Q: iCloud photo library slow upload

Did a quick test this morning.

I uploaded a 400mb file to Dropbox and within Activity Monitor > Network my Data Sent maxes around 3-5mbs and it took around 2 minutes to transfer.

Starting Photos, with 10,671 photos remaining (that figure has been in place for the last 16 or so hours! From a 116gb library) the same Data Sent number bottoms out around 30-50kbs - and with nothing else running will often fall flat at 0-10kbs.

If this isn't an issue with Photos / iCloud then I don't know what else it could be!

There is no way to sign out of iCloud without having to re-upload everything????

I have the same problem! re-uploading 120gb on dsl Unacceptable!

I cannot buy faster internet at my house! believe me I have tried they all want 10 a gb for sat or cell witch would come to $2,500.00 per month. for 250gb

I had to sign out of iCloud and when I signed back in 1 min later it wants to re-upload! I'm screwed I give UP it killed my internet for a week and i had to go sit at Starbucks 60mbs up-down Google-Starbucks wifi for 6 hours! not doing it again.

There is no upload time calculator!

There is no pause for 2 hours option, so it restarts after i fall asleep watching Netflix !

There is no suggestion to remove videos

There is no explanation that it will convert each video as it gets to it and will NOT upload until that conversion is done! and it won't convert till upload is done!

There is no way to pre-convert video's so you could then go some where with fast upload!

There is no way to sign out of iCloud without having to re-upload everything

There is no explanation that it uploads the newest pictures and videos first and works backwards in time to oldest pic.

Its as if they don't even know what RSYNC is !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why the jrgxf8onrg87cf would it re upload the exact same 120 gb????????

Unacceptable!!!!!!!!!!!! rqedy2tyjy3fjuv

Hi Stu_Males,

Thanks for that, that's good news!  Mine is also nearly done, hurrah!  It's taken over a week, and I gave up with my rubbish rural broadband in the end, but went to work, and plugged into the ethernet, leaving it updating each night when we didn't need it.

So far, that's the only work around that has worked for me, so if you live in a rural area, with very slow internet, you might want to see if you can do something similar!

Lucy

As someone on this thread suggested, I looked at my activity monitor, under network and found that photo was sending 0 bytes. I looked at what was above it and I paused dropbox, turned off dashlane password sync and forced quit a website that was a phantom of a website that I'd clicked on months age (a little worrisome). Immediately the cloudd began using up significantly more sent bytes - going from 30k to 275mb. The count on my photo library started going steadily down. At the rate I am at now, 100 in 10 minutes, the upload will still take awhile, but that helped a lot. I would suggest force quitting anything on that list that is using sent bytes that you aren't using.

It's simple if you saturate upload bandwidth nothing will download, most ISP's, modems work this way. 90% of traffic is downstream and most people just simply never noticed, Including the young bandwidth spoiled SF apple programer - testers!

My Issue is mainly is, why upload the same photo or movie twice????

I used  rsync 15 years ago, it only syncs changed bits !!!!  (with the right settings)

WHY would any sane person transfer 100's of gigs twice if the file already exsits on the other side??????????????

My file are all uploaded at iCloud.com but, every mac i connect to it with an identical set of photos, it wants to re-upload the exact same photos agin??

and you can't do anything until it does!

Photos hogs the entire upload bandwidth witch in turn kills downloads.

in photos preferences you can pause for a day, but there are no other more usefull options, like pause for an hour or until midnigh, or only use 60% of my maximum demonstrated bandwidth or limit upload to 1mbs..

And if God forbid you sign out of iCloud you are forced to reupload everything all over agin even though is already in the iCloud.com library aparenty it can't md5 or rsync for some mind boggling reason, so you then get to spend another week waiting to reupload unable to use internet because photos hogs it all.

Why isn't this page iPhone friendly????

yes I know most people have access to true broadband But about 20% of us don't . Cellular tethering  is $10 gb, satellite has 50 gb cap, I have DSL and no options that would not cost $2000.00 plus a month

so having to reupload is very painful!!!!!!!

