How To: Backup your iPhone with iTunes

Posted on February 17, 2008, 8:16 pm, by EricaJoy, under How To, iPhone.

Yet another how to post. FWIW, I write these posts largely so I can reference them later. I hate searching around the intarwebz to find some obscure piece of info only to have to do it again 3 months later.

Moving on, should you, enterprising reader, want to backup all your iPhone data before jailbreaking said iPhone or something, read on.

Short version: Delete your iPhone backup then Sync. This will force iTunes to create a new backup.

Long version (meant for OS X but Windows users should be able to figure out the differences):

  1. Open iTunes
  2. Go to Preferences
  3. Choose Devices
  4. Select the iPhone you want to back up
  5. Remove the iPhone backup (press the Delete Backup button)
  6. Press OK and exit Preferences
  7. Exit iTunes and disconnect your iPhone
  8. Reconnect your iPhone and open iTunes if it doesn’t open automatically
  9. Sync your iPhone

Thats it. You now have a fresh backup of your iPhone. Have fun.

Updated for iTunes 8!

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  • Tom

    I had to also unplug the iPhone then re-plug it in. Then THAT sync did the backup.

  • Jessica

    I want to backup because I need a new iPhone. I don’t want it to sync with my outlook though. Can I sync/backup without it writing or reading from my outlook?

  • Kel

    Backup worked like a charm after unplug/replug sync.

  • John Trowbridge

    Haven’t ever seen an answer — I have a personal iPhone and an office-issued laptop (MacBook Pro) – I DON’T WANT to sync and combine the databases, just have a backup of iPhone ON the laptop in case …… So …. how do I do that!!!??? Thanks!

  • http://soooo Kira

    how do you backup your back up… or do you?

  • Agasi

    Does this backup media files only or the whole database? (i.e. sms, contacts…)

  • samchest

    Step 5b. Unplug/Reconnect your iPhone

  • roger

    i have a new and older backup in itunes. if i delete (or move) the new one, will restore find the old one?

  • Michael V Robey

    I need to backup the backup. Where can I find it.

  • Chris

    Michael,

    the backup location is:
    User/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup

    Hope this helps

  • Michael Ellis

    Where are contacts actually backed up? I just lost some contacts from my iphone and need to find them–they should be somewhere on my mac since I synched those contacts from my phone to the computer the other day. Thanks.

  • Chris

    Erica – something is out of whack on the blog. I just posted a response today, 8/8/08 and it shows as 7/31/08. The date being off by a week on the server can interfere with other things. FYI

  • Joe

    So sorry to see you are an Obama supporter… Have you figured out why yet? Or are you blindly following the other fanatics that don't know what he really stands for and just want “change?”

  • JJ4678

    This is cool, but iTunes doesn't backup your iPhone songs, playlists, play counts, videos, artworks, etc. I just read that it doesn't do it! :(
    I used a little app called CopyTrans that backed all this up! This thing rocks!!! I just saved all my ipod music after my laptop died! Five stars!
    http://www.copytrans.net

  • jb

    when i did this it doesnt show any backup in my devices
    and i have unplugged replugged and synced
    whats the problem or does it just not show up

  • thesaj

    I am really starting to hate Apple. Doing the sync/backup on a restored machine. And it always seems that whenever I have to do a first backup it fails to do so. Just sits there for hours and hours and hours (and I mean like 3- 24 hrs) it reaches about 2/3 of the way and doesn't seem to move.

    *sighs*

  • thesaj

    I am really starting to hate Apple. Doing the sync/backup on a restored machine. And it always seems that whenever I have to do a first backup it fails to do so. Just sits there for hours and hours and hours (and I mean like 3- 24 hrs) it reaches about 2/3 of the way and doesn't seem to move.

    *sighs*

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