How To Store Stuff In Icloud Photo Library Mac

24-05-2021
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The iCloud Photo Library is one of those “where have you been all my life” kind of apps. Once you’ve started using it, there’s no going back. The iCloud Photo Library lets you sync your photos across all other devices meaning your precious memories are with you at all times and completely safe should anything happen to your device.

Oct 07, 2019  Store all original, full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud Photos. When storage space is needed, only space-saving (optimized) versions of photos are kept on your Mac. To download the original photo or video, just open it. Store all messages and attachments in iCloud. May 10, 2017  In addition, I back up my Mac both locally via Time Machine and via the online service Backblaze, which puts my full photo library in four different places — iCloud Photo Library, my Mac’s drive, my Time Machine backup drive, and Backblaze. Should disaster strike, I’m confident that I won’t lose any precious photos.

Before we show you how to set up the iCloud Photo Library and how to access iCloud on Mac, there’s a bit of housekeeping we need you to take care of.

How to keep no junk in iCloud

One of iCloud’s great features is that it automatically backs up all of your photos. So when you’re out happily snapping away with your iPhone camera, iCloud will work in the background to add all of your images to the Photo Library so that you can instantly access them on your Mac when you get home.

However, as you’re going to be setting up the Library for the first time, your Mac will automatically start syncing every image that already exists on your computer to iCloud. There are two reasons why this might not be ideal:

  1. There are photos on your Mac that you don’t want, or need, uploading.
  2. The iCloud Photo Library only comes with 5GB of free storage. More storage costs a minimum of $0.99 (USD) a month.

So, before switching on the Photo Library, it’s worth clearing out some of your iPhoto junk. CleanMyMac X lets you do this in a few clicks, using its smart scanning tool to only remove photos that you no longer need, such as pre-rotated or pre-cropped shots.

Here’s how to use CleanMyMac to clean up your iPhoto folders.

  1. Download CleanMyMac (you can do that here, for free).
  2. Launch CleanMyMac and click on Photo Junk from the sidebar menu.
  3. Your default photo library is already pre-selected to be scanned, but can easily be changed by clicking on Change Library.
  4. Hit Scan.
  5. Then hit Clean.

That’s it! No more useless photos poised to take up precious iCloud space.

Setting up the iCloud Photo Library

Okay, you’re ready to start syncing your photos. Before turning on the iCloud Photo Library make sure that you’re running the latest version of macOS. You can check for updates by going to Apple Menu > System Preferences > App Store and clicking on the Updates tab. While you’re there, check that “Automatically check for updates” and “Download newly available updates in the background” are selected, this will ensure you never miss a new update. Then, check that you’re signed to iCloud with the same Apple ID that you use across all devices.

To turn on the iCloud Photo Library, go to System Preferences > iCloud. Next to Photos, click Options, then select iCloud Photo Library.

Your photos will now automatically begin uploading to the iCloud Photo Library. Depending on the size of your collection and your internet speed, the process might take some time. Fortunately, you don’t have to upload everything at once. Your Mac lets you pause the upload whenever you like.

To do this, open up the Photos app, select Photos, then click on Moments. Scroll to the bottom of your photos and hit the Pause button.

How to Access iCloud Photos on Mac

The iCloud Photo Library really doesn’t change anything in terms of how you view or manage your photos. To view photos synced to iCloud, open up the Photos app — they’ll all be there, just like before.

The Photos app is also the place to manage your storage space. iCloud offers an “Optimize Mac Storage” feature that stores full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud and keeps originals on your Mac (if you have space). It’s a feature worth using alongside CleanMyMac to better manage your free space. To enable the feature, click Photos > Preferences and select Optimize Mac Storage.

If you decide that 5GB of storage isn’t enough, you can upgrade your plan by going to System Preferences > iCloud > Manage and clicking on Storage Plan or Buy More Storage.

How to access iCloud Photos on an iOS device

While your Mac is likely to be your main hub for organizing and editing photos, your iPhone or iPad is the device you'll use to snap all of those lovely photos.

To access the iCloud from iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, or Apple TV first you’ll need to turn it on. In iOS 10.3 or later, do this by going to Settings > [name] > iCloud > Photos, then turn on iCloud Photo Library.

In iOS 10.2 or earlier, go to Settings > iCloud > Photos.

On Apple TV tvOS 9.2 or later, go to Settings > Accounts > iCloud > iCloud Photo Library.

Now, iCloud storage access of all photos and videos can be had by using the Photos app.

How to access iCloud drive from a browser

If you don’t have your Mac or iOS device, you’ll be pleased to know that you can also access iCloud from a PC, Android, or Windows device using your preferred browser.

All you need to do is go to iCloud.com and login in using your Apple ID. Once you’re logged in, click on the iCloud Drive button to manage your account in the same way that you would on your Mac.

Keep the photos you need, get rid of the ones you don’t

Enabling the iCloud Photo Library across all of your devices is the best way to organize and manage your photos, and keep your precious memories close to hand at all times. However, you should always be mindful of space. If you shoot as many videos as you take photos, iCloud’s 5GB of free storage can be maxed out fast, leaving you unable to backup media files until you upgrade or delete unwanted photos.

With the Photo Library enabled, make a regular habit of using CleanMyMac to delete unneeded photos and manage space with iCloud’s optimize feature.

CleanMyMac X makes it easy to rid your Mac of old photos and videos to ensure your iCloud Photo Library only syncs the things you need. Download the app for free today.

These might also interest you:

Optimized Storage in macOS Sierra and later* can save space by storing your content in iCloud and making it available on demand. When storage space is needed, files, photos, movies, email attachments, and other files that you seldom use are stored in iCloud automatically. Each file stays right where you last saved it, and downloads when you open it. Files that you’ve used recently remain on your Mac, along with optimized versions of your photos.

