Photos don’t show on all devices

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Photos don’t show on all devices

How come I don’t see the photos on my iPad that are on my iMac? All devices have iCloud back up. My iPad and iPhone show the same photos.

iPad Pro, iPadOS 16

Posted on Jun 13, 2023 3:00 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

léonie

Level 10

200,759 points

Jun 14, 2023 9:11 AM in response to seanodaddyo

What do you mean by "All devices have iCloud backup"? Are you using iCloud Photos on all your devices?

There are two possible reasons for seeing less photos on your iPad than on your other devices.

While a device is still uploading photos to iCloud and merging them into the existing iCloud Photos Library, it will not download the new photos from iCloud. So you may want to check the status bar, to see, if Photos is still uploading or if there are items that cannot be uploaded: Check the status of your library in Photos for macOS - Apple Support
You may be seeing less photos on a device, if you are using the Shared iCloud Photos Library and the device has an older system version installed, that dies not support the Shared iCloud Photos Library. You will need either iOS 16, iPadOS 16, or macOS 13 or later to be able to see the items in the Shared iCloud Photos Library. What is iCloud Shared Photo Library in Photos on Mac? – Apple Support (UK)

Does any of this apply in your case?

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Answer 2

seanodaddyo Author

Level 1

5 points

Jul 1, 2023 2:37 PM in response to seanodaddyo

I figured the solution!

Short answer: Multiple Photo Libraries

I had a Time Machine back on the iMac and that library had a different name than the library on my iPad and iPhone. When I designated the iMac library as the System Photo Library, iCloud began backing up all of the missing years. All devices have the same photos now.

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Answer 3

léonie

Level 10

200,759 points

Jul 2, 2023 6:20 AM in response to seanodaddyo

Thanks for posting the solution.

Yes, only the system Photos Library on your Mac can sync with iCloud Photos.

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Answer 4

léonie

Level 10

200,759 points

Jun 14, 2023 10:44 AM in response to seanodaddyo

What is your Mac showing in the status bar below "All Photos"? Are there any indications of problems?

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Answer 5

seanodaddyo Author

Level 1

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Jun 14, 2023 10:37 AM in response to léonie

Thank you for your response.

Yes, I do have iCloud Photos enabled on all devices. I don’t share iCloud Photos.

My iMac is older and it has the largest amount of photos. The OS on the iMac is Monterey 12.6.6.

I’m trying to make sure all the photos are on my iPad Pro iOS 16.5 so that I can retire the iMac.

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Answer 6

seanodaddyo Author

Level 1

5 points

Jun 18, 2023 5:28 PM in response to léonie

Sorry for the delay. I did not see this email.

The status bar below “All Photos” on my iMac shows 10,919 photos, 74 videos.

The status bar below “All Photos” on my iPad Pro shows 5635 photos, 34 videos.

When I open “Years” 2015: iMac has less photos than the iPad and they are not the same photos.

The iPad’s “Years” photos has one photo is 2005 and then skips to 2011. The iMac has different photos for 2005 too. The iMac also has filed photos in wacky years, like 1912 through 1923. Then it skips to 1969.

I will say that the most current photos from this last week, are on all devices.

I will add that imports of old photos (not dated) show up as if they were from this month too.

It’s clear that I have about 5000 more photos on the iMac. I really want the iCloud Photos from the iMac to also appear on the iPad too. Then I can retire the iMac.

Thanks for any insight you may have.

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Photos don’t show on all devices

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