If you have used multiple iDevices in the past, this one is for you. If you've linked more than one device to the same iCloud account in the past but you're not using the other device now, you can get rid of the backup of that device. That's what we're going to learn to do. Open Settings → General. Tap on Storage & iCloud Usage. Under iCloud section and tap on Manage Storage. Alternatively, you can Tap on Settings → iCloud → Storage → Manage Storage. Note: In iOS 10.3 or later, you need to tap on your profile and then tap on iCloud. Under the Backups section, you should see one or more devices. If you have signed into iCloud on other devices (with the same Apple ID) and enabled backups in those devices, all of those will be listed here. If you see just one, it means you have signed into iCloud only on this device. If you see more than one, see if you can do away with any of the listed device backups. Suppose you used an old iPhone/iPad that you no longer use (or whose backup you no longer need), you can delete it. Tap on the device name under Backup. Next, tap on Delete Backup → Confirm the delete by tapping Turn Off & Delete. It's easy to setup, backup and forget all about it when you use multiple devices. If you happen to change devices frequently, the backups of older devices stay, even if you have them transferred to the new device. That can sometimes eat up a ton of space from your iCloud storage. There are some other simple tricks through which you can retrieve a lot of storage on your device. As for instance, you can delete app cache.

how to iphone backup icloud
The backup includes device settings, messages (iMessage, SMS, and MMS), ringtones, all app data (including Health app and HomeKit configuration data), location settings (such as location-based reminders), and Home screen and app organization. Any data created in a native iPhone app is already synced in your iCloud account and not part of the iPhone backup. By default, all app data will be backed up to iCloud. Cloud backups occur automatically when the iPhone is plugged in to a power source with the screen locked and connected to a Wi-Fi network. There is also an option to backup manually. To do so, simply tap Back Up Now in the iCloud settings menu. Cloud is capable of storing up to three device backups. In order to conserve storage space, Apple reserves the right to delete old iCloud backups if a user has not backed up his iPhone for 6 months. Unlike other platforms, iCloud doesn't require any third-party software, and it doesn't create a partial backup of data (as with, for example, Android). Rather, iCloud backs up all data on the iPhone and automatically syncs new app data dynamically.

The most important new feature in iOS 5 (the massive new software update for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch) and iCloud (Apple’s cloud-based sharing service) is also one you’re most likely to forget—well, until you really need it, anyway. Once configured properly, iCloud Backup will automatically make copies of all the settings, accounts, messages, photos, and applications settings on your iDevice and stores them on Apple’s servers. There they’ll wait patiently, in case something bad ever befalls your handset. The beauty of iCloud Backup lies in how little work is involved on our part. It’s a great feature for anyone who rarely bothered to dig out their sync cables to manually back up their handsets with iTunes—assuming iCloud Backup works as advertised, that is. Make sure you’ve got iCloud Backup switched on in the iOS settings menu. As someone who’s seen his fair share of computers and phones fail on him over the years, I wanted to put iCloud Backup to the test before trusting it with my precious data.

So I took my test iPhone 3GS, updated it to iOS 5 (required for using iCloud), and launched into the iCloud restortion process, all in the name of science. Check out my new, step-by-step guide on how to restore an iCloud backup of your old iPad onto your new iPad. The first step, of course, is making sure you have an iCloud backup in the first place. Look just beneath the “Back Up Now” button to see the last time your iPhone (or iPad, or iPod Touch) backed itself up. If it’s been a few days, or never, you can tap “Back Up Now” to create a fresh backup. I went ahead and followed those steps for my test iPhone, then took a deep breath (well, it wasn’t that deep, given that there’s nothing all that important on my test phone) and wiped my iPhone 3GS’s memory clean. Choose “Restore from iCloud Backup” to begin the restoration process. A few minutes later, I was staring at a gray screen that read “iPhone”—exactly what you’d see if you’d just taken a brand-new iPhone out of its box.

I chose the iCloud option, signed in to my account, and a few seconds later my iPhone displayed the online backup that it had found: the very one I’d created only a few minutes ago. I selected the file, and pretty soon a screen popped up that read “Restoring from backup,” complete with a progress bar and an estimate of how much time I had left to wait. Since my test iPhone doesn’t have many messages or photos on it, the process only took a few minutes; your mileage may vary, however. There’s the backup for my iPhone, right where it’s supposed to be. My iPhone restarted itself, and pretty soon, there it was—my old iPhone again, just as I’d left it before, restored wirelessly through iCloud. Well…almost. A final step involves re-downloading all your apps from the App Store, a process that the iPhone handled automatically. It also tried to re-download my music, but informed me that the tunes on my phone hadn’t come from the iTunes Store (true), so I’d have to transfer them manually from wherever I’d originally synced them. Fair enough, and easily done. So yes—iCloud Backup works, and it works well. Again, though, remember that iCloud Backup won’t do its thing on its own. You must sign up for iCloud (it’s free, as long as you keep your online storage under 5 GB) and turn on iCloud Backup in the Settings menu. It’ll take a few minutes to set up, but believe me—if you ever leave your iPhone in cab or drop your iPad in a swimming pool, you’ll be happy you went to the (minor) trouble. Have questions about restoring your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch with iCloud Backup, Post ’em in the comments below.