Can I delete all of old backup files and just keep the current one (2024)

FAQs

Can I delete all of old backup files and just keep the current one? ›

Yes, it's safe but you will be deleting data in those backups. Should you wish to restore your device from a backup, then you wouldn't be able to if it's deleted.

In fact, it won't have any impact on what's actually on your device. I guess, most of you are concerned with photos. Well, photos on the iOS device are never only stored in the backup. What would be stored in the backup are deleted pictures that you no longer have in Camera roll/albums.

You can delete old iCloud backups for the device you're currently using, or older devices you might not use anymore. iCloud backups are available for 180 days after you disable or stop using iCloud Backup. Backups that are currently being used to restore a device can't be deleted.

iCloud backup is designed to completely restore iPhone but it would just save the necessary data like iPhone Settings and most local data. If you delete iCloud backup, your photos, messages, and other app data will be permanently removed. Your music files, movies, and the apps themselves are not in iCloud backups.

Having two backup copies of your critical data on two separate storage types will protect against most scenarios. But, local disasters such as a fire or flood could potentially wipe out both backups. Always ensure at least one backup is stored offsite, this can be in a physical location or in the cloud.

How many backup copies should I keep? According to the 3-2-1 backup rule, you should keep at least two backup copies to protect your data against natural disasters, accidental deletions, hardware failure and cyberattacks.

You won't lose any photos or contacts; the process does not remove any data from the local device. So while there's no immediate danger in deleting a backup, be careful that you're not leaving yourself vulnerable to losing data in the future. Think of an iCloud backup as a duplicate of your phone stored in the cloud.

Having a backup of your iPhone is very important because all your precious digital data is stored on it. If you happen to lose your iPhone or it breaks, all your data is bound to be lost and most likely irrecoverable. So you must always maintain a recent backup of your iPhone and iPad at all times.

Note: If you turn off iCloud Backup for a device, any backups stored in iCloud are kept for 180 days before being deleted. You can also use your computer to back up your device.

Will I lose photos if I delete old iPhone backup? ›

Deleting an iCloud Backup will not remove any data from either your old or new iPhone. It only deletes the backup from iCloud.

To get rid of these files, open up iCloud from the Settings app (iOS) or System Preferences app (MacOS). Then click or tap Manage Backups to see all of the backups that are currently saved to your iCloud account. Delete the ones you don't need any longer, and you'll instantly free up storage space.

Find and manage backups stored in iCloud

On your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch: Go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud. Tap Manage Account Storage, then tap Backups. Tap a backup to see more details about it, choose which information to back up, or delete the backup.

Storing multiple backups

Both the Finder and iCloud overwrite your existing backups and save only the latest data. On your Mac, you can create a backup, archive that backup, and then create another backup.

So what happens when you turn off the iCloud Photos service? All devices will stop syncing to iCloud and all photos and videos will be deleted from the service. Apple will retain the files for thirty days so you have some time to retrieve them, but the data will be permanently erased after that period.

Follow the 3-2-1 Rule

This rule suggests that your business should do the following: Store a minimum of three copies of your data. Two of these backups should remain on separate storage media. One backup stays stored offsite, such as in the cloud.

The 3-2-1 backup strategy simply states that you should have 3 copies of your data (your production data and 2 backup copies) on two different media (disk and tape) with one copy off-site for disaster recovery.

The full system backup ensures that a current copy of your IT system is always available. The incremental backups update changes that are made daily such as those created using software applications or email. Two months of full system backup is usually a safe target for how long to keep the backup files.

Here's how the 3-2-2 rule breaks down: Keep 3 copies of your data. Store 2 backup copies locally but on different devices. Store 2 copies offsite (1 copy in a remote location + 1 copy to the cloud)

What is the 321 rule? ›

Here's what the 3-2-1 backup rule involves: 3: Create one primary backup and two copies of your data. 2: Save your backups to two different types of media. 1: Keep at least one backup file offsite.

Important data should be backed up at least once a week, but preferably once every twenty-four hours. These backups can be performed manually or automatically. A lot of automatic software options are available that you can set to make a backup of your data at a set time of the day or week.

Here's what iCloud Backup includes

Your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch backups only include information and settings stored on your device. They do not include information already stored in iCloud such as Contacts, Calendars, Bookmarks, Notes, Reminders, Voice Memos⁴, Messages in iCloud, iCloud Photos, and shared photos.

So, how many backups does iCloud save? In fact, iCloud only saves one backup at a time for a single device, which indicates when you back up again, the new backup will be merged with the old backup. Therefore, iCloud only keeps one backup at a time.

iCloud backups include nearly all data and settings stored on your device. iCloud backups don't include: Data that's already stored in iCloud, like Contacts, Calendars, Notes, iCloud Photos, iMessages, Voice Memos, text (SMS) and multimedia (MMS) messages, and Health data.

If your device does not back up, then you could potentially lose some of your data. When we say “data,” what we mean is the configuration of your phone and everything that makes it uniquely yours. That includes your apps, pictures, videos, podcasts, music, etc. Your iPhone should back up with iCloud automatically.

Time Machine should work automatically to remove older backups as you need the storage space on your internal hard drive. If you delete old backups, you can never retrieve data from them if something were to go wrong while you aren't connected to your backup hard drive.

The concise answer to the question is 'All data backup to your iCloud such as apps data, messages, photos, and other essential data will be permanently deleted from your iCloud.