While Time Machine is also used to back up and store files, it takes a much different approach. These servers are backed up frequently and replaced whenever they fail, which makes it next to impossible for your data to be lost or deleted. When you use iCloud to backup your iPhone or store your photos and email, your files are copied from your iPhone or Mac, uