Q: RESTORE FROM BACKUP does NOT restore everything. WHY APPLE?

Hi Lawrence. You seem pretty knowledgeable about matters regarding iPhone backups. I have an issue with mine that I posted a question on recently. Do you mind checking out my discussion and letting me know how I might be able to retrieve a missing backup? Thanks in advance!

I posted in your other thread. We can continue there.

Lawrence,

"It doesn't back up your non-iTunes music because it is already on your computer"

No, the music on an iphone is not necessarily on the computer. As I illustrate above in my situation, the lossless version of audio tracks is on my computer, but the lossy version is currently only on my iphone. Getting a back-up of this lossy iphone version of my music collection is important. But backing it up does not appear possible via itunes.

"It doesn't create a DUPLICATE of content already in your iTunes library because most users don't have up to the 64GB to spare on the hard drive."

iTunes does have a way to create a duplicate of audio tracks if you're transcoding your collection to reduce size for use on iphone. In itunes it is even called "creating an iphone/ipad version" of your library. But it dumps these duplicated tracks directly into the same itunes music folder as the higher bit rate songs cluttering up the user interface. If there was a way to create these duplicates, having them sync with the primary library automatically, keep them out of the primary library, but still let itunes sync iphone to them, that would be great.

Q) Is there a way to make itunes do a true back up of everything from my iphone 5s?

Q) If not, is there another program that will back up everything from my iphone 5s?

No it does  NOT. I JUST backed up my iPhone and restored to another device. Apps are NOWHERE to be found!!!!

This is infuriating. Why do I have to spend hours figuring out how to hunt down and restore my apps. Why can't it "just work?"

I don't know what you did, but "it just worked" for me. This morning I erased my phone, then restored my backup. Every one of my 235 apps was restored, every one of my 8800 tracks was restored, and all of my settings came back exactly as I had left them. And when I backed up my 4S several months ago, then restored it to my new 5S, again I got all of my apps and music back, as well as the home screen layouts.

I did what you SAID you did, but it did not work for me. Plugged my iPhone 4S in. Backed it up using iTunes. Plugged the new iPhone 4s in. Selected restore from the back up I just did 5 minutes ago. No apps.

There are two phases to Restore. The first just restores your data. If you choose Restore iPhone rather than Restore Backup it will reinstall iOS, then restore your data, then sync your content.

If you just use Restore Backup it will not automatically sync; you need to click the Sync button when the restore of the backup finishes to restore your apps and music. They of course have to be in the iTunes library on your computer, as they are not duplicated in the backup.

I do not see more than one option. In iTunes (on my PC), I go to file, devices, restore from backup. No option to "restore iPhone" appears.

Wait. I found it. Thank you. Trying to see if this works.

This shouldn't be so hard.

Here's the tutorial that covers exactly what you want to do: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2109

Assuming that you are running the same iOS on both devices ..... Do you use iTunes? Transfer purchases from the iPhone into iTunes, backup the iPhone, and sync the phone again. Connect the iPad to iTunes, restore from the backup of the phone and then sync with iTunes.

iPhone only apps will appear in their native size on the iPad screen but they will work.

Restoring from the backup will place all of the app data, device settings and documents onto the iPad but you still have to sync with iTunes in order to place of the apps and your other media onto the device.

if you use iCloud only, restore the iPad from the backup of the phone and that will take care of everything.

Some useful and informative information here.

<Links Edited by Host>

Since my last post in March I have found that if I change my Import CD encoder settings from ALAC (lossless ripping) to AAC (lossy) 96 kbps VBR (variable bit rate encoding), and THEN I tick the box in itunes that allows "Convert higher bitrate songs to 128 kbps AAC" I am atleast able to get a lossy copy of my music collection brought back onto my iphone. Setting the import CD encoder settings to 128kbps AAC and the conver to 128kbps in itunes is not enough either. Within itunes 128kbps is the lowest allowed. But it does not shrink the music enough. So it would appear itunes is now converting my lossless music to 96kbps AAC than transcoding again to 128kbps before dumping a syncronized version of my itunes library onto my iphone. The whole process takes about 16 hours to transcode my 260gb music collection.

Getting the conversion done ahead of time with a seperate itunes lossy collection would be great.

Having a separate encoder for ripping CD's (set to lossless) from the encoder to transcode the collection for my iphone to lossy would be great. But currently it appears itunes uses the same encoder settings for both functions.

Any advice on this?

Try starting a new thread. This has absolutely nothing to do with backing up an iPhone or restoring a backup.

The problem as stated in this thread is itunes not providing a full backup of iphone. Specifically in my case this means no media is backed up. Above I'm listing the steps I need to take to workaround the lack of full backup support. Namely transcoding media each time I need to restore.

(I have also started a new thread to raise issue with the encoders being linked instead of allowing unique preferences for different encoding functions.) https://discussions.apple.com/thread/6255766

Timothy Nicholas Jones wrote:

 

The problem as stated in this thread is itunes not providing a full backup of iphone. Specifically in my case this means no media is backed up.

That's not a "problem". That's how it is designed to work.

What steps you have to take to get your media back on the phone are not relevant to the original question that was posed, just won't seem to die, even though it was answered very early on.