Backup Your iPhone Correctly Before Installing iOS 18
If your iPhone is older than the iPhone XR you can soon install iOS 18. Apple announced the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro at its September event. The company also marked Monday, Sept. 16, as the official release date for iOS 18. It’s time to upgrade your phone or replace it with a new iPhone 16 if you are upgrading the software. And for that you need a good backup of your data.
But not just any backup — you want a specific kind of backup that will make your life much easier in the unlikely event you need to return to iOS 17. Why an archive is necessary before upgrading to a new iOS version
Why a backup is important before updating to a new iOS version
You are probably used to using iCloud to keep a regular backup of your data. This works in the background, while you are asleep or charging your device. It is the most frictionless backup method as long as you have enough iCloud storage space. Go to
Settings > > iCloud > iCloud Backup[your name] and turn on Back Up This iPhone if it’s not already active.However, when it comes to moving to a full release version of iOS, such as from iOS 17 to iOS 18, an iCloud Backup introduces a problem: You cannot restore from that cloud backup if you revert back to iOS 17. iCloud only keeps the latest backup. You can’t choose between previous versions. You’ll receive an error if you attempt to restore from an iOS 18 backup back to iOS 17. This is why you need to archive a backup on your computer. )
This is why you need to archive a backup on your computer.
iOS warns you if you try to restore from an iCloud backup made under the iOS beta.
Jeff Carlson/CNET
Before you create this archived backup, you should decide if you want to enable one of the options,
Encrypt local backup. This feature scrambles data for security to prevent anyone with access to your PC from accessing the backup. This option preserves sensitive data such as passwords and personal information from the Health and Fitness app. The backup will be useless if you lose or forget the password. You should therefore write down this password somewhere that you can easily find it. Create a local iPhone archive on your MacThis type of backup requires only disk space and some patience:
Plug the iPhone into your Mac.
Open a new Finder window (choose
File > New Finder Window
- , or press
- Command-N).In the sidebar at left, select your iPhone under Locations.010010
- Create a local iPhone archive on your MacMaking this type of backup requires only disk space and some patience:Plug the iPhone into your Mac.
- Open a new Finder window (choose File > New Finder Window, or press
- Command-N).In the sidebar at left, select your iPhone under
- Locations.If you want to encrypt the data, click the
- Encrypt local backup checkbox and set a password. In the General tab, click
Back Up Now
Click
Manage Backups
Right-click (or Control-click) the backup you made and choose
Archive
- .
- Create an archive backup of a connected iPhone on the computer (MacOS shown here).Screenshot by Jeff Carlson/CNETTaking the extra step of marking the backup as an archive protects it from being overwritten by the next local backup or automatically deleted if the Mac is low on space.
- Set the backup as an archive.Screenshot by Jeff Carlson/CNETCreate a local iPhone archive on Windows
- The iTunes app is still the main conduit for working with a connected iPhone under Windows. Open iTunes and do the following:Plug the iPhone into your Windows computer.In iTunes, click the
- iPhone button at the top left.Click
- Summary.If you want to encrypt the data, click the
- Encrypt local backup option and set a password.Click
Back Up Now
.
Click Manage Backups01001010.01001010Right-click the backup you made and choose 01001010Archive01001010. Click 01001010Back Up Now01001010.01001010Click 01001010Manage Backups01001010.01001010Right-click the backup you made and choose 01001010Archive01001010.
Apple Devices will be easier to interact with thanks to new gestures
See all photos 01001010
