iPhone I’m confused about iCloud...

[DaPizzaMan]

Why does iCloud backup WhatsApp but then also back it up in my phone backup? It’s taking up twice as much space for what seems to be no good reason? Am I misunderstanding something?

Edit: To add onto that, my iCloud storage was filling up, so I decided to delete some things from WhatsApp to make room. Now that it all backs up, I’m noticing this “duplicate” data, or whatever it is.

 

[ApfelKuchen]

It doesn't seem like you're misunderstanding.

I don't use WhatsApp, so I can't check my phone for similar behavior, but I did notice that it's labeled "WhatsApp Messenger" on the first screen, but "WhatsApp" on the last screen. That suggests it's being treated as two separate apps (even though the storage used seems identical - a single database being backed up twice). I'm pretty sure the name was changed at one point - FaceBook adding "Messenger" to be consistent with FaceBook Messenger.

I don't have any answers/suggested fixes, but I'd be curious to know if you saw two WhatsApp listings at Settings > General > iPhone Storage.

 

[DaPizzaMan]

I don't have any answers/suggested fixes, but I'd be curious to know if you saw two WhatsApp listings at Settings > General > iPhone Storage.

Nope, just one.

 

[ApfelKuchen]

Hmm. The 2.02 GB in iPhone Storage is roughly the sum of iCloud (1.07 GB) and iCloud Backup (another 1.07 GB).

I'd only be guessing from here. Again, I've never used WhatsApp. Maybe WhatsApp is still in the process of syncing to iCloud (which would mean the amount in iCloud would gradually go up while the amount in iCloud Backup would gradually decline), or the syncing process is broken for some reason, or maybe there are two message archives on the iPhone (one that is being synced, the other being backed up), or... ??

Have you recently restored from backup/transferred to a new iPhone?

I'd check your WhatsApp settings to see what options they give you for syncing/backing up data to the cloud. That might give you some clues.

 

[DaPizzaMan]

WhatsApp backup settings below:

Edit: to answer the question about a recent restore / backup, no. My phone has been fine all this time. It’s just that recently my iCloud storage was filling up, so I decided to delete some things from WhatsApp to make room. Now that it all backs up, I’m noticing this “duplicate” data, or whatever it is.

 

[ApfelKuchen]

I'm not certain it is "duplicate" as again, the backup amount (1.07 GB) is roughly half of the amount on the iPhone.

Does WhatsApp have settings for syncing with iCloud (or WhatsApp) as well as "Chat Backup"?

So, you recently were in an out-of-storage situation with iCloud, and you deleted messages (or more likely videos) to bring things back down below 5 GB in iCloud? That could explain things - the WhatsApp archive may still be in the process of syncing now that there's storage space available. Keep watching the numbers. If the amount in Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Manage Storage keeps going up while the amount in Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Manage Storage > Backups > [this iPhone] > Info goes down, then things probably just need more time.

Or not. Again, I don't know WhatsApp in specific, just iCloud in general.

Overall, what you can expect is that if there's 2.02 GB in Settings > General > iPhone Storage, then you'll be using at least that much in iCloud, whether it's split into two categories (as it is currently), or whether it's all in one category.

If WhatsApp uses iCloud as Apple intends, then when all WhatsApp data on your phone has fully synced to iCloud, you should not see WhatsApp as a significant part of backup - most or all the data should be found in the Manage Storage setting page.

 

[DaPizzaMan]

The "Chat Backup" is the iCloud sync / backup feature. There is nothing else. You might be right though, it could just be a one day thing. I'll check again tomorrow.