Introducing Photos Backup Anywhere: A Simple Backup Solution for Your Photos

[gerdemb]

I’m excited to share my indie Mac app, Photos Backup Anywhere, which I’ve developed as a 1-click, set-and-forget backup solution inspired by Time Machine. It works with iCloud, even with the “Optimize Storage” setting, ensuring your entire photo library is securely backed up. Remember, backup is not the same as sync—iCloud sync doesn’t protect against data loss. The app backs up to any volume connected to your Mac, including NAS network drives and external storage. Feel free to ask questions!

UPDATE: Frequently Asked Questions
UPDATE 2: Free TestFlight beta version

 

[gilby101]

How does it handle multiple libraries?

 

[turbineseaplane]

One time purchase?

Bravo sir!

You have my sincere admiration

👏

 

[gerdemb]

How does it handle multiple libraries?

It only works with the System Photo Library. This is a limitation the PhotoKit API that Apple provides for developers to access the Photo library. Please let me know if you have any other questions!

Cheers,
Ben

 

[AppliedMicro]

„Data Not Collected.“

Applause!

 

[nullpointerninja]

Hi Ben, this looks quite nice! Quick questions about how this works. Does it generate a package file in the destination folder or a folder structure of all photos and videos? Does it auto mount NAS shares when running? How does it behave when the connection to iCloud or to the NAS share is interrupted?

Thanks!

 

[gerdemb]

Hi Ben, this looks quite nice! Quick questions about how this works. Does it generate a package file in the destination folder or a folder structure of all photos and videos? Does it auto mount NAS shares when running? How does it behave when the connection to iCloud or to the NAS share is interrupted?

Thanks!

@nullpointerninja thanks for your interest! Let me try to answer your questions:

1. It generates a folder structure with the format YYYY/MM/DD for all the photos and videos.
2. It will auto mount NAS shares on startup. I use it to backup my photos to my Synology NAS.
3. The backup runs continuously every hour. If there are any errors it will abort and try again after an hour.

BTW, if you can try the beta version for free. Check the link at the bottom of the web page.

 

[ignatius345]

What a cool idea! I've been making sure to keep my full 500+ GB Photos library downloaded specifically so that I can turn off "Optimized Photos" to make sure everything is downloaded and then back it all up via Time Machine. If I'm understanding your app correctly, it would enable me to enable Optimize Photos but still get a full backup?

What is the recovery process like, if something should happen? Do backups include non-destructive edits made through the Photos app?

 

[gerdemb]

What a cool idea! I've been making sure to keep my full 500+ GB Photos library downloaded specifically so that I can turn off "Optimized Photos" to make sure everything is downloaded and then back it all up via Time Machine. If I'm understanding your app correctly, it would enable me to enable Optimize Photos but still get a full backup?

What is the recovery process like, if something should happen? Do backups include non-destructive edits made through the Photos app?

The backup works fine with "Optimize Mac Storage" enabled. Any photos missing from the local photo library will be transparently downloaded from iCloud.

The current released version (1.3) only backs up the original items. However, I'm working on a new release that will also back up non-destructive edits. You can find a link to try the beta version for free at the bottom of the website: https://photosbackup.app I would love to hear your feedback!

To recover your photos, use the Photos app to re-import the images from the backup folder. Unfortunately, Apple doesn't provide an API for programmatically importing photos, so you will need to manually recreate albums, faces, and other organizational features.

 

[ignatius345]

The backup works fine with "Optimize Mac Storage" enabled. Any photos missing from the local photo library will be transparently downloaded from iCloud.

The current released version (1.3) only backs up the original items. However, I'm working on a new release that will also back up non-destructive edits. You can find a link to try the beta version for free at the bottom of the website: https://photosbackup.app I would love to hear your feedback!

To recover your photos, use the Photos app to re-import the images from the backup folder. Unfortunately, Apple doesn't provide an API for programmatically importing photos, so you will need to manually recreate albums, faces, and other organizational features.

Got it. Thanks for clarifying!

 

[ericg301]

does it backup shared libraries?

 

[gerdemb]

does it backup shared libraries?

Yes.

 

[VitoBotta]

Why limit the backup to photos only? IMO you could have a bigger customer base if you had a generic tool for offsite backups of all your important data. Something like Arq but hopefully faster.

 

[gerdemb]

Why limit the backup to photos only? IMO you could have a bigger customer base if you had a generic tool for offsite backups of all your important data. Something like Arq but hopefully faster.

I'm a solo developer and have to limit my scope to what is feasible. Backing up my large iCloud photo library was a personal pain point for me, and based on the comments of others here it seems like I'm not alone. There are already many other generic backup tools including Apple's own Time Machine.

 

[AppliedMicro]

Why limit the backup to photos only? IMO you could have a bigger customer base if you had a generic tool for offsite backups of all your important data. Something like Arq but hopefully faster.

I'm not sure about speed, but you may want to look at ChronoSync for that.

Though that (just like Time Machine) will backup your file structure, including Photo's proprietary library format (and any associated data base corruption in that), not...

a folder structure with the format YYYY/MM/DD for all the photos and videos.

That is, as I understand, the appeal raison d'être for this app:

A simple, bullet-proof folder structure that can easily be accessed with any potato of a PC.
Even after 10 or 20 years and a dozen more updates of Apple's Photos app.

 

[gerdemb]

I'm not sure about speed, but you may want to look at ChronoSync for that.

Though that (just like Time Machine) will backup your file structure, including Photo's proprietary library format (and any associated data base corruption in that), not...

