In this example, taken from my iPhone 6 Plus, iCloud Drive is off - yet I paid for an upgraded storage plan when iCloud Drive was announced. Indeed, venture into Settings > iCloud and you'll find more questions than answers: So if iCloud Drive is off, are my documents being backed up? (That's where iCloud Drive comes in see below.) Rather, it serves to back up much (but not all) of what's stored on your iDevice, while syncing some (but not all) of your data to other devices. ICloud is, of course, Apple's online storage service, but it's not a file-sharing service like Dropbox or Microsoft OneDrive.
I base this assessment on my own confusion and the confusion of countless people who have asked me to explain it to them. What is iCloud?Ī big, muddled mess, that's what. So let's take a look at which service does what, with an eye toward what options to consider for whole-device backup.
But is it a replacement for iCloud Backup? An extension of it? A totally separate entity? If you upgrade your storage plan, does that also give you more space for backups? Then, a few months ago, Apple took the wraps off iCloud Drive, a service that seemed to offer more bang for your storage buck. No more syncing? iCloud backs up everything or just some things? What about photos? And do apps like Facebook really need to be backed up to the cloud? It is vital to have a backup of your files so that you can retrieve them easily if you lose them in whatever case.For many an iPhone or iPad user accustomed to syncing their devices to their desktops or laptops, the 2011 arrival of Apple's iCloud service created no small amount of head-scratching. To conclude, for you to successfully back up your Mac and iOS device ensure you are connected to Wi-Fi and a source of power. Also, ensure that your mails on your Mac are attached to iCloud so that they can be backed up. In addition, you cannot back up the documents and photo stream on your mac unless you drag the items to iCloud.
On the contrary, for the Mac users, you cannot back the music, app and TV shows that are not the desktop.
It is important to note that the device settings stored is only that which you stored on your iOS device. Furthermore, all your text messages, iMessages and MMS messages are also backed up in this feature. Moreover, the device settings on your gadgets will also be backed up automatically If you lose your ringtones and visual voicemail, you should never get worried since they are stored in the iCloud too. Your photos and videos on your iOS device are also secured. This is what is backed in iCloud.įirst, all the music, apps, TV shows and books that you downloaded in the iTunes will be stored. However, not all items on mac are fully backed up. Remember to stay connected to power source. The data on your iPhone, iPod and iPad gets backed up when you connected to a network and locked. The memory available is 20 GB, 200GB, 500GB and 1TB. If that memory is not enough for your files, you can purchase more memory. Whenever you open your iCloud it offers you 5GB memory storage to back up your mail, notes, calendar, contacts documents, data and bookmarks. You should be wondering what exactly is being backed up in your iOS.
At this point, you have been enlightened on how to back up your data in iCloud and how to restore it.