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User profile for user: Unaha-Closp
Unaha-Closp Author
User level: Level 2
332 points

Isn't Books supposed to sync content?

I'm confused about Books and what it's doing under Catalina - can anyone explain how it's supposed to work?


I have books and audiobooks in Books, and two Macs both running Catalina, and an iPhone running latest iOS. I have iCloud syncing on for Books, I have "Sync collections, bookmarks, and highlights across devices" checked. I also have "download new purchases automatically" selected.


But nothing is syncing between Books on my two computers and my iOS device. I also have the device set up to sync audiobooks with one of the computers as well.


But there's different content on all the devices.


Isn't Books supposed to just work and keep everything updated between them all? Or do we have to manually move files between all our devices for some reason?


Thanks!

MacBook Pro 13", macOS 10.15

Posted on Jan 18, 2020 2:39 PM

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User profile for user: skidaddyski
skidaddyski
User level: Level 2
165 points

Posted on Jan 26, 2020 5:39 PM

It depends. This is generally how it works:

  • Books that you bought from Apple appear in Books library on both iOS and macOS if you are signed into your store account. You should be able to download them from Books Library. Couple of exceptions that come to mind:
    • Hidden purchases do not show up. You can manage hidden purchases via your account page.
    • Beware the "Hide iCloud Books" option in the "Sort By" pulldown on macOS.
  • Store audiobooks show up in your library on iOS, even if not downloaded. On macOS, store audiobooks only appear in your library if they have been downloaded. To download previously purchased audiobooks on macOS open the Featured page in Book Store and then open the Purchased link on the right side.
  • Non-store books and PDFs sync via iCloud Drive. In order for this to work you have to be signed into iCloud Drive and you must enable iCloud Drive for Books.
  • Non-store audiobooks don't sync via iCloud Drive. You have to add them manually to each device.


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User profile for user: skidaddyski
skidaddyski
User level: Level 2
165 points

Jan 26, 2020 5:39 PM in response to Unaha-Closp

It depends. This is generally how it works:

  • Books that you bought from Apple appear in Books library on both iOS and macOS if you are signed into your store account. You should be able to download them from Books Library. Couple of exceptions that come to mind:
    • Hidden purchases do not show up. You can manage hidden purchases via your account page.
    • Beware the "Hide iCloud Books" option in the "Sort By" pulldown on macOS.
  • Store audiobooks show up in your library on iOS, even if not downloaded. On macOS, store audiobooks only appear in your library if they have been downloaded. To download previously purchased audiobooks on macOS open the Featured page in Book Store and then open the Purchased link on the right side.
  • Non-store books and PDFs sync via iCloud Drive. In order for this to work you have to be signed into iCloud Drive and you must enable iCloud Drive for Books.
  • Non-store audiobooks don't sync via iCloud Drive. You have to add them manually to each device.


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Isn't Books supposed to sync content?

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