I used  rsync 15 years ago, it only syncs changed bits !!!!

If apple wasn't so busy trying to justify its beats acquisition maybe they would've gotten photos right

There is no way to sign out of iCloud without having to re-upload everything????

I have the same problem! re-uploading 120gb on dsl Unacceptable!

I cannot buy faster internet at my house! believe me I have tried they all want $10 a gb for sat or cell witch would come to $2,500.00 per month. for 250gb

I had to sign out of iCloud and when I signed back in 1 min later it wants to re-upload! I'm screwed I give UP it killed my internet for a week and i had to go sit at Starbucks 60mbs up-down Google-Starbucks wifi for 6 hours! not doing it again.

There is no upload time calculator!

There is no pause for 2 hours option, so it restarts after i fall asleep watching Netflix !

There is no suggestion to remove videos

There is no explanation that it will convert each video as it gets to it and will NOT upload until that conversion is done! and it won't convert till upload is done!

There is no way to pre-convert video's so you could then go some where with fast upload!

There is no way to sign out of iCloud without having to re-upload everything

There is no explanation that it uploads the newest pictures and videos first and works backwards in time to oldest pic.

Its as if they don't even know what RSYNC is !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why the jrgxf8onrg87cf would it re upload the exact same 120 gb????????

Unacceptable!!!!!!!!!!!! rqedy2tyjy3fjuv

Look I understand that photos converts videos  before uploading and after this basically analog conversion the video MD5 hash's would not match, But that dosn't mean you can't tag the files in a meta  tag so photos knows they were originally  a match! , and then not reconvert it and re-upload it.

I had this problem too.  The problem is that uploading takes up all of your upload bandwith and disables your cable modem.  once you disable it, the modem will start working.  use your airport utility and turn the iCloud  photo library on and off and you will see your network go offline then back on.

Mac (21.5-inch, Late 2013) Photos Ver 1.3

1.1 TB Fusion Drive

Download Speed 21.00 Mbps Upload speed 0.79 Mbps

Cable Company Internet

6,229 Photos and Videos 

5.553 Photos and Videos Uploaded to iCloud after 3 or 4 Days.

I got Apple Support to call me after 3 or 4 days of dealing with this. I dowloaded a file. They took over my computer, got me to start up computer holding, cmd/option/P/R keys, press power button, checked iCloud settings, then checked iCloud, compared number of photos on IMAC to iCloud. All they could offer was, thats allot of photos.

Thanks Danielle at Apple.

They were more concerned with what I was doing than what was going on at there end. Once these photos have finished uploading, I'll be cancelling my extra storage, and looking for alternatives. No solution was suggested or offered.

The solution is waiting - it took me ten days for 7000+ photos and videos (that is my small library) - stop fooling with it (all you are doing is slowing it down), keep the Mac awake and let it run

LN

Just thought I'd add my 2 cents.

So I've decided to give iCloud Photo Library a go. So far I've wiped my photo albums I synced via iTunes and my phone is now uploading my camera roll. Approx 300 images and it's been stuck on 261 for well over 15 mins. Going to cancel it and just stick to uploading everything automatically to OneDrive or GDrive.

What an awful experience. I can see from looking around on Google that others have experienced the same if not worse so perhaps I should have done some research. Shame really as it sounded good in theory

See ya

Wow - gave it 15 minutes and threw it away

It is slow and patience is a virtue - 300 photos is small but still takes time - give it overnight and you should be fine - of throw it out - what ever you want - and not sure what yo=u are trying to accomplish but neither OneDrive nor GDrive are anything at all like iCloud Photo Library - a bit like saying it takes too long to take the bus to the Mall so I will drive to my sister's houses - totally different results

FWIW mine took ten days for 7000 items - a day for 300 is not over the top (15 min is not even close to reasonable)

LN

FYI. I took 3 photos on my iPhone about 3 hours ago. I monitored iCloud photos and for 3 hours, it said uploading 3 photos. After reading some of the posts, and seeing statements about hotspots. I plugged my phone into my computer using usb and the 3 photos uploaded immediately. Can't explain why, just more info.