David Krug
Level 2 (230 points)

Q: iCloud backups not happening

I woke up this morning to a message on my iPhone 5S that it had not completed an iCloud backup in two weeks. Every night my phone is locked, powered up, and connected to WiFi, so those requirements are met, but even if I go into the iCloud settings and manually try to initiate a backup, I get the "backup could not be completed" error.

 

I've already tried rebooting the phone.

 

I plugged the phone into my Mac and tried to do an iTunes backup. There, I got a cryptic "Backup could not be completed because an error occurred" message.

 

I moved the previous backup file from iTunes into the trash, but it didn't help. I'm hesitant to try deleting the most recent iCloud backup, because once that's gone, I'll have no backups at all.

 

Edit to add: I more than sufficient free iCloud storage space. Also, I'm aware that iCloud services were down this morning, but it hasn't made a backup in two weeks and that wouldn't explain why I can't make an iTunes backup.

 

Any ideas on what might be causing this or how to resolve it?

iPhone 5s, iOS 8.3, 32 GB

Posted on May 21, 2015 7:53 AM

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David Krug

Q: iCloud backups not happening

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  • by ZikzakCorp,

    ZikzakCorp ZikzakCorp May 21, 2015 8:53 AM in response to David Krug
    Level 4 (1,038 points)
    iPhone
    May 21, 2015 8:53 AM in response to David Krug

    1. Restart your computer and your iOS device. After restarting, try to make the backup again.

    2. Unplug your other USB devices. Unplug everything from your computer except your iOS device, keyboard, and mouse. Make sure you plug your iOS device directly into your computer. Try to make the backup again.

    3. Check your Windows security settings. If iTunes for Windows stops responding or your backup never finishes, you might need to update, configure, disable, or uninstall your security software.

    4. Reset the Lockdown folder. Try resetting the Lockdown folder to start or save a backup.

    5. Try a second computer. If you own more than one, try making a backup on your other Mac or PC.

    If you can't make an iTunes backup of your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch - Apple Support

     

    As for the iCloud backup error, what's the exact message you get when you try a backup on iCloud?

    iCloud Backup alert messages - Apple Support

  • by David Krug,

    David Krug David Krug May 21, 2015 10:51 AM in response to ZikzakCorp
    Level 2 (230 points)
    May 21, 2015 10:51 AM in response to ZikzakCorp

    1. Tried that; didn't work.

    2. Tried that; didn't work.

    3. I use a Mac. There is no 3rd party security software installed. Nothing new has been added since the last successful backup.

    4. No idea what the Lockdown folder is.

    5. I just tried to do a backup on a MacBook that I've never plugged the phone into before. I verified all the trust settings then attempted the backup. I got the same "Couldn't back up because an error occurred" message.

     

    As for the iCloud backup, the message is simply, "The last backup could not be completed."

  • by David Krug,

    David Krug David Krug May 21, 2015 10:56 AM in response to David Krug
    Level 2 (230 points)
    May 21, 2015 10:56 AM in response to David Krug

    Oddly, when I open the iCloud settings on the phone, it says "Storage    0 bytes available" but when I tap on that to go to the storage settings, the next page correctly shows that I have 115 GB available. (I'm on the 500 GB plan).

     

    I also have an iPad backing up to iCloud and it is backing itself up daily to the same iCloud account with no issues.