Backing up iPhone and iPad is always essential and around the holidays or with a few more days off it is certainly among the tasks to be performed. How to backup iPhone and iPad.
If you lose your device, if it gets stolen or something goes wrong, you can be sure that you have a restore point somewhere on the date the copy was created. The back p is also essential if you buy a new iPhone or iPad and want to transfer data from the old device.
After all, it is difficult to have an excuse not to back up the iPhone. Apple offers us free and easy ways to run it that you probably already have full knowledge of, but which we summarize below.
Two backup methods
There are essentially two full backups that can be done from iOS devices: with iCloud or with iTunes. The first method, which is based on Apple’s service, is also useful for backing up which we have created a very thorough guide. Offers up to 5TB of storage (free) and allows you to create and use backups anywhere via Wi-Fi; the second method allows you to store backups on your Mac or PC and archives the data according to the space available on your computer.
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Back up with iCloud
With a fast connection to the Wi-Fi network, you can back up your device via iCloud. There is no need to connect the device to your computer or be at home to be able to back up via iCloud. Here’s how to proceed:
- Connect the device to a Wi-Fi network.
- Go to Settings> [username] and tap iCloud. If you are using iOS 10.2 or earlier, go to Settings, scroll down and tap iCloud.
- Select “iCloud Backup”. If you are using iOS 10.2 or earlier, select “Backup”, make sure “iCloud Backup” is activated, tap “Back up now”. Keep connected to the Wi-Fi network until the procedure is completed
- Make sure the backup is done: just go to Settings> [username]> iCloud> iCloud storage> Manage space, then select your device. If you are using iOS 10.2 or earlier, go to Settings> iCloud> Space> Manage Space, then select the device. The backup should be displayed in detail with the time and size.
It should be noted that backing up to iCloud can be very slow, regardless of the speed of your Wi-Fi network. Depending on the size of the backup you need to do, it could take several hours, if not days. Same thing if you happen to restore from iCloud.
In addition, as we have specified elsewhere, the free 5 GB of the Back up available for free are almost always an insufficient amount, even by deactivating all the heavier elements. It is very likely, therefore, that you will need to purchase one of the paid plans offered by Apple.
Alternatively, you can try to optimize the space on iCloud. But the operation will hardly be decisive in the long term.
How to backup with iTunes
From your Mac or PC, you can back up your iPhone and iPad using iTunes. Synchronizing the device with a computer and performing a backup are two distinct operations. An iTunes backup includes almost all data and almost all device settings (iTunes backup does not include items such as iTunes Store content and Photos already stored in the cloud, such as My Photo Stream and Photo Library. iCloud). Here’s how to proceed:
Open iTunes and connect the device to the computer with the Lightning cable.
If a message asks for the device code and if you want to authorize the computer, follow the instructions on the screen.
Select the iPhone, iPad or iPod when it appears in iTunes.
If you want to save the Health and Activity data of the iOS device or Apple Watch and the passwords, you must encrypt the backup by checking the “Encrypt backup [device]” box indicating a password that is easy to remember. If you are not interested in saving your Health and Activity data, you can create an unencrypted backup. Just click “Back Up Now”.
At the end of the procedure, it is possible to verify that the backup has been completed correctly in iTunes by going to the latter in Preferences> Devices (if you use iTunes on Windows, select the item Edit> Preferences> Devices from the menu bar at the top of the window iTunes). You should see the device name with the date and time iTunes created the backup. If you have chosen the “backup encryption” option, you should also see a padlock icon next to the device name.
What is logged in the backup?
In the back up all the contents of the iPhone are put, from preferences to emails, from photos to passwords. All preferences, but if you’re using iCloud or iTunes 12.8 and later, the apps are never transferred directly. They need to be downloaded again from the App Store and this time will be added to the backup time. If you have apps you don’t need, delete them before backing up to the new device. You can download iTunes 12.6.5 which still contains both the App Store and the ability to backup applications locally.
Restore an iPhone from backup
If you need to restore an iPhone or iPad from a backup, you can follow our detailed guide at this link. In summary here of
If you want to restore data from iTunes you have to connect the iPhone to the Mac or PC with the cable
- Choose restore backup and then choose the correct backup. You may have more back up, be sure to choose the right one. You may also be prompted to update your phone’s operating system
- If the backup has been encrypted, you must enter the password
- After the reset procedure, go through the device setup steps
To restore from iCloud you will need to log in to iCloud with our password, then when prompted, choose the correct backup (check the date and size). You may be prompted to update the operating system:
- Log into iCloud with your Apple ID and password.
- When prompted, choose a backup. Check the date and size of each backup to make sure you choose the correct one. If you are asked to upgrade to a newer version of iOS you will need to upgrade
- If you have purchased content from the iTunes Store or the App Store using multiple Apple IDs. You will be prompted to log in to each of them.
Backup and restore with macOS Catalina
On Macs with macOS 10.15.x Catalina, iTunes is no longer present. You can backup by connecting the device to your computer. Directly from the Finder: the iPhone appears the same as it was possible to do with iTunes.
The first time you connect your iPhone via cable, for example, it requires authorization. Access to the computer is allowed, from any Finder window we will see our device. A click on the icon in the “iPhone” position in the sidebar will show a window that is very reminiscent of the one that with previous operating systems could only be seen when starting iTunes. We could say that, in fact, the latter is always there but it is no longer an independent program but its key features integrated directly into the operating system.
The default window that appears by clicking on the device icon in the Finder sidebar is divided into sections. The “General” section shows details about the phone. The version of the operating system installed, a button to check for updates and a button to reset. These are basically the same functions that iTunes offered. In the central part of this screen, you can call up the function that allows you to back up to iCloud or locally on your computer, activate the option that allows you to encrypt backups and manage them.
Starting a backup, nothing seems to happen but the activity in progress can be seen from the pie chart icon (on the left of the Finder sidebar, next to the word “iPhone”) that fills up as the operation is completed.
