail, then quit and relaunch BusyContacts.

For full details (including important limitations such as not being able to import your entire mail history automatically), see:

If you’re looking for “Manage Plug-ins…”​

Apple Mail’s Manage Plug-ins… button is part of the legacy plug-in workflow and does not apply to the Mail extension workflow.

If you’re intentionally using the legacy plug-in (older BusyContacts versions), see:

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