iTunes how to change backup storage location. Transfer iPhone, iPad and iPod backup to another drive

Usually, you don’t have to know about the accurate location of iTunes backup files because iTunes will show them for you automatically. But what if you purchase a new computer and want to transfer the backup files from the old PC to the new one, you have to know the location of the backup files so that you can have a copy for them. This article will show the following several parts:

Part 1: The location of your iPhone backup files

1: The location of your iTunes backup files

If you are a Windows user, you can find your iPhone backup files under the path just as below according to your operating system:

Note: In order to show the hidden folder, you should enable “show hidden files” firstly. Just open an arbitrary folder, go to “Tools->Folder Options->View”, and then enable “Show hidden files, folders and drives”.

For XP: C:\Documents and Settings\ (username)\Application Data\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\

For Vista:

For Windows 7: C:\Users\ (username)\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\

For Windows 8, 8.1: C:\Users\ (username)\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\

For Windows 10: C:\Users\ (username)\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\

(The “C:” means the system drive of your computer.)

You can open an arbitrary folder and enter the path above into the address bar and then tap the Enter key, to access to the target path quickly.

If you are a Mac user, you should go to “ ~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/” and view all your iPhone backup files there.

2. Location for iCloud backup files

As to iCloud backup files, since they are all saved in the remote storage, you cannot find iCloud backup files on computer but can still view them very easy.

To Mac users, you have to go to “System Preferences” under Apple menu, and go to “iCloud” and click “Manage” Menu.

To Windows users, just click Start| All Programs| iCloud| iCloud and then choose “Manage”, if you are using Windows 8, you can find the relevant title in the Start Window.

Besides, you can also view the backup data directly on your iPhone. Just go into Settings->iCloud and then choose “Storage & Backup”.

Part 2: Change the storage path of iTunes backup files

Since you know where your backup files are, you must wonder how to change the default storage path and save your backup files in other places so that you can save more space for your system drive. This is not really complex. Here are the steps:

For Windows XP:

1) Close your iTunes. And you have to download the junction utility from the Internet.
2) Extract the junction utility, and copy “junction.exe” to your username folder.
3) Go to the path which saved your iTunes backup files, copy all the backup files to other places.
4) Click Start, click Run and input “cmd” into the text box, then tap the Enter key.
5) Now the command prompt will pop up, now you have to create an NTFS junction point. Input below commander and tap Enter key:
Junction “C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup” “(the new storage path you want)”
6) Now back up your iPhone file with iTunes once, and go to the new storage path to check whether the new backup file is saved there.

For Windows Vista/7/8:

1) Go to the location of the iTunes backup files, and copy all the files into the new backup storage path you want.
2) Both tap Windows and R, and input “cmd” into the popping-up textbox, and then click Ok.
3) Now command prompt will pop up. Input the commander just as below and tap Enter key:
mklink /j “C:\Users\username\App Data\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup” “(the new storage path you want)”
4) Backup your iPhone file with iTunes, and go to the new storage path to check whether new backup file is saved there.

For Mac OS X:

1) Exit iTunes, and go to the iTunes backup location and copy all backups to the new storage folder.
2) Launch Terminal and enter the command prompt. Input the commander just as follows:
ln -s /Volumes/External/Backup/ ~/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync/Backup
3) Back up your iPhone file with iTunes, and go to new storage path to check whether the new backup data is saved there.

Part 3: How to delete iTunes backup files

Although backup files can give you a chance to get your important data back after deleting them by accident, too many backup files may also waste the storage space. In this case, you may need to delete some files which are already out of date and make room for the new backup files. As to iCloud backup files, deleting the useless backup files in time is also very important. As we know, your iCloud storage is limited and precious, so you have to delete some out-of-data backup files or you may not have enough space to back up your iPhone anymore.