* If you haven't yet upgraded to macOS Sierra or later, learn about other ways to free up storage space.

Find out how much storage is available on your Mac

Choose Apple menu  > About This Mac, then click Storage. This is an overview of available storage space on your Mac, as well as the space used by different categories of files:

Click the Manage button to open the Storage Management window, pictured below. (The Manage button is available only in macOS Sierra or later.)

How To Store Stuff In Icloud Photo Library Mac Os

Manage storage on your Mac

The Storage Management window offers recommendations for optimizing your storage. If some recommendations are already turned on, you will see fewer recommendations.


Photo

Store in iCloud

Click the Store in iCloud button, then choose from these options:

  • Desktop and Documents. Store all files from these two locations in iCloud Drive. When storage space is needed, only the files you recently opened are kept on your Mac, so that you can easily work offline. Files stored only in iCloud show a download icon , which you can double-click to download the original file. Learn more about this feature.
  • Photos. Store all original, full-resolution photos and videos in iCloud Photos. When storage space is needed, only space-saving (optimized) versions of photos are kept on your Mac. To download the original photo or video, just open it.
  • Messages. Store all messages and attachments in iCloud. When storage space is needed, only the messages and attachments you recently opened are kept on your Mac. Learn more about Messages in iCloud.

Storing files in iCloud uses the storage space in your iCloud storage plan. If you reach or exceed your iCloud storage limit, you can either buy more iCloud storage or make more iCloud storage available. iCloud storage starts at 50GB for $0.99 (USD) a month, and you can purchase additional storage directly from your Apple device. Learn more about prices in your region.

Optimize Storage

Click the Optimize button, then choose from these options.

How To Store Stuff In Icloud Photo Library Mac Pro

  • Automatically remove watched movies and TV shows. When storage space is needed, movies or TV shows that you purchased from the iTunes Store and already watched are removed from your Mac. Click the download icon next to a movie or TV show to download it again.
  • Download only recent attachments. Mail automatically downloads only the attachments that you recently received. You can manually download any attachments at any time by opening the email or attachment, or saving the attachment to your Mac.
  • Don't automatically download attachments. Mail downloads an attachment only when you open the email or attachment, or save the attachment to your Mac.

Optimizing storage for movies, TV shows, and email attachments doesn't require iCloud storage space.

Empty Trash Automatically

Empty Trash Automatically permanently deletes files that have been in the Trash for more than 30 days.

Reduce Clutter

Reduce Clutter helps you to identify large files and files you might no longer need. Click the Review Files button, then choose any of the file categories in the sidebar, such as Applications, Documents, Music Creation, or Trash.

You can delete the files in some categories directly from this window. Other categories show the total storage space used by the files in each app. You can then open the app and decide whether to delete files from within it.

Learn how to redownload apps, music, movies, TV shows, and books.

Where to find the settings for each feature

The button for each recommendation in the Storage Management window affects one or more settings in other apps. You can also control those settings directly within each app.

  • If you're using macOS Catalina, choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, click Apple ID, then select iCloud in the sidebar: Store in iCloud turns on the Optimize Mac Storage setting on the right. Then click Options next to iCloud Drive: Store in iCloud turns on the Desktop & Documents Folders setting. To turn off iCloud Drive entirely, deselect iCloud Drive.
    In macOS Mojave or earlier, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click iCloud, then click Options next to iCloud Drive. Store in iCloud turns on the Desktop & Documents Folders and Optimize Mac Storage settings.
  • In Photos, choose Photos > Preferences, then click iCloud. Store in iCloud selects iCloud Photos and Optimize Mac Storage.
  • In Messages, choose Messages > Preferences, then click iMessage. Store in iCloud selects Enable Messages in iCloud.
  • If you're using macOS Catalina, open the Apple TV app, choose TV > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Files. Optimize Storage selects “Automatically delete watched movies and TV shows.”
    In macOS Mojave or earlier, open iTunes, choose iTunes > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Advanced. Optimize Storage selects “Automatically delete watched movies and TV shows.”
  • In Mail, choose Mail > Preferences from the menu bar, then click Accounts. In the Account Information section on the right, Optimize Storage sets the Download Attachments menu to either Recent or None.

Empty Trash Automatically: From the Finder, choose Finder > Preferences, then click Advanced. Empty Trash Automatically selects “Remove items from the Trash after 30 days.”

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Other ways that macOS helps automatically save space

With macOS Sierra or later, your Mac automatically takes these additional steps to save storage space:

  • Detects duplicate downloads in Safari, keeping only the most recent version of the download
  • Reminds you to delete used app installers
  • Removes old fonts, languages, and dictionaries that aren't being used
  • Clears caches, logs, and other unnecessary data when storage space is needed

How to free up storage space manually

Even without using the Optimized Storage features of Sierra or later, you can take other steps to make more storage space available:

  • Music, movies, and other media can use a lot of storage space. Learn how to delete music, movies, and TV shows from your device.
  • Delete other files that you no longer need by moving them to the Trash, then emptying the Trash. The Downloads folder is good place to look for files that you might no longer need.
  • Move files to an external storage device.
  • Compress files.
  • Delete unneeded email: In the Mail app, choose Mailbox > Erase Junk Mail. If you no longer need the email in your Trash mailbox, choose Mailbox > Erase Deleted Items.

Learn more

  • When you duplicate a file on an APFS-formatted volume, that file doesn't use additional storage space on the volume. Deleting a duplicate file frees up only the space required by any data you might have added to the duplicate. If you no longer need any copies of the file, you can recover all of the storage space by deleting both the duplicate and the original file.
  • If you're using a pro app and Optimize Mac Storage, learn how to make sure that your projects are always on your Mac and able to access their files.