That is, as I understand, the appeal raison d'être for this app:

A simple, bullet-proof folder structure that can easily be accessed with any potato of a PC.
Even after 10 or 20 years and a dozen more updates of Apple's Photos app.

My use case is backing up my photo library to my Synology NAS. I am using iCloud with "optimize storage" because the entire library won't fit on my MacBook. However, this means that the Time Machine backup will not backup all the iCloud Photos.

As, @AppliedMicro also mentioned another use case is to make an archive of your photos outside of the proprietary Photos Library format.

 

[agregson]

I like the concept of the app. I have been looking for something like this for a while. Until now my solution has been manual export and rsync each month.
I purchased the app. It is indeed minimal. Nothing much has happened though. Went through preparing then green tick. It has not (yet) backed up my photos library for an initial backup. Reading web page I am a little unclear. I will let it sit for a bit and see what happens. I may be impatient! I just assumed when I selected start backup it would carry out an initial backup then every hour update/sync.

 

[teerexx52]

I’m excited to share my indie Mac app, Photos Backup Anywhere, which I’ve developed as a 1-click, set-and-forget backup solution inspired by Time Machine. It works with iCloud, even with the “Optimize Storage” setting, ensuring your entire photo library is securely backed up. Remember, backup is not the same as sync—iCloud sync doesn’t protect against data loss. The app backs up to any volume connected to your Mac, including NAS network drives and external storage. Feel free to ask questions!

I’m excited to share my indie Mac app, Photos Backup Anywhere, which I’ve developed as a 1-click, set-and-forget backup solution inspired by Time Machine. It works with iCloud, even with the “Optimize Storage” setting, ensuring your entire photo library is securely backed up. Remember, backup is not the same as sync—iCloud sync doesn’t protect against data loss. The app backs up to any volume connected to your Mac, including NAS network drives and external storage. Feel free to ask questions!

Doesn’t seem to work for me. Using external hard drive. Nothing happens.

 

[agregson]

I setup using external drive. Initially nothing happened so left it overnight. This morning all exported and neatly sorted as expected. It added several pictures I took today. All seems to work. So simple it is almost annoying!
From external drive I use rsync to maintain sync to network storage and a 3 generation version. Perfect for what I wanted.
I was a little hasty. One thing that would be handy would be some sort of feedback to know it is actually working and just waiting to do its thing.

 

[gerdemb]

I setup using external drive. Initially nothing happened so left it overnight. This morning all exported and neatly sorted as expected. It added several pictures I took today. All seems to work. So simple it is almost annoying!
From external drive I use rsync to maintain sync to network storage and a 3 generation version. Perfect for what I wanted.
I was a little hasty. One thing that would be handy would be some sort of feedback to know it is actually working and just waiting to do its thing.

@agregson
Thank you for your feedback! I'm glad to hear everything is working well.

About the backup status: If the menu bar icon has a green checkmark badge, that means the backup is complete. A blue down arrow badge means a backup is currently running. If there's no badge, it means no backup is running. If you want more details, such as when the last backup finished or the progress of the current backup, click the menu bar icon. This will show you the current status. I wanted a simple "set and forget" design that works automatically in the background, much like Time Machine.

The app automatically checks your photo library for new items every hour. This full scan should only take a minute or two.

Thanks again for all your messages, and feel free to reach out if you have any more questions or feedback. Your comments have been very helpful!

 

[gerdemb]

Doesn’t seem to work for me. Using external hard drive. Nothing happens.

@teerexx52
Sorry to hear you're having trouble. I'd like to help you get it working. Can you share some more details about what you tried?

1. Does the app open?
2. After you select a "Backup Destination" and click start, what happens?
3. Does the menu bar icon change?
4. Do you see any status updates when you click the icon in the menu bar?

Your help with debugging would be greatly appreciated. As a solo developer, it's challenging to test in all environments. However, I understand if you're unable to assist. If that's the case, please request a refund through Apple's support page. https://reportaproblem.apple.com/

 

[teerexx52]

@teerexx52
Sorry to hear you're having trouble. I'd like to help you get it working. Can you share some more details about what you tried?

1. Does the app open?
2. After you select a "Backup Destination" and click start, what happens?
3. Does the menu bar icon change?
4. Do you see any status updates when you click the icon in the menu bar?

Your help with debugging would be greatly appreciated. As a solo developer, it's challenging to test in all environments. However, I understand if you're unable to assist. If that's the case, please request a refund through Apple's support page. https://reportaproblem.apple.com/

I changed my external drive and it seems to work. So maybe it was just the drive?

 

[Basic75]

It only works with the System Photo Library.

@gilby101 Other libraries should always be "complete", i.e. nothing offloaded to iCloud, I back them up with rsync.

 

[fatTribble]

This sounds fantastic! Does it preserve Live Photos? Other services separate the video from the photo.
Do you also backup metadata such as location, Captions and Albums?

 

[gerdemb]

This sounds fantastic! Does it preserve Live Photos? Other services separate the video from the photo.
Do you also backup metadata such as location, Captions and Albums?

Thanks for your interest. Yes, it preserves Live Photos, backing up both the still image and the associated video. Live Photos aren't a special file type; they are just a pair of files. When imported, the Photos app recognizes the pair and imports them as a Live Photo.

Metadata like location embedded in the original file is included, but metadata added by the Photos app (captions, faces, albums) is not. Apple doesn't provide an API to access metadata from the Photos app itself, which limits our ability to include it in backups.

Let me know if you have any other questions.