Since you have known where your iTunes backup files are, deleting them can be very easy. Just go into the storage folder of iTunes backup files, and choose what you want and delete them directly. As to deleting backup files in iCloud server, you can just finish the task on your iPhone: Just go “Settings”->”iCloud”->”Storage& Backup”->”Manage Storage”, and then select the backup you want to delete, and then tap “Delete Backup”.

Part 4: How to recover iPhone data without any backup files

Deleting backup files is really easy, but if you just deleted certain important backup which contains your precious personal files by mistake, and you just want to use it to restore your iPhone, it can really be a great disaster. Just in case, you have to know how to retrieve the lost data without backup files as well. Actually, there are some methods to get the deleted data back without backup files, and the easiest way is to choose a well designed tool to help you.

Is such an iPhone recovery tool. It can help you recover the deleted data such as contacts, SMS text messages, music, pictures, videos and so on from an iTunes or iCloud backup files, or even from iPhone directly:

1) Just download iMyfone D-Back and install it on the computer, then connect your iPhone to the computer as well using the USB cable.
2) Switch the software into “ Recover from iOS Device” mode, and after your iPhone has been detected, click “ Start” and the software will find out all deleted data on your iPhone.
3) You can view all the lost data now, just select all you want, and click “Recover”, all your lost important data will be back later.

Backup on a PC has already been mentioned more than once, for example, in the last article. Cause transfer of reserve iPad copies to another drive, is that there is simply not enough space on the main hard drive and there is a need to transfer data to another HDD. Backing up iOS devices eats up quite a lot of free space, and naturally there is a desire to transfer copies. iCloud, designed for these purposes, is not held in high esteem by everyone. So, today I will talk about transferring an iPad backup to another drive (including external HDD) using the example of the operating systems Windows 7/Vista, Windows XP and Mac Os. This instruction suitable for transferring iPhone and iPod backups.

Instructions for transferring a backup copy for Mac OS

Let's say you have two hard drives in your laptop - SSD and HDD. It makes no sense to place a backup copy on an SSD drive. In this case, we set ourselves the task of transferring the backup copy to another disk.

1. Remove unnecessary backups. iTunes - Settings - Devices

2. Make sure backups are deleted. operating room Mac system OS has the following directory containing backups of iOS devices:

/Users/[Username]/Libraries/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/

Important Note: if you cannot find this directory through the built-in Finder tool, then install the free file manager MuCommander (or similar software).

View of the folder contents before deletion:

View of the folder contents after deletion:

As you can see in the example, there is 1 extra folder - this way you can get rid of old backups, which can be safely deleted, following the rule: 1 backup = 1 folder.

3. Create on hard disk (HDD) new folder with the title " «.

4. Move the folder (or several folders corresponding to the number of backups) containing the backup to the folder on another disk (HDD).

Delete the folder " ", located on the SSD disk.

The directory has next view:

/Volumes/SSD/Users/UserName/Library/Application\Support/MobileSync/Backup

Ln -s /Volumes/Macintosh\ HD/Users/UserName/Backup /Volumes/ SSD/Users/UserName/Library/Application\Support/MobileSync

What does this command mean:

ln -s- command to create a symbolic link

/Volumes/Macintosh\ HD/Users/vitaliy/Backup - directory for storing backups.

/Volumes/SSD/Users/vitaliy/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync — the directory where the symbolic link is located, pointing to the folder on another disk (HDD).

As a result of executing the command in Terminal you will get the following: in the folder Mobile Sync a semblance of a shortcut will appear on the SSD disk, linking to a folder in the HDD.

Now run iTunes, then backup and as a result iPad backup will be saved on another drive.

Instructions for transferring a backup copy to Windows Vista and Windows 7

For the Windows Vista and Windows 7 operating systems, symbolic links are created using OS tools. The first two points are similar to the method for Mac OS described above.

1. Again identify unnecessary backups and delete them in the application settings iTunes and from Conductor on your hard drive. Backup storage directory in Windows 7:

\Users\[Username]\AppData\Roaming\AppleComputer\MobileSync\Backup\

This directory is hidden because it belongs to system folders. You can use file Total manager Commander by turning on the display of hidden and system files in the settings, or go to Control Panel - Folder Options and uncheck the "Hide" option system files and folders."

