As you know, Apple gives each registered user (when creating an Apple ID) 5 GB of disk space in the iCloud cloud for free, however, many iDevice owners fill up the storage in a matter of weeks and then face the problem of creating backups, copying important data, etc. It is noteworthy that in 99% of cases this situation is the result of incorrect synchronization settings.
Free space on iPhone or iPad is not the same as free space in iCloud
Unfortunately, many users see the message “Cannot back up this iPhone because there is not enough free space in iCloud” on the screen, not understanding its meaning, and begin to delete everything in a row, freeing up the storage of the iOS device.
- Free space on iPhone or iPad- Remaining storage space on the iOS device (internal memory). Everything that is downloaded to the device is stored here (software, applications + cache, uploaded and created photos and videos, etc.).
- Free space in iCloud- remaining space in iCloud cloud storage. Basically, the iCloud cloud is designed to create automatic backups, as well as to synchronize personal data.
Why did iCloud run out of storage?
Of course, 5 GB by modern standards - to put it mildly, not very much. However, often even this memory is filled with completely different data that the user really needs. Usually, the lion's share of disk space is "eaten up" by backup copies that are unnecessary to most, as well as photos and media files, moreover, saved twice.
How does this happen? When the Backup to iCloud option is enabled, the device, being connected to a power source and Wi-Fi, automatically copies the entire media library to the cloud, and then additionally creates a backup copy, which also includes all media files.
Why did we label iCloud backups unnecessary for most users? Because first of all, users are interested in restoring contacts, notes and photos. To save contacts, notes and photos in the Apple cloud at all it is not necessary to use automatic iCloud backup. Here you should understand the difference between the concepts: Backup in iCloud and Synchronization with iCloud. We have discussed this in detail in this article.
How to check how much free space is left in iCloud?
Checking this is quite simple - go to Settings → Apple ID (your first and last name) → iCloud → Storage. The chart that appears will provide a visual representation of iCloud storage, including the amount used and sorted by content type.
How to free up space in iCloud?
Following the path Settings → Apple ID (your first and last name) → iCloud → Storage management, you will probably see the most “heavy” sections “Backups” or “Photos” at the top of the list. It is they who clog up the place in iCloud. Delete unnecessary files to free up space in Apple cloud storage.
In addition, you should disable future automatic backups in iCloud (fully or selectively).
To completely disable iCloud backups, go to Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → Backup and turn off the iCloud backup option.
The best option for most users is to manually specify files when creating backups (selective ban on copying Media Library data).
You can do this in the following way:
1. Go to Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → Storage management → Backups;
2. Select the desired device;
3. Move the "checkbox" opposite the item "Media Library" (and other applications if desired) to a passive position;
4. In the same menu, click the "Delete copy" button to clear the cloud;
5. Return to Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → iCloud Backup and create a new copy without gluttonous photos and media files.
How to view data (photos, videos, files) stored in iCloud?
You can view the data stored in iCloud (and delete it if you wish) using the web version of the Apple cloud service located at icloud.com (you need to log in from a computer). The main sources of “weight” of the occupied volume are data from the Mail, Photos and iCloud Drive web applications. You can remove them if you wish.
How to increase space in iCloud? It's not free?
You can change your iCloud storage plan by going to Settings → Apple ID (your first and last name) → iCloud → Storage management → Change storage plan.
Current plans for iCloud space and their cost:
What about iCloud Drive?
Another feature that many would like to get rid of is the synchronization of application data in iCloud Drive. For most users, the need to use this data occurs less often than the appearance of Halley's comet. Therefore (if you do not use the Files app on iOS), we can safely recommend completely or selectively disabling this automatic procedure in the Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → iCloud Drive menu.
How to properly use iCloud space?
- First of all, you need to understand the difference between the concepts: Backup in iCloud and Synchronization with iCloud.
- For Apple ID holders with a basic initial iCloud storage size of 5 GB, we recommend turning off Backups completely.
In addition, it will not be superfluous to cancel the synchronization of the Photos library - just set the “checkbox” opposite the “Photos” item to the Off position along the path Settings → Apple ID → iCloud.
- To sync photos or videos to iCloud, buy more space (prices and rates are listed above) or use third-party free cloud services like Google Photos or Yandex.Disk.
According to yablyk
If your iCloud storage is full or you need to clear it for other reasons, there are several steps to completely clear the cloud. Unfortunately, there is no button on the iPad and iPhone to erase everything at once, you will have to gradually delete media data, phone backups, as well as applications and games that you previously saved there. If you still decide to clear your iCloud storage, follow the instructions in this article.
Go to your phone or tablet settings. You will see a list of all options. Click on the "iCloud" field in the settings. Click on the "Storage" button at the very top of the window. To the right of this field, you will see how much free memory is left on the cloud.
