Safest way to disable iCloud photos but keep photos on phone?

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Level 1

8 points

Safest way to disable iCloud photos but keep photos on phone?

Hey there,

I'm having a bit of difficulty understanding the process to disable photos from being uploaded to iCloud. I've had this setup for a number of years but have decided to keep my photos saved to device and perhaps look at using another photo application.

I'm just wondering the best to way disable this without it actually deleting the photos from my device.

I understand I can do this by going to 'iCloud' > 'Manage Storage' > 'Photos' > 'Disable & Delete' but BEFORE doing this should I be going to 'iCloud' > 'Photos' and making sure 'Download and Keep Originals' is ticked before disabling the 'iCloud Photos' option at the top and THEN finally choosing the 'Disable & Delete' option?

Also as a side note is there any indication that that my photos are being saved to my device while 'Download and Keep Originals' is selected?

Any help would be incredibly appreciated!

Posted on May 8, 2020 5:32 PM

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Answer 1

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Eric Root

Level 10

684,525 points

May 8, 2020 6:46 PM in response to echojams

You should be able to see the photos in the Photos app if they are downloaded to your phone. You should be going to 'iCloud' > 'Photos' and making sure 'Download and Keep Originals' is ticked before disabling the 'iCloud Photos' option at the top. If you disable and delete before having full resolution photos on the phone, you might lose some photos. If you disable and delete before turning off iCloud syncing, you will lose all your photos. After enabling Download and Keep Originals, make sure you have full resolution photos on the phone before turning off iCloud syncing.

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