2. Suppose you want transfer iPad backup on Local disk D. In this case, create a folder on this hard drive iTunes(the folder name and path are arbitrary) and transfer the entire folder with backups from drive C to the created folder iTunes on drive D.

3. Click Start and enter cmd in the search bar. IN top line applications will appear to launch the command line - cmd. Launch it by right-clicking and select Run as administrator.

4. Now enter the command to create a symbolic link correctly:

What does this line mean:

mklink- command to create a symbolic link

/D- specify the directory for the symbolic link

New way- directory where backup copies are located on drive D.

Example of command execution:

Ready! It remains to make sure that the iPad backup is saved to drive D.

Instructions for transferring an iPad backup to Windows XP

These instructions apply to both Windows XP and other Windows family systems. Windows XP is awarded in an additional way due to the lack of a command on this OS mklink, so we will use the utility junction. You can download it from this link.

Using the junction utility is similar to the method of transferring a backup copy of iOS devices to Windows 7.

1. Download the program and unzip it. Place it in any convenient folder on your PC hard drive. Let's assume at the root of the system disk: C:\Junction

2. Follow steps 1, 2, 3 of the above instructions for Windows 7 and Vista.

3. B command line cmd run the following command:

C:\Junction\junction.exe SymbolicLinkName NewPath

Using these methods you can transfer created iPhone, iPod and iPad backups to external hard disk if desired. If you accidentally deleted or renamed a symbolic link, then iTunes during the next process backup iOS devices will again create a folder for storing backups and continue saving the backup copy in its original location. Backups in the previously used directory will not be deleted. To return to your previous backup settings, remove the symbolic link and return the folder to its original place.

IPhone or iPad does not require any special knowledge. Apple engineers have made this process as simple and accessible as possible. ordinary users. But what if you needed to move a backup from one computer to another? Or get some specific data from a backup in iTunes? Or download the entire iCloud backup to your computer? This guide will help you with any of these and many other non-standard tasks related to iPhone backups.

Where is iPhone backup stored?

Let's start moving from simple to complex operations. Let's say you need to copy a backup of your iPhone or iPad. iTunes Help. For example, in order to save it on external media or in cloud storage. This can be useful if the backup contains real important information and you want to further make sure that it doesn’t go missing. Even if your computer breaks down.

Finding a backup is very easy, but it is located in different places on different operating systems.

On macOS: in ~//Libraries/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/.
On Windows XP: in the \Documents and Settings\(username)\Application Data\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\ folder.
On Windows 7/8/10: in the \Users\(username)\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\ folder.

On computers running Windows 7/8/10, the iTunes backup folder is hidden. Initially you will need to make it visible. To do this, go to " Control Panel» → « Folders settings» → « View" and check the box " Show hidden files, folders and drives».

Note that on new versions of Microsoft OS you can go to the backup folder even easier. Just click " Start" and enter the command " %appdata%/Apple Computer/MobileSync/Backup"(without quotes). The result of the request will be the opening of a folder with iTunes backups saved on the computer.

How to determine which device is which copy?

We managed to determine the location of the iPhone and iPad backups, but how can we now figure out which folder should be copied? The folder with backups will greet you with a similar window if you have backed up several iOS devices in iTunes.

Fortunately, find the desired folder not difficult. To do this, go to one of the backup folders and find the file in it Info.plist. Open it with a text editor such as WordPad and search for Product Name. Under the found line it will be written which of your mobile devices this copy belongs to.

How to properly transfer a backup to another drive

Finding and copying a backup folder from one drive to another is not enough to transfer it correctly. In order for the backup to be detected in iTunes after the transfer, you need to create symbolic links.

For Windows

Step 1: Close iTunes.

Step 2: Copy the folder \Users\(username)\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\ to another drive, for example, to a folder \Backup\Backup.

