Love it or hate it, chances are you're not only using iTunes to manage your digital media but also using Apple's decade-old software either because it's the gateway into your iOS device, such as an iPhone, iPad, or iPod, as it does a pretty decent job of backing up all your music, photos, videos, and more. Here we are going to share some basic and useful tips for using iTunes to back up your iOS devices.
Perform Frequent Backups
It's the best advice that no one ever follows. You'll never regret backing up. Just do it, especially before doing any updates. Go to File, Library, Back Up to Disk. You'll get the option to back up the entire iTunes library and all playlists, or just your iTunes store purchases, or even just items added since your last backup. This option is best for backup of a small library to a blank DVD.
Location of Backup Files
For Mac:
Find device backups in ~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/
To locate a specific backup:
Go to iTunes > Preferences.
Click Devices.
Control-click the backup you want and select Show in Finder.
For Windows:
Windows Vista and newer:
Find device backups in
\Users\(username)\AppData\Roaming\Apple Computer\MobileSync\Backup\
To quickly access the Application Data folder:
In Windows Vista or Windows 7: Click Start.
In Windows 8: Click the magnifying glass in the upper-right corner.
In the search bar, type: %appdata% Press Return. Double-click these folders: Apple Computer > MobileSync > Backup.
Delete Backup
Mac: Choose iTunes > Preferences.
Windows: Choose Edit > Preferences.
Click Devices.
Choose the backup you want to delete. If you have multiple devices or backups, hover the mouse pointer over the backup to see more details.
Click Delete Backup and then confirm.
Difference between Syncing and Backups
Syncing and backing up safeguard different data respectively. If you choose syncing, you can secure data including Music, Videos, Photos, Contacts, Calendar, Bookmarks, Settings (mail account settings, device settings, etc.). While , you are backing up Text messages, Notes from the notes application, Locations from the maps application, Call history, Contact favorites, Cookies, Settings (sound, widget, network),Photos (Yes, they get backed up and synced),and most importantly the data of third party apps!
Note: Never disconnect your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch while it is backing up your device. If you do, you will have a corrupt backup.
