Hi, My iCloud storage is full and I don't want to buy more space.
I want to Remove all the photos and backups and save to my external backup hard drive on my Mac.
How can I do this ?
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Original Title: Free up iCloud Space.
iPad, iPadOS 17
alex7375 wrote: … I want to Remove all the photos and backups and save to my external backup hard drive on my Mac.
If you aren't using Optimize Storage, then just select pictures; choose Share>Save to Files; then Browse to your hard drive. You should probably do fewer than 1000 pictures at a time in case there's a glitch or incompatible file in there somehow.
If you are using Optimize Storage, then the pictures may have to download to the phone first, and you would need enough storage space to allow that. If you don't have the space, then you will have to deal with small batches at time, perhaps deleting the ones you've finished to make more room.
Another option is to download the pictures off iCloud.com directly to a computer.
Download iCloud photos and videos - Apple Support
Do you use Optimize Storage?
Do you use Optimize Storage? Have you assigned files to "Remove Download?" If so, dragging a file with this icon
to another folder will start a download, and it could take quite a while to finish. Also, you will need to be sure that your Mac has enough room to hold these files.
If the files have this icon
then the file is already on your Mac, and dragging it to another folder will be fast and easy, as muguy said.
I just want to copy the entire folder containing all my iCloud stuff to my hard drive and start with a New clean folder.
How can I do this ?
Just as you described. Drag the folder or files from within iCloud Drive to a location on your Mac that does not sync.
How can I free up iCloud storage space on my Mac?
