how to restore contacts with Time Machine

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Level 1

88 points

how to restore contacts with Time Machine

Woke up MBP this morning and 80% of my contacts are missing. I backup to another hard drive and also use cloud. checked my iPhone and contacts all still on phone. I checked a contact I added yesterday and it's on phone.

Opened Time Machine on MBP and went back to date of last backup, Sept 27th unfortunately, and up popped almost all of my Contacts in TM. I click restore, but then backup of Contacts disappears and "new" depleted Contacts reappear. I have repeated "restore" several times. Same result. Nothing

I need to restore and specially, NOT HAVE CLOUD UPDATE CONTACTS ON IPHONE TO THIS NEW CONTACTS LIST. I really want to stop that syncing process first.

Thanks for advice

Posted on Oct 14, 2019 8:53 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

dwb

Level 7

32,944 points

Oct 14, 2019 10:16 AM in response to ArmandoWyo

I had an issue with Contacts about this time last year. To get things to work I had to turn off iCloud on my computer, phone, and iPad. Then I restored Contacts with TimeMachine. Then I forced TimeMachine to do a backup of my computer. Finally, I turned iCloud back on, just on my computer.

This is the important thing. iCloud.com holds the 'truth'. What it contains is then sent on to every other device. I logged into iCloud and saw that my contacts where in the Contacts apps there. Then I turned iCloud back on on my iOS devices. Thus ended about a 6 hour tussle with iCloud and TimeMachine.

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Answer 2

ArmandoWyo Author

Level 1

88 points

Oct 14, 2019 1:45 PM in response to dwb

Seems logical. And maybe that's my reservations. Computer things don't go that way.

I turned off iCloud on my iPhone. That seems like it will prevent the truncated contacts on Mac from replacing Contacts on iPhone.

Then turned Contacts on MacBook Pro. Looked at Contacts on iCloud and seem complete, although addition i made yesterday that I was using to judge if up to date, wasn't there. but rest looked ok.

Then went to turn on Contact in iCloud preferences on MBP, and warning said that would "merge" contacts on iCloud with those on MBP.

I guess I don't understand how merging or syncing work. how does it know which to choose? Latest? Well latest is the truncated one on MBP.

do I just click, Yes, Merge?

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Answer 3

dwb

Level 7

32,944 points

Oct 14, 2019 2:38 PM in response to ArmandoWyo

Do an internet search on the aspect you are interested in, like “iCloud calendar sync”. I don’t know that there’s any single source. What I know I’ve pieced together over the years, often through trial and error. Lots of error. 🙂

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