Step 3: Remove the backup folder from the drive you were moving from. Important! Be sure to make sure that the entire folder has been copied to avoid accidental data loss.

Step 4: Run Command Prompt as an administrator. To do this, go to the menu " Start", enter the search query " Command line", click on the utility shortcut right click and press " Run as administrator».

Step 5: At the command prompt, enter the following command:

MKLINK /D “old path to the backup folder” “new path”.

MKLINK /D “C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\” “D:\Backup\Backup”,

C:\ – drive letter where backups were previously stored.
D:\ – drive letter to which you want to transfer backups.
Username - your username.
\Backup\Backup - the folder to which the backup was copied in step 2.

Let's give an even more clear example. If your Windows username is “Vasily Petrov” and you are transferring backups from drive C to drive E, then you need to enter the following command:

MKLINK /D “C:\Users\Vasily Petrov\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\” “E:\Backup\Backup”.

Step 6. If everything is done correctly, the result of the operation will be a message about successful creation symbolic links.

Ready! You have moved backups from one drive to another. You can verify this by launching iTunes and going to the “ Edit» → « Settings» → « Devices" In the list " Device backups"A list of all your backups will be available.

For Mac

Step 1: Finish iTunes work. To do this, right-click on the iTunes icon in the panel Dock and select " Complete».

Step 2. Go to the folder /Library/Application Support/MobileSync/.

Step 3: Copy the folder Backup to another drive, then delete the original backup folder. We again warn you that you need to wait until the copying is completed, otherwise you may lose important data.

Step 4: Run " Terminal" The easiest way to do this is by searching Spotlight.

Step 5. In the " terminal» enter the command:

ln -s /Volumes/new_folder/Backup /Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync/,

where “new_folder” is the folder to which you previously moved the backups.

Ready! You can check the success of the operation by launching iTunes and looking for backup copies on the “Devices” tab.

Activating iTunes backups on a computer with a reinstalled system or on a new computer is carried out in a similar way. In order for iTunes to see the backups of your devices, after installing it on new system You will need to enter one of the above commands.

How to extract data from iPhone and iPad backups

Quite often iPhone users and iPad, there is a need to extract some kind of specific information or files. The iTools utility, well known to many owners of Apple equipment, helps solve this problem.

Step 1: Download latest version iTools with official website programs. Please note that the utility is completely free.

Step 2. Unpack the archive with the utility and run iTools.exe. There is no need to connect your iPhone or iPad to your computer.

Step 3: Go to the tab Tools».

Step 4: Select a tool iTunes Backup Manager.

Step 5: Double-click on the backup from which you want to extract the files.

Step 6. Select the information you want to download from the backup, click " Export" and specify the folder to save the files.

iTools allows you to extract a variety of information from iPhone and iPad backups, from contacts and text messages to documents from applications and photos. Most data is downloaded the traditional way, but there are a couple of exceptions.

First, data from applications. them at iTools help You can find it, but you'll have to tinker. The fact is that the utility does not show a list with a clear listing of application names. Because of this, you won’t be able to quickly find the application you need, but the main thing is that it is possible. To start the search you will need to go to the folder var → mobile → Applications, in which you can methodically search for applications from which you need data.

We recommend focusing on names that, although not specific, contain information about the application. Viber messenger attachments, for example, can be found in the folder com.viber → Attachments.

And secondly, it is not so easy to download a contact book and a collection of text messages. There are no problems with their detection; they are located in the “ Shared Directories "under their own names, but with further use There is. In the backup, contacts and SMS are stored in the “.sqlitedb” format, which is in no way standard utilities won't start. Therefore, you will need to use a special converter.

Step 1: Download the free program SQLite Browser.

Step 2. Install and run the program.

Step 3: Click Ctrl + O and select the contact book file in the format .sqlitedb.

Note: You must select “All files” as the file type.

