Can I back-up my iPad/iPhone apps on an external hard drive then delete them to save space?

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Level 1

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Can I back-up my iPad/iPhone apps on an external hard drive then delete them to save space?

I've got a PC running Windows 7 and iTunes was one of the first programs installed. Over the years, I've accumulated tons of applications for the iPad and iPhone, but not all of them stay on my devices. I do use the cloud from time to time to re-download apps if I really need them, but that's rare.

I'm running out of space on my computer and after trying to "update all" the apps in iTunes, I was warned I could not because I didn't have enough space.

I'd like to free up space now. Since I have the cloud, I don't need to keep all the files, but there might be one or two old ones no longer available. Even if I deleted them, I would have thought I could "reinstall" the files via the external hard drive where I've copied the entire Music directory.

Is it that simple? Where should I delete the apps? Directly from the folder or should I instead do it through iTunes?

I know that on my computer, I'd lose the back-ups for apps that get removed, but if I delete in iTunes (and leave it on the external hard drive) will that affect my usage of the apps in anyway or prevent updates in the future?

Toshiba Satellite L655-5072-OTHER, Windows 7

Posted on May 27, 2015 10:43 PM

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Answer 1

lllaass

Level 10

210,411 points

May 28, 2015 1:07 AM in response to SteV1der

Best to move the entire iTunes media library to an external disk. To move see:

iTunes for Mac: Moving your iTunes Media folder - Apple Support

Move your iTunes Media folder on a Windows PC - Apple Support

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Answer 2

SteV1der Author

Level 1

9 points

May 28, 2015 9:29 AM in response to lllaass

I've moved folders over to the external hard drive. The question now is where to delete the files to save space? It's probably in the 30-40 Gb range of space being taken up by various versions of apps.

I want to be able to use any of the apps I've purchased in the future, even if that means having to break out the external HD to have to do it. Most of the apps are easily retrieved through the cloud, however. What I DON'T want to do is delete the files and then end up locking myself out from using them for any reason.

If deleting the files from the folder works, then great. If that causes problems in iTunes, I'd like to know if I should do it in iTunes. If deleting it in iTunes means I'm "giving up" using them ever again (even if I retrieve the file from the HD), then I don't want to do it that way either.

Basically, I want/need that space back and most of the apps, but not all, are available in the cloud. Since I still have an original iPad, there are a precious few that I definitely want to make sure I have a back-up for, but I'm sure I've transfered most if not all of the stuff from the computer to the external hard drive. I'm not even worried at this point of when I have to get it back (that's for another reply, I'm sure). The "bridge I'm crossing" now is needing space without damaging my ability to use something on my iOS devices.

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Answer 3

lllaass

Level 10

210,411 points

May 28, 2015 10:07 AM in response to SteV1der

Only the current version is retained in your iTunes media library. When you update the app the old version either gets moved to Trash/Recycle Bin of deleted directly

Just move the iTunes media library to an external disk

The Backup of your iOS device that iTunes makes can get quite large since each subsequent backup appends changes to the original backup. Nothing gets deleted. It is not located in your iTunes media library

You can delete th existing backup and then make a new backup. See:

Find and manage your iTunes backups - Apple Support

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Answer 4

SteV1der Author

Level 1

9 points

May 28, 2015 10:50 AM in response to lllaass

Perhaps that's the way it's supposed to work, but why, then, do I see 6 different files for Angry Birds, 3 different versions of a different one, 2 of another, 4 of another, etc. Not EVERY app has another file (in the case of Angry Birds, for instance, it will say "Angry Birds 1.5.3.ipa" and then the next one says "Angry Birds 1.7.0.ipa" and the next says something else and so on). Do I actually need to keep these files in my active iTunes account?

My plan is to delete the entire music folder and then copy the consolidated files back EXCEPT for the mobile apps. Again, I'm mostly concerned with "breaking" something which will not allow me to update apps anymore, download them in the future, whether in the cloud or on the external drive, or anything like that. I don't want to be the cause. Things can break, but I don't want to do something that would be similar to "voiding the warranty" on the things I've spent money on already.

Will I break things by deleting files and where should I do it - in iTunes and through iTunes, or with iTunes closed and by doing it in Windows Explorer.

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