Apple Working on Local Backup Servers for iOS Devices Needing Genius Bar Replacement?

[charlituna]

I'd imagine only the store manager would be able to access or manipulate it and would have to sign in for employees or something along those lines.

You mean store managers. There have to be several to cover all the hours in a week. So that's probably between 4-20 depending on the store (with most in the 6-8 range) that would have potential access to the information. And if you think a store manager wouldn't steal then I have a ocean front house in Arizona for ya.

 

[baryon]

No true, You do not need a MAC/PC for Ipad or Iphone anymore

Ok, but then iCloud will back up your entire device. So losing data over a device getting replaced at the Genius Bar is impossible, isn't it?

 

[charlituna]

if data was synced, you'd just bring back whatever the error was. Unless it was narrowed to only certain data.

Not according to the Genius that helped me with my phone a couple of months ago.

According to him, an iTunes backup is a literal clone of everything down to preference files, caches etc. All the places that get corrupted.

A Sync is literally a fresh file of the data from your computer placed on your iPhone. Like, he put it, a very fast little gerbil is reading the info from your computer's contacts app etc and typing it into your phone for you. All the cached stuff was never synced to the computer so there's nothing for the gerbil to read. Which is why you lose your safari history etc when you do a sync.

I thought his allusion was so funny that I didn't have the heart to tell him that I'm not so stupid I needed that kind of description.

Given that I followed his instructions and did NOT use a backup but did a sync and the problems didn't returned I'd say he had it right. The only thing I lost were a handful of text messages but they really weren't that important.

----------

Ok, but then iCloud will back up your entire device.

So losing data over a device getting replaced at the Genius Bar is impossible, isn't it?

if you are doing it, no you really can't lose your data. But some folks aren't and then they freak out at it taking 3 hours or having to pay for more storage to fit all 40 GB of stuff that they have on their 64GB iPad and their 32GB iPhone. they don't want to hang out at the store, they pitch a fit that they can't just leave the phone and they pitch a fit that the store wants them to go home, run the back up and then come back. So I can see why Apple might want to find a solution, but I can see a lot of potential legal issues in this particular alleged method that is perhaps unneeded if they would just ramp up the education of customers.

 

[diamond.g]

Does anyone know if iCloud backups are encrypted?

 

[Drunken Master]

You mean store managers. There have to be several to cover all the hours in a week. So that's probably between 4-20 depending on the store (with most in the 6-8 range) that would have potential access to the information. And if you think a store manager wouldn't steal then I have a ocean front house in Arizona for ya.

Well, they're less likely to steal, but I don't put anything past anyone.

 

[antseg]

If people trusted Jon Corzine with their personal information and money, I'm sure they'll trust Geniuses with the same.

 

[jayhawk11]

A Sync is literally a fresh file of the data from your computer placed on your iPhone. Like, he put it, a very fast little gerbil is reading the info from your computer's contacts app etc and typing it into your phone for you. All the cached stuff was never synced to the computer so there's nothing for the gerbil to read. Which is why you lose your safari history etc when you do a sync.

This Genius Bar employee should get an award for making the worst analogy in the history of computers.

 

[yeah]

So wouldn't that be more like a iTunes backup in store rather than an iCloud backup?

Yeah, but it would use local servers instead of computers. The best part is the data stored in the servers will be securely erased after restore.

 

[ixodes]

With Apple now targeting the mass market non-tech consumer, this is a good move. The less thinking consumers have to do, the more devices Apple will sell. It's all about high volume sales from here on out.

 

[SBlue1]

I would like to have my own personal iCloud on my LAN that would be pretty cool, maybe they will take it to the next level.

Same here!

 

[AidenShaw]

Apple would be copying....

I would like to have my own personal iCloud on my LAN that would be pretty cool, maybe they will take it to the next level.

Already out there....

"Getting the private cloud you need from the infrastructure you’ve already got"

http://www.networkcomputing.com/private-cloud/231602107​

 

[Cubytus]

iTunes content can easily be downloaded through the device itself. And I'm not sure about the iPhone or iPod touch, but the wall charger is preferable with the iPad since it will recharge the battery much more quickly.

The iPod Touch surely doesn't need it. It doesn't even come with a wall charger. Not sure about the iPhone, but with Apple's habit of removing useful accesories from its boxes, I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't.

Besides, what kind of sensitive data would be on your iPhone? If you have some kind of business secrets on your Mac or iPhone, don't just hand them over to Apple! But I don't know anyone who has any confidential info on their iPhones (but I know someone with secrets on his Mac).

That's a very silly answer. What do the secrets you keep on you iPhone have to do when Apple is the only service provider you can turn to in case of malfunction?

Ok, but then iCloud will back up your entire device. So losing data over a device getting replaced at the Genius Bar is impossible, isn't it?

Interesting... And if they "have" to provide you with the exact same OS as it came when you bought it when they replace the HDD, what to they actually do if they officially don't support the custom installation you made? Such as having Snow Leopard on a late 2011 McBook Pro?