Step 4: Go to the tab Execute SQL " and paste the following command into the form:

select ABPerson.prefix,ABPerson.suffix, ABPerson.first,ABPerson.middle,ABPerson.last, ABMultiValue.value, ABPerson.note, ABPerson.nickname, ABPerson.organization, ABPerson.department, ABPerson.jobtitle, ABPerson.birthday from ABPerson ,ABMultiValue where ABMultiValue.record_id=ABPerson.ROWID

Step 5: Click the button Start.

Step 6. Click on the save button and select " Export to CSV».

Immediately after this, your contact book will appear in the specified folder (or text messages) in a format that is easy to use for later use.

How to download a backup from iCloud

Step 1: Download and Install Wondershare Dr.Fone Utility for iOS With official website programs. The application, alas, is paid, like any other tool with a similar set of functions.

Step 2. Launch Wondershare Dr.Fone and go to menu Recover from iCloud Backup File.

Step 3. Enter your account login and password Apple records ID.

Step 4: Wait for the list of backups to appear.

Step 5. Select the required backup and click Download.

Step 6: Check the boxes next to the backup data you need to download.

Step 7. Wait until the processing process is completed and a list of downloaded files appears in the program window. iCloud data. Select necessary files and press Recover.

Step 8. In the window that opens, select Recover to Computer and specify the folder where the files will be saved.

If you have no desire to spend money on special utilities, then there is only one way out, very obvious. Back up your iPhone or iPad to iTunes, perform mobile device and during initial setup select a copy from iCloud as a backup for recovery. Thanks to this solution, your iPhone or iPad will have the exact iCloud backup you need. Next, you should make a copy of the gadget in iTunes and access it using the method we described earlier. Of course, not the most convenient method to use, but nevertheless, it works.

The backup is stored on the iPhone and iPad, but the phone does not turn on or the screen is broken, you need to return it to the device or computer or extract all the necessary information from the iPhone and iPad backups. Then you can only restore the entire backup, but only restore the data you want. Now let's find out how to selectively restore data from backup iCloud copies and iTunes.

The data contains contacts, messages, call histories, music, photos, videos, installed applications, reminders, notes, calendars, calendar events, documents, WhatsApp messages, log of visited web pages, browser favorites and much more. And supports all devices: iPhone X/8/7/7 Plus, iPhone SE, iPhone 6s/6s Plus, iPhone 6/6 Plus, iPhone 5s/5c/5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS, etc . iOS systems: iOS 12/11 and earlier models.

How to view an iPhone backup on your computer

The program is recommended, it supports free viewing of the backup by file formats and titles, and then extracting data from the phone if the phone does not turn on. Before recovery, you can preview these files and select the data you need.

There is one more function before preview, the application allows you to scan backups on your computer's drive. Sometimes you only know where the lost backup is stored, but don't know the detailed folder. UltData quickly and easily helps you find lost or deleted information. Click "Go get back deleted iTunes backup>>".

How to Extract a Backup from iTunes

Extract all necessary information from a broken iPhone, require the use of UltData. Follow these steps and you can extract data from a phone with a broken screen:

1. Go to "Restore from iTunes Backup". iPhone Data Recovery automatically displays all backup files in iTunes.

Note. If the backup is not saved by default, you must manually import the backup file. Click "Import Backup Files".

2. Select the data you want to recover. And you can pull contacts and messages from iTunes backup.

3. Not only this, but also clicking “Output Settings”, select export formats. Next, after clicking “Restore”, the following window will appear, you can restore data to your computer and device.

How to extract a backup from iCloud

How to extract contacts and photos from iCloud backup, for example, below we will talk about how to extract photos from iCloud backup.

The program allows you to quickly and easily extract data from an iPhone and iPad backup; in addition, if you need to transfer and import data from an iPhone, iPad and iPod to a computer, iPhone Data Recovery is convenient for you.

Oh, how often this question was asked in the comments. We will correct ourselves and respond. The main problem is that there is not enough space on the main hard drive and you need to transfer all the data to another drive. iOS device backup is just one of the space hogs we'd like to move. Yes, not everyone uses iCloud yet. :)

In the article I will talk separately about transferring a backup copy to another drive (including an external one) using the example of Windows 7/Vista, Windows XP and Mac Os.

