I recently upgraded from an iPhone 7 to a second hand iPhone 13. I backed up the old one to iCloud and set up the new one from that backup. But now I find that all of my old messages have disappeared on the new one. I can still see all of my old iMessage messages on my Mac, so I figure that these are still on the cloud. So how do I get them back on my iPhone (iOS 16.1.2)?
iPhone 12
First, check if your messages are actually in iCloud. On your iPhone go to:
Settings -> Apple ID (Your name) -> iCloud -> Manage Storage
Can you find your messages in the list of things stored in iCloud? If yes, then your messages should be saved in iCloud, if no - then your messages are NOT saved in iCloud.
Try opening Messages on your Mac. Press Messages at the top of the menu bar, select Settings, and then iMessages. Is it a check mark in Messages in iCloud, if no then activate - if yes then press Sync Now.
Remember that it may take some time before the messages are synchronized.
First, check if your messages are actually in iCloud. On your iPhone go to:
Settings -> Apple ID (Your name) -> iCloud -> Manage Storage
Can you find your messages in the list of things stored in iCloud? If yes, then your messages should be saved in iCloud, if no - then your messages are NOT saved in iCloud.
Try opening Messages on your Mac. Press Messages at the top of the menu bar, select Settings, and then iMessages. Is it a check mark in Messages in iCloud, if no then activate - if yes then press Sync Now.
Remember that it may take some time before the messages are synchronized.
Thanks. I tried that, but it doesn't change anything.
By the way, if I deactivate Messages in iCloud and reactivate it, the reactivation takes about 5 seconds and the result is still the same.
Messages in iCloud are not automatically activated after a new setup, even if you are signed in to your Apple ID.
Start by enabling Messages in the Cloud, go to:
Settings -> Apple ID (Your name) -> iCloud. Enable Messages.
Make sure your iPhone is connected to WiFi and connect your iPhone to the charging cable. Then your new iPhone should download the messages again from iCloud. If you have many messages, it may take some time.
Messages lost on new iphone, still in the cloud
