My mac 2015 stores everything to the cloud I think. Do I need to do a backup before taking it in to replace the battery?

Do I need to back up my 2015 imac before replacing the battery or is everything safely stored in the cloud?


Posted on Jan 31, 2021 10:49 AM

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Posted on Jan 31, 2021 11:44 AM

It is good that you asked this question. To be clear, iCloud is NOT a back up service. While it does have some back up functions, it is designed to provide for cross platform sharing. If you rely on iCloud for back up you will find that you will be disappointed at some point. Apple (and others) provides an app specifically for back up: Time Machine. You do need to have a medium to back up to. I suggest getting an external drive for that purpose and always scheduling back ups. These days, external drives are reasonably priced, very easy to install with a USB cable, compact and most of them do not even require external power. You may have to reformat it, though. In summary, your hard drive will fail at some point. All do. If it isn't backed up, data will be lost.

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jan 31, 2021 11:44 AM in response to 4k8grand

It is good that you asked this question. To be clear, iCloud is NOT a back up service. While it does have some back up functions, it is designed to provide for cross platform sharing. If you rely on iCloud for back up you will find that you will be disappointed at some point. Apple (and others) provides an app specifically for back up: Time Machine. You do need to have a medium to back up to. I suggest getting an external drive for that purpose and always scheduling back ups. These days, external drives are reasonably priced, very easy to install with a USB cable, compact and most of them do not even require external power. You may have to reformat it, though. In summary, your hard drive will fail at some point. All do. If it isn't backed up, data will be lost.

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My mac 2015 stores everything to the cloud I think. Do I need to do a backup before taking it in to replace the battery?

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