What does Documents & Data refer to?
I've done every suggestion to free up storage, but still the biggest component of usage is Documents & Data.
Please offer the best way to clear this component.
I've been in iTunes and deleted all but 22 small apps from my library/apps
I've removed the Facebook app completely, still too much space taken from Documents & Data.
Thank you for explaining what documents & data refers to and how to clear it off.
iPhone 6, iOS 9.2.1
Hi there Settled in Seattle,
It sounds like you are getting a message that you are running out of space on on your iCloud account and you need to delete information in the Documents and Data section. You can delete application specific information in the Settings on your iPhone:
If you're using iOS 8 or later, tap Settings > iCloud > Storage > Manage Storage.
Here you should see a list of all the applications which are using space in your iCloud Documents and Data section. Thank you for using Apple Support Communities.
Thank you Sterling - did that, however NO Where under Manage Storage (iCloud or other) does it have Documents & Data listed. I've done everything chat boards have suggested. This is why I'm seeking What IS Documents & Data referring to. Under iCloud I can Change Storage Plans and purchase more storage in iCloud. Also, looks as if I can Delete and Disable iCloud Photo Library and free up 32.7 GB. I do import photos into iPhoto when I plug in my phone to back up on my computer. Any other suggestions would be great. And still showing D&D taking up the most space, but not able to locate D&D on my phone. Thanks much!
Documents and data can be either documents and files you have uploaded to your iCloud Drive
iCloud Drive stores your documents—including your presentations, spreadsheets, PDFs, and images—in iCloud, so you can access them from any of your devices set up with iCloud. It allows your apps to share documents so you can work on the same file across multiple apps.
From: About iCloud Drive
Or it can be data from Apps that you have installed that use iCloud storage to backup data to keep it consistent across your devices.
Many apps automatically back up to iCloud after you install them. You can change which apps back up to iCloud and remove existing backups of that app's data from your storage.
Its that second part of the quote that you should be able to do on the phone, but there is a software issue here that is preventing it from working correctly. If you want to keep troubleshooting that, we can start by quitting all the running apps on your phone:
1. Press the Home button two times quickly. You'll see small previews of your recently used apps.
2. Swipe left to find the app you want to close.
3. Swipe up on the app's preview to close it.
When you have done that restart the device and test the issue again:
iOS: Turning off and on (restarting) and resetting
If that does get your Documents and Data to show in your settings I would next sign out of iCloud in your Settings:
On your iOS device: Go to Settings > iCloud, then at the bottom of the screen, tap Sign Out (Delete Account in iOS 7 and earlier).
Then quit the Settings app one more time and restart again and test it out. Let us know how that goes!
Sterling,
What if it isn't iCloud at all? I have nothing in iCloud and when I look at my 64GB iPhone 6+ I have 3 GB of applications and 49 GB of "documents and data." I've deleted out iMessages, Safari history and even some apps but I can't think of what is taking up the "ghost space" of 49 GB.
Thanks,
Chris
Hi,
I am having the same issue. In fact, as Nerfman850 says, I do not use iCloud so it should not have anything with it.
My iPhone was full with about 3GB of documents and data. First I started deleting photos, videos and apps. However, even if I removed videos, I was getting some free space but then it was full again...
Then, I restored my iPhone two days ago with a backup and, surprisingly, I got back those 3GB space but with the pass of time (only 2 days!) Documents and Data has been increasing and increasing. Right now I'm again with 0 free space! (and 3GB of documents & data)
This is quite severe. Time to time I cannot even open whatsapp as it says that my device is full and need to free some space.
Cheers
Okay!
Right after adding my reply: new version of Whatsapp. It's release notes was saying something about issues with device's memory, installed and... voila, 3.5GB of free space back again!
Solved!
Cheers
documents and data
