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Apple is introducing a new Apple Watch Pride Edition Braided Solo Loop, matching watch face, and dynamic iOS and iPadOS wallpapers as a way to champion global movements to protect and advance equality for LGBTQ+ communities. Learn more >
I read that text messages can be backed up but no place do I see an option to do this. How can I backup and then restore all text and imessages?
iPhone 6 Plus, iOS 8.0.2
Text messages are part of the iPhone backup. To restore them, you have to restore the phone from the backup of the phone that contained the messages. You cannot selectively restore information. It is all or none.
One quick addition to ChrisJ4203's response, with which I agree ...
I notice you attached an article called "Using an iPhone without a wireless service plan." I believe that text messages saved in an iPhone backup can only be restored to another iPhone using the same telephone number and cellular carrier as the original.
That is interesting. I was never aware of that, but it would make sense.
Why is this so? Does Apple have a reason for forcing restore of backed up data t be all or none? I am spoiled by Windows where I can backup whatever content I choose and restore whatever content I choose from any variety of backups. This gives an enormous advantage over the all or nothing approach currently the case with Apple. Is the software sold outside the Apple store acceptable to do these tasks?
stephen714 wrote:
Why is this so? Does Apple have a reason for forcing restore of backed up data t be all or none? I am spoiled by Windows where I can backup whatever content I choose and restore whatever content I choose from any variety of backups. This gives an enormous advantage over the all or nothing approach currently the case with Apple. Is the software sold outside the Apple store acceptable to do these tasks?
Because that is the way that Apple wants to do it.
As far as a reason, only Apple would know that, and speculation is prohibited here on the forum.
Backup and restore on iOS devices has always been all or none. You cannot install software on the iPhone that does not come from the App Store unless the device is jailbroken, and discussion of that is also prohibited.
I am not one to even consider jailbreaking any phone or installing anything on the iPhone that does not come directly from the app store. There is a good measure of security in this. But I do see software advertised in what appear to be legitimate sources that install on the PC only to somehow help with backup and restore features. Are these ok if only the computer has anything installed? I do not want to do anything to potentially cause a problem with my or anyone's iPhone but these programs are popping up at me even when using the iPhone. Thanks for your help.
There are some programs that will allow you to copy the messages from the phone and archive them to the computer. However, I'm not so sure about any that can copy material back to the phone, since you do not have access to the file system without jailbreaking the device. Copying the messages is not really doing a backup, but archiving them to the computer. I've used TouchCopy in the past to get a copy of a message to do something else with, like print out an entire conversation. That works well.
how to backup text messages?
