Working with apple icloud

[tape]

I have a couple of folders on my iMac HDD that take up a lot of space. They are there primarily for safe keeping. I increased my icloud storage so I could upload these files there and keep them off my iMac HDD. After uploading, I then deleted them from my desktop. Another problem came along and it was suggested to me that disabling icloud and then re-enabling it would solve my problem, which it did. BUT-those files then were uploading. This is all very confusing. First, where were those files uploading from as I had deleted them from my desktop and secondly why were they deleted from icloud?

 

[Raz0rEdge]

iCloud is used to synchronize files/folders between your Mac and the cloud. The idea is that you put files/folders into the iCloud folder on your Mac and it will automatically be sync'ed to the cloud.

Changes you make locally or on the cloud will be sync'ed. If you delete a file/folder from your Mac, it will be deleted in the cloud as well.

The advantage of this is that your Mac will "age" out the files locally after some time and it will only be in the cloud. However, you can re-download it locally as needed.

But if what you're saying is that you began by "moving" the files to iCloud and then deleted them locally, they will be deleted in the cloud as well.

I hope you didn't lose the files. If you did and hopefully you have a Time Machine backup or something to get the files back.

 

[tape]

RazOrEdge,
These files in question were not being synced. I did not place them inside my documents folder. They were just a separate folder I moved over to iCloud Drive via the finder. After I did that, I could see they were being uploaded. I didn’t lose them as I also have another backup on an external drive I keep for just such an emergency.

 

[Raz0rEdge]

OK, good that you didn't lose your data.

If you want to keep these documents safely, you can use a true off-line storage service where you dump the files and you are done. iCloud, IMO, isn't that service.

 

[MacInWin]

There is iCloud and then there is iCloud Drive. Two different services.

Manage your iCloud storage

and

Set up iCloud Drive - Apple Support

Files in iCloud Drive stay up to date across all of your devices.

support.apple.com

They are sort-of related, but work very differently.