Question about backup of isExcludedFromBackup

I have a few questions about files that are allowed to be backed up by setting isExcludedFromBackup to false .

  1. Is it correct that the files allowed to be backed up are backed up by iCloud and iTunes sync?

  2. Are the files allowed for backup always/periodically backed up to iCloud? Or does it only sync when the user manually backs up the device?

  3. If the files allowed for backup are regularly backed up to iCloud, will there be a capacity issue? (User's iCloud capacity)

  4. If there is issue 3 above, is it a good solution to add an option to the app so that users can turn it on/off?

Answered by DTS Engineer in 722473022

1. Is it correct that the files allowed to be backed up are backed up by iCloud and iTunes sync?

If you replace “are” with “may be” then the answer is “Yes.” The user gets to choose whether to enable iCloud backup, or iTunes backup, or both.

2. Are the files allowed for backup always/periodically backed up to iCloud?

Yes.

3. If the files allowed for backup are regularly backed up to iCloud, will there be a capacity issue? (User's iCloud capacity)

Again, “will” doesn’t make sense in this context, but if you replace “could” then the answer is “Yes.”

4. If there is issue 3 above, is it a good solution to add an option to the app so that users can turn it on/off?

Probably not, although it kinda depends on the nature of the data in question. If the data is something that the user created and can’t easily be regenerated, it makes sense to allow backups regardless of how big the file is. OTOH, if this is large data that’s not generated by the user, an asset you downloaded say, it makes sense to always prevent it going into the backup. It guess it might be possible that there are some situations where it makes sense to offer the user the choice, but nothing immediately springs to mind.

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Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"

Accepted Answer

1. Is it correct that the files allowed to be backed up are backed up by iCloud and iTunes sync?

If you replace “are” with “may be” then the answer is “Yes.” The user gets to choose whether to enable iCloud backup, or iTunes backup, or both.

2. Are the files allowed for backup always/periodically backed up to iCloud?

Yes.

3. If the files allowed for backup are regularly backed up to iCloud, will there be a capacity issue? (User's iCloud capacity)

Again, “will” doesn’t make sense in this context, but if you replace “could” then the answer is “Yes.”

4. If there is issue 3 above, is it a good solution to add an option to the app so that users can turn it on/off?

Probably not, although it kinda depends on the nature of the data in question. If the data is something that the user created and can’t easily be regenerated, it makes sense to allow backups regardless of how big the file is. OTOH, if this is large data that’s not generated by the user, an asset you downloaded say, it makes sense to always prevent it going into the backup. It guess it might be possible that there are some situations where it makes sense to offer the user the choice, but nothing immediately springs to mind.

Share and Enjoy

Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"

Question about backup of isExcludedFromBackup
 
 
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