Lost data after using Quick Start

[Bobosita]

Hi all, i’ve read about 3 cases of losing photos which are not in iCloud after transferring data using “phone to phone” data transfer function, they say all photos on a new iPhone dissapeared when they have reset or erased an old iPhone with the same Apple ID after data transferring was finished. Its a bug or how it’s possible? People lost photos without any chance of recovery 📷

 

[Slartibart]

Never had problems using Quick Start - I do sign out from the Apple ID/iCloud/iTunes/App Store on the old device after the transfer finishes though, before resetting or erasing data on the old phone(s).

A restore from a (icloud) backup might be an option.

 

[Bobosita]

Never had problems using Quick Start - I do sign out from the Apple ID/iCloud/iTunes/App Store on the old device after the transfer finishes though, before resetting or erasing data on the old phone(s).

A restore from a (icloud) backup might be an option.

NO its not an option, everything is ok with iCloud photos they lost only photos which are not in iCloud

I do sign out from the Apple ID/iCloud/iTunes/App Store on the old device after the transfer finishes though, before resetting or erasing data on the old phone(s) - if its a problem apple should say about it somewhere...

 

[Slartibart]

NO its not an option, everything is ok with iCloud photos they lost only photos which are not in iCloud

I am not referring to iCloud photos. I am referring to the device iCloud backup. Depending on when the last time it was automatically or manually performed, all photos are there and can be restored (see links to Apple Support pages above).

I do sign out from the Apple ID/iCloud/iTunes/App Store on the old device after the transfer finishes though, before resetting or erasing data on the old phone(s) - if its a problem apple should say about it somewhere...

To be fair, Apple provides this info in the links given before. But I agree, this should be given in a single paragraph and not distributed about three webpages.

 

[Bobosita]

No you are a little wrong - Your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch backups only include information and settings stored on your device. They do not include information already stored in iCloud such as Contacts, Calendars, Bookmarks, Notes, Reminders, Voice Memos4, Messages in iCloud, iCloud Photos, and shared photos. Some information is not included in an iCloud backup but can be added to iCloud and shared across multiple devices like Mail, Health data, call history, and files you store in iCloud Drive.

 

[Slartibart]

you are right, I’m wrong. Photos are excluded from iCloud backup.

 

[papbot]

everything is ok with iCloud photos they lost only photos which are not in iCloud

Are you saying you lost photos, or they lost photos? I’ve never lost photos and always use the quick start method since it became available. If you yourself lost photos then maybe someone can help if you provide details. If someone else lost photos then they can provide details and perhaps get assistance.

 

[Bobosita]

Are you saying you lost photos, or they lost photos? I’ve never lost photos and always use the quick start method since it became available. If you yourself lost photos then maybe someone can help if you provide details. If someone else lost photos then they can provide details and perhaps get assistance.

They lost… one if them is my friend, I found 2 others who also lost photos (which were not in iCloud) from new iPhone when reset the old iPhone with the same iCloud after data transferring was already finished…

 

[papbot]

I found 2 others who also lost photos (which were not in iCloud)

If the photos were not in iCloud (iCloud Photo Library) but were on the device then the new device will have to sync to the computer where the photos are, neither quick start nor iCloud can restore photos that are not in iCloud. Any such photos should be backed up to iTunes/Finder into the Photos app on the computer where they can be synced from. If the photos were never synced to a computer and the device has now been wiped then any photos not in iCloud are now gone. That’s why I use iCloud Photo Library to be able to access all my photos on any device and am able to restore them to any new device. That way I do not have to worry about syncing my photos to a computer and have never lost any.

 

[Bobosita]

If the photos were not in iCloud (iCloud Photo Library) but were on the device then the new device will have to sync to the computer where the photos are, neither quick start nor iCloud can restore photos that are not in iCloud. Any such photos should be backed up to iTunes/Finder into the Photos app on the computer where they can be synced from. If the photos were never synced to a computer and the device has now been wiped then any photos not in iCloud are now gone. That’s why I use iCloud Photo Library to be able to access all my photos on any device and am able to restore them to any new device. That way I do not have to worry about syncing my photos to a computer and have never lost any.

Yes, totally agree, me too, but, anyway, if someone resetting one device it should not (even partly) reset another one

 

[papbot]

Yes, totally agree, me too, but, anyway, if someone resetting one device it should not (even partly) reset another one

You’re saying that the photos were on the new device but disappeared when the old device was wiped? If the photos in question were not in iCloud then how did they get them from the old device to the new one? The only way I know of is to sync a device to a computer where the photos are maintained. I don’t know of any other way to do a phone to phone transfer. The quick start only transfers data, settings and passwords (iCloud accounts). There may be other ways than using a computer for such a transfer but I’m just not aware of them.

 

[ManuCH]

This whole story doesn't add up to me. Someone is either using iCloud Photos, or they are not.

If they are using iCloud Photos, the old device must have its photo library completely synced before doing the "phone to phone" transfer, as photos are only being synced by iCloud, not by the device transfer.

If they are not using iCloud Photos, the "phone to phone" transfer will just move all photos from the old phone to the new one.

You can't be using both. It's either iCloud Photos or not. And resetting an old device will not remove any photos from anywhere (except from the device being erased).

I suspect some kind of user error, but kinda hard to figure out what it was without knowing what exactly was done, and how the various settings were.

 

[JonaM]

I'm wondering if they were using Photo Stream as deleting from Photo Stream can cascade deletes and it my experience it can be a bit quirky.
Using Quick Start I've never had any photos disappear - they've all been copied across as part of the Quick Start process, so it does sound like something else is going on here to do with the photo syncing rather than the Quick Start process.