iMessage photos and videos won’t sync on iPhone and Mac despite iCloud being on

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Level 1

4 points

iMessage photos and videos won’t sync on iPhone and Mac despite iCloud being on

This is one of the most frustrating, ongoing issues I have had with my MacBook and phone. For context, this is a multi-layered issue. At the very core, what I want to solve is the disappearance of photos and videos from the iMessage photos tab. I have texts going back about 2 years with attachments that do not load (i.e. they appear as IMG_XXX.heic, but will not download after pressing them). All I would like to do is access this attachments.

I have had iCloud messages enabled on both my MacBook and my iPhone for years, but I regularly encounter problems when syncing. Today, I attempted to sync my iCloud messages to my phone and would repeatedly be shown “Syncing with iCloud” for about 10 seconds, and then encounter “Syncing paused” which would prompt me to continuing syncing and the problem would cycle. I even upgraded my iCloud storage to 2TB as I thought this might be a storage problem, but that did not help. I switched over to my MacBook and had an identical error. Still, none of my old photo or videos are appearing when searching through the iMessage photos tab, or when searching for them through keywords. I am genuinely out of solutions and can’t understate how frustrating this has been. If anyone has any recommendations for troubleshooting, please let me know.

[Re-Titled by Moderator]

Original Title: Cannot Access IMessage Photos or Videos

iPhone 14 Pro, iOS 18

Posted on Jul 4, 2025 12:04 PM

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Answer 1

zinacef

Level 10

88,714 points

Jul 9, 2025 07:52 PM in response to alebrije11

Your frustration with this issue is understandable, as it's caused by a complex and persistent problem involving the syncing of iCloud Messages between your MacBook and iPhone. The central issue appears to be incomplete or corrupted syncing of your message attachments—photos and videos that now display as placeholders (e.g., "IMG_XXX.heic") and fail to download. This typically indicates your devices recognize these attachments exist but can't retrieve the files properly from iCloud.

To systematically address this, first verify your upgraded iCloud storage to ensure the 2TB storage upgrade is properly recognized. On both your iPhone and MacBook, open Settings (or System Settings on macOS), select your Apple ID, and confirm under iCloud that your full storage plan is displayed correctly. Next, it's beneficial to briefly check Apple’s iCloud System Status webpage to rule out temporary service disruptions affecting the syncing of messages.

A practical next step is to manually restart the syncing process for Messages. On your iPhone, navigate to Settings, tap your name (Apple ID), select iCloud, and toggle off "Messages." Wait about 30 seconds, then toggle it back on. Perform a similar process on your MacBook by opening the Messages app, navigating to Preferences (or Settings), selecting the iMessage tab, and toggling "Enable Messages in iCloud" off and back on again after a short pause. Restarting your devices completely after this step can also help clear any minor glitches affecting syncing.

Ensure both your iPhone and MacBook remain connected to stable Wi-Fi and power sources during synchronization, as syncing large amounts of data is resource-intensive. Leaving your iPhone connected, plugged in, unlocked, and undisturbed overnight often helps resolve persistent sync issues. If syncing continues to pause, resetting your network settings on your iPhone may resolve potential connectivity issues. You can do this through Settings by going to General, then Transfer or Reset iPhone, and selecting Reset Network Settings (noting you'll need to re-enter Wi-Fi passwords afterward).

It's also crucial to ensure adequate local storage on both devices. Even though you've expanded your iCloud storage, insufficient local storage on your iPhone or MacBook could prevent attachments from downloading successfully. Regularly check device storage and free up space if needed. If the problem remains unresolved after these steps, logging out and back into your Apple ID on both devices can often refresh your account and resolve deeper sync conflicts.

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