Other How to backup to Cloud?

[AMSOS]

Hi, just got a new iPhone 7 and while I am loving it so far I getting really confused with this cloud business. iCloud, iCloud Drive, and iCloud Backup - what’s the difference and which one will let me back up my data (pictures/videos, Notes, Calendar entries, Reminders, WhatsApp data) so I can restore it if the phone is broken or lost?

When I activated iCal with my gmail account I see Work and Home calendars. Where are the entries for these saved? Is there some way to save these on my computer and also back them up on iCloud?

I don’t use iMessages on my computer. How do I ensure that messages on my iPhone are being backed up and will be restored in case it is lost etc.?

I use Notes and will be taking down research related work every now and then like I did with Android. I want Notes on my phone and Mac to not sync, and the ones on my phone to be backed up in case of emergencies. How do I do that?

Thanks!

 

[desktop]

iCloud is basically Apple's storage service. It is not a sharing platform like Dropbox but it is very useful for storing some of the data on your device. When turned on, iCloud will back up the data on your device including documents, photos, contacts, calendars and the like. It will also backup all your iTunes store purchases although any music, videos or TV shows that you didn't purchase on iTunes will not be included in the backup.

iCloud drive is Apple's version of Dropbox. It is cloud-based, making sharing of all the data on the drive much easier. It is slightly different in operation as compared to Dropbox or Google Drive, since you can only store documents (no photos, videos, etc.). Instead of accessing your collection of the files via the iCloud Drive app, you do so through the different corresponding apps. For example, you access photos in the iCloud drive via the photos app.

I spoke to an Apple tech the other day about this whole iCloud confusion and she told me that iCloud is simply a place where most of your stuff is stored, but you can't really access it, unless you use your computer. This seemed really wonky to me, since I now own two Apple devices, but I can't access iCloud on either of them - only on my Windows PC. Oooooo-k....

I would not rely solely on iCloud for all your important stuff, since it merely syncs everything with your devices and doesn't really create any backups, per se. Apple does have something called “iCloud Backup.” iCloud Backup backs up critical info on the iPhone and iPad to iCloud. But it’s only for mobile devices. The “stuff” on your computer is not backed up by iCloud Backup.

The whole thing is pretty convoluted so I would Google for more information so you can learn more. I still use Google photos even on my Apple devices, because I want to make sure that my pictures and videos are always going to be there. I also use physical backup drives for everything. Be prepared, it's the Boyscout marching song.

 

[AMSOS]

This is not typical of Apple - no wonder I am getting confused! I see now why you would use Google photos for backing up given that it's simple to use and easy to see the pictures on a computer.

For the photos on my iPhone can I not sync the Photos app to the cloud, access them on my Mac, and just download important ones on to my external HDD?

I also just realised that I have Pages switched off under iCloud settings on my iPhone. And yet when I created a test file in Pages it got uploaded to the Pages and iCloud Drive section on iCloud.com! Any idea what's going on here?

Can you tell me how to save iCal entries on my computer? That way they'll be backed up on Time Machine, and I can use iCloud to access and edit them on my phone.

Thanks for guiding me through the morass!