HT201104: iCloud Drive FAQ

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patrick.weichmann

Q: How to move iCloud folder to another drive?

I use an SSD with 256GB capacity and the iCloud folder would use all the capacity, i.e. it will not fit on it.

 

How can I move the iCloud folder on my computer to another drive? I would like to keep my user profile on the SSD but not the iCloud folder.

Posted on Nov 29, 2014 2:46 PM

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Q: How to move iCloud folder to another drive?

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  • by Edgarin108,

    Edgarin108 Edgarin108 Feb 26, 2015 2:11 PM in response to patrick.weichmann
    Level 1 (10 points)
    Feb 26, 2015 2:11 PM in response to patrick.weichmann

    There is no supported method of moving the iCloud folder location. What you can do, if you are willing, is:

    1)  install either OSX Yosemite or Windows (7 or 8) on a virtual drive (e.g. VMware Fusion, Parallels, Virtual Box).

    2) Make sure the virtual file is located on a USB 3.0/thunderbolt drive

        (NOTE: do not attempt this if your mac does not have either type of drive, for it will be very slow).

    3) Choose an amount of storage that is suitable for your iCloud files

    4) Once you installed your virtual system of your choice, if you installed OSX:

          a) Set up iCloud as always and let all files download

          b) Create an Alias of the iCloud Drive folder and paste it somewhere in your local drive

    5) If you are using Windows:

          a) Make sure to install iCloud control panel and turn on iCloud Drive

          b) Using your mac, you need to go to your separate drive, ctrl click the virtual file and choose "show contents"

          c) locate the iCloud Drive folder and create an alias and paste it on your local drive.

     

    I know it doesn't sound practical, but like I said, there is no actual support for moving the icloud folder location without some hacking that may simply render iCloud drive useless. I can only tell you that I am pretty confident that my method works for iCloud Drive and other services that do not support moving their folder location. The virtual machine you made will sync and update files just like your computer do and will not use space on your local drive. Another advantage is that the virtual machine file is movable so you can put it on a larger hard disk if you ever need more space.