At this point, you can expand your cloud. If you would like to do so, click "Buy more seats" below all items and you will be redirected to the payment page.
After all the manipulations, you will clear your storage, as well as configure the options for saving files in your iCloud cloud.
After reading this manual, you will be able to deal with the popular issue of transferring and saving photos to the cloud on an iPhone, additional phone settings, and choosing the most convenient data storage service for you.
Every year, the development of cloud storage for saving personal photos or documents is becoming more popular among iPhone users. This may be due to the small amount of memory of the device, or vice versa, with the conveniences that data storage services on the Internet offer us.
How does the cloud work on iPhone? The principle of operation in general terms
The principle of operation of cloud storage is based on streaming files to local Apple server storages.
When an iPhone user takes a new photo, records a video file, or works with bookmarks on the gadget, the built-in iOS monitoring system records and saves the results of new or previously modified files to the device's internal cache. When you connect to Wi-Fi, you are automatically connected to iCloud cloud storage. iOS sends a command to the server about changed or new documents, and they are automatically uploaded to Apple's local storage.
The file, at the time of downloading from the iPhone to the cloud, is divided into equal parts and distributed among the storage servers. Each document or photo has several backups that allow you to store information in different places. In case of loss of data about the downloaded file or equipment failure, the backup will allow you to instantly get information about the previously uploaded media content to the cloud.
When an iPhone user enters the cloud storage and downloads the file he needs, it is automatically put together by powerful computing equipment and transmitted through secure encryption to the owner's phone.
What is the best cloud for iPhone currently?
Indeed, many iPhone users often think about where to store their photos and video recordings. How can you access them most quickly from any part of the planet where there is internet.
The task of choosing cloud storage for an iPhone comes down to a few competitors in this area. We will try to describe in detail the advantages and disadvantages of each of them.
The assessment of cloud storage services for iPhone will be based on the following criteria:
Ease of use
Functional
Price
iCloud, Apple's cloud storage service
iCloud is a powerful and high-tech cloud service that is able to keep your personal media files safe and sound from unauthorized persons. In addition to storing photos and data, it is able to: track the location of your iPhone, computer or other phone; quick and remote setup of iPhone, calendar events and more.
It makes no sense to talk about the convenience of using the iCloud service, which is specially designed by Apple for buyers and users of the iPhone or iPad. Everything is pretty simple.
When you purchase a new iPhone, you create an iCloud cloud account that is linked to one or more devices if you have more than one.
To access the cloud on an iPhone, you will need to go through the authorization in the device settings, and all previously saved photos or personal data, such as contacts, calendar entries or notes, are automatically downloaded to the iPhone. This adds the maximum number of points to the convenience of using the iCloud service, because. You don't need to install additional software on your phone.
When registering an Apple cloud storage account, the user is given 5 GB free of charge to store the most important files on the iPhone cloud. To expand the amount of memory in the cloud, you are offered a choice of three subscription options, which are presented in the screenshot below. The cost is indicated in rubles per month of use.
Yandex Disk is one of the ways to choose cloud storage for photos and videos on iPhone
We recently described in detail one of the processes for downloading music to an iPhone using Yandex Disk cloud storage. You can read about it.
In addition to downloading music, this service will allow you to store all the photos and video files that are on your iPhone in your cloudy spaces.
Many iPhone buyers use the cloud storage service. This is primarily due to the small amount of memory in the device. Yandex Disk on a free basis offers about 20 GB for uploading media files to the cloud from an iPhone. This place is more than enough to understand all the features of the service in free mode.
The convenience of using Yandex Disk on the iPhone does not seem as promising as in the case of iCloud. Auto-upload POISON will allow you to automatically upload only photo and video files from iPhone to cloud storage.
As for the cost. Yandex offers, as we said earlier, about 20 GB of permanent cloud space for free, as well as the possibility of expanding the memory for an additional fee. You can get acquainted with the current tariffs (at the end of 2017) in the screenshot below.
Attention! Yandex Disk constantly holds free promotions with partners that will allow you to significantly increase your iPhone cloud storage space. The price and cost of these services may differ from the prices presented on the official website of the software product.
A Quick Summary of Choosing Cloud Storage for iPhone
We looked at just a few options for the most popular services for storing photos and videos from iPhone on the Internet. There is a huge number of competitors who can offer you the most favorable conditions for storage rental. The main thing to remember is that proven and popular services have reliable data protection against hacking, which will prevent personal files from leaking to the Internet. Choose the most convenient option for storing data in the iPhone cloud, based on our summary table of advantages and disadvantages.
The rating of the proposed options for cloud storage on the iPhone is based on personal experience of use, feedback from colleagues and users on the Internet. iPhone owners categorically reject the use of the Dropbox service and are reluctant to look towards Google Drive.
How to create a cloud on an iPhone using a PC or from a phone?