Instructions for Mac OS

The fact is that I have two hard drives in my laptop - SSD and HDD. Having a backup on an SSD is certainly luxurious, but it doesn’t make much sense. Therefore, I decided to transfer the backup to another disk.

1. We delete unnecessary backups. iTunes -> Settings -> Devices

2. Make sure that the backups have been deleted. For Mac OS, the path to backups is as follows:

/Users/[username]/Libraries/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/

Important: If you do not see this path through the Finder, then install a free program: the MuCommander file manager (or any other equivalent).

Before removal:

After removal:

As you can see, I still have one extra folder - so there are very ancient and unnecessary backup copies that can also be deleted. There should be one folder per backup.

3. On HDD drive create a folder - call it Backup.

4. We transfer the folder (or folders, if there are several copies) with the backup copy to Backup on another disk.

4.1. Delete the Backup folder using the old path. In my case: /Volumes/SSD/Users/dmitry/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync/Backup

ln -s /Volumes/Macintosh\ HD/Users/dmitry/Backup /Volumes/SSD/Users/dmitry/Library/Application\Support/MobileSync

In fact, nothing complicated - I’ll explain the command:

ln -s- command to create a symbolic link.

/Volumes/Macintosh\ HD/Users/dmitry/Backup - the path where you will now store backups. pay attention to backslash"\" before HD. I just escaped the space character in the path.

/Volumes/SSD/Users/dmitry/Library/Application\ Support/MobileSync - the path where your symbolic link will be located, roughly speaking a shortcut to the Backup folder on another disk.

In general, after executing the command in the terminal, you will have something like the following picture. In the Mobile Sync folder on the old drive, something like a shortcut (using Windows terminology) will appear to a folder on the other drive. Let's look at the properties.

Launch iTunes. We start the backup. That's it - the backup copy is saved to another disk, which is exactly what we needed.

Instructions for Windows Vista and Windows 7

Everything here is not much more complicated than for Mac OS. For these two systems, symbolic links can be created using the system itself. If you have Vista or Seven, I recommend creating links exactly as I will describe.

In order not to repeat myself with screenshots, I will briefly describe the initial steps (for more details, read points 1 and 2 of the instructions for Mac OS just above).

1. Find out which backup copies we have and delete them in iTunes settings and in file system. The paths where the system stores them:

\Users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\

These paths through a regular explorer may not be available - I recommend using a file manager (Total Commander or Far Manager). Be sure to enable the display of hidden and system files in the file manager settings.

2. Let's say we want to transfer the iPad backup to drive D. Create on drive D iTunes folder(choose the name and path yourself) and transfer the entire Backup folder with all our backups from drive C to this very iTunes folder.

3. Click Start and look for CMD in the search bar. In the results, right-click and launch CMD (command line) with administrator rights.

4. What remains is the most difficult and the simplest at the same time. Enter the command to create a symbolic link correctly:

Explanation:

/D- we indicate to the command that the symbolic link will lead to the directory

New way- A new way, in in this case on drive D where iTunes will save backups.

An example of the command execution is shown in the screenshot:

That's all - we're testing. Let's try to save a backup copy. The copy is saved to drive D, which is what was required.

Instructions for Windows XP

This add-on is suitable for both Windows XP and others Windows systems. As you know, the mklink command is not available in Windows XP, so you can use the junction utility. Download it from this link.

Its meaning and use are completely similar to using the command .

1. Download this program. Let's unzip. We upload it to some folder on the disk. Let's say C:\Junction

2. Follow steps 1,2,3 instructions for Windows 7 and Vista.

3. On the command line, run the command:

c:\Junction\junction.exe SymbolicLinkName NewPath

For an explanation of this command, see paragraph 4 of the Instructions for Windows 7 and Vista above.