The process of signing up or creating an online storage account on your iPhone won't take much of your time. Let's take a closer look at the situation using the example of registering the iCloud cloud and Yandex Disk from beginning to end.
Create an Apple ID and register iCloud for iPhone
Go to the official cloud storage website: https://www.icloud.com/. Register by clicking on the "Create" button opposite the Apple ID inscription, as shown in the screenshot below.
Fill in the personal data that is required to register the icloud cloud.
We recommend that you write down your new Apple ID and password to sign in to your account. Registered cloud service information is required to properly set up iPhone for your account. If you sell your iPhone or transfer it to third parties, be sure to log out of your account so that your personal data is not transferred to other users.
It is possible to create an iCloud cloud not only from a computer, but also directly from an iPhone. To do this, go to "Settings", etc.
Register the Yandex Disk cloud in iPhone
We will need to download the official app from the App Store.
The registration process is quite simple. Open the app and click
If you already have a login from the mail or the Yandex Music listening service, it is not necessary to register. Enter your account information and log in to the app.
Proper setup of Yandex Disk and iCloud will allow you to use the services automatically. How to configure cloud services without errors, we will tell a little later.
How to quickly access the cloud through an iPhone or computer?
If you need to download photos or videos to your computer from the iPhone cloud storage, we recommend using Apple's official and free program for Windows operating systems - iCloud for PC
Install the downloaded program and make the minimum settings that will be requested in automatic mode.
To access the Apple cloud directly from an iPhone, we recommend that you perform additional phone settings that will allow you to view files without using additional software. Go to "Settings". Select the "iCloud" section.
After you have entered the iCloud general menu, scroll down to the bottom to the optional checkbox with the permission to store documents and data in the iPhone cloud. Activate it.
After confirming the storage of data from programs that use the iCloud service, the necessary files and backup copies of applications will be automatically copied to the information storage service from the iPhone.
To view files in Apple storage from your iPhone, go to your phone's home screen or desktop. The installed "iCloud Drive" app will appear as shown in the screenshot.
The program will allow you to view files in iCloud from iPhone as a file manager. For the most detailed view of not only files and documents from iCloud cloud storage, we recommend using the data synchronization program for your computer.
It is important to know! Try to learn all the functions and settings of the cloud storage of your iPhone device. How to use the cloud on iPhone? There is nothing complicated. Just follow each step in our guide and it will answer all your questions in more than detail.
How to save photos in the cloud iPhone or Yandex Disk?
To upload photos from your iPhone to the cloud, go to the “Settings” section. Click on your Apple ID account. Further "iCloud" - "Photos". Make the checkbox next to "Media Library" active.
Apple cares about its users and leaves a detailed description of the functions to the most popular menu items in the iPhone settings.
As you can already understand, by activating this menu item in the settings, you can upload photos to the cloud on your iPhone. Next, set optional additional settings for saving original photos or vice versa, optimizing device storage.
If you are not sure about syncing and transferring photos to iCloud from iPhone, we advise you to check the downloaded files through the storage program for your personal computer.
The easiest and most affordable option for storing photos in the device's cloud is to use the Yandex Disk service. The main advantage of this program is comfort and ease of use, and, compared to iCloud, you are provided with much more free space to save photos.
Open the disk program and try to set it up according to our instructions. Go to the settings section by tapping on the gear in the upper left corner of the display. Pay attention to the menu item "Autoload photos". We advise you to set the active download of photos only via Wi-Fi to save money if your service provider does not provide an unlimited tariff.
Photos and videos are uploaded to Yandex Disk automatically. On some devices and firmware, users have noted minor problems with automatic downloads. They have to leave the gadget's screen active while data is being uploaded to the server.
You can see the current status of uploaded photos and video files in the "Camera" section. In the upper status bar of the program, a running bar with the amount of downloaded material will be displayed. With the Yandex Disk program, you will forever forget about such a question, “How to save photos to the cloud on an iPhone?”. The application will automatically do everything for you.
Also, do not forget that the Disk has a separate program not only for the iPhone, but also for the computer. Therefore, downloading photos and video files from the cloud to your computer will be a pleasure.
To transfer a single photo to the cloud on an iPhone from Yandex, click on "Photo". Select the photo you would like to upload to the server. Click on the sharing button in the lower left corner. You will see a pop-up window with additional information on copying or slideshow. Scroll through the program bar to the end until you find "Disk". Select or create the desired folder where you would like to store iPhone photos.
In the case of Yandex Disk, you greatly facilitate the process of uploading not only photos of photos, but also videos from an iPhone to cloud storage.
Do not forget to synchronize or urgently download photos from iCloud cloud storage, you will need to install an additional program on your PC. Yandex Disk allows you to download any files up to 2GB in size from the cloud without installing software.
If you have any questions, we will be happy to answer them in the comments to this article.
Details Benks Created: 07 September 2017 Updated: 03 February 2018Apple is giving every iPhone, iPad and Mac owner five free gigabytes of iCloud cloud storage. Unfortunately, this space ends very quickly, especially if several mobile devices are connected to one account at once, which synchronize photos, videos, and documents with the cloud.
The next time you try to save a backup in the cloud, the iOS device will display a warning: "Backup failed." What to do in this case? We have prepared some tips for you on how to make better use of the free gigabytes allotted in iCloud.
Archive photos and delete them from the cloud
As a rule, photos and videos take up the most space on a mobile device. Just a couple of small videos made on the iPhone can take up a whole gigabyte in the cloud. The best way to keep storage free is to archive photos and videos by deleting data from your gadget and from iCloud.
Previously, we published instructions on how to back up photos and videos from iPhone and iPad. You can find her.
Delete documents and data to reduce the size of iCloud backups
If you do not often use the camera, then apps from the App Store may be the main problem for you. There are several ways to optimize the disk space used by programs. The first and easiest is to delete unnecessary files using standard iOS tools.
Step 1: Go to Settings –> iCloud –> Storage and backups –> Storage.
Step 2: Select the top app under Documents & Data (Apps are listed in order of decreasing iCloud space they take up).
Step 3: After you select an application, a list of the data it uses will appear. Click the Edit button and select the items you want to remove. You can click Remove All to remove all information for the selected software.
Step 4: Repeat step 2 for the rest of the apps on the list until you have enough free space in iCloud.
Book only what you need
If not all of your applications must be backed up, you can specify this in the settings.
Step 1: Go to Settings –> iCloud –> Storage and backups –> Storage.
Step 2: Select the device on which you want to change the settings (for example, "This iPhone").
Step 3: In the Backup Options list, turn off archiving of those applications that you do not need.
Keep in mind that if you're syncing multiple devices at once with the same iCloud account, you'll need to set up archiving settings for each device. If you see that only 2.5 GB is used on your iPhone, but iCloud still signals a lack of space, check the settings for other iPhone, iPad or iPod touch connected to this account.
Buy more cloud space
Of course, you can always purchase additional iCloud storage with money.
Step 1: Go to Settings –> iCloud –> Storage & backups.
Step 2 A: Click Buy another seat.
Step 3: Choose the plan that works best for you (10GB for $20/year, 20GB for $40/year, or 50GB for $100/year).
Each owner of an Apple account receives free 5 GB of space, which they can freely dispose of at their own discretion. If there is not enough iCloud volume, you can buy it in addition or try to free it in different ways. We will talk about them in this article.
How to Clear iCloud Storage - Delete Backups
Backups, of course, are an extremely useful tool to save data from an Apple device. However, there is no need to store them all to one, it is worth leaving only the most relevant ones. Deleting old backups will clear up a lot of iCloud space. To do this:
- on iPhone or iPad, open “Settings”;
- here we select “Basic” and then “iCloud storage”;
- scroll to the end and click on the “Manage” item;
- here you will see the statistics of devices connected to iCloud and the amount of space used;
- select the device whose backup you can donate, and click "Delete";
- Confirm the action with the "Turn off and delete" button.
How to Clear iCloud Storage - Backup Setup
Many apps installed on your iPhone or iPad add their files to iCloud backup automatically. You can control the volume of backups by deleting data from insignificant applications, leaving only critical information. We do this:
- on the device, go to “Settings” -> “iCloud”;
- select the menu “Storage” and again “Storage”;
- click on the name of the selected device;
- go to the “Backup settings” section;
- here we look at the list of programs that send their files to backup, and turn off unnecessary ones.
How to Clear iCloud Storage - Clean Up Library
In addition to backups, iCloud can store photos, videos, their processed versions from the Photos program. To free up a small amount of space, first try not to delete files, but to compress them. To do this, iCloud has a special function “Storage optimization”, which is enabled in the settings. You should also remember that deleted photos and videos are stored in a special folder “Recently Deleted” for 30 days (and take up space). To get rid of them:
- go to the album
- click "Select";
- specify the files that we are going to remove forever;
- tap "Delete" and confirm the action again.
How to Clear iCloud Storage - Delete Mail
Another type of files that occupy a certain place in iCoud is the history of personal e-mail correspondence. Letters by themselves "weigh" very little, but capacious attachments of any format can be attached to them. If you are using iCloud Mail with another email client:
- for “Mail” on Mac: go to “Box” -> “Erase Deleted Items”, then select iCloud account;
- for Microsoft Outlook 2007 on Windows: click "Edit" -> "Clear" and select Apple ID;
- for Microsoft Outlook versions 2010-2016: just delete unnecessary messages, after restarting the program they will disappear without return;
- through a browser on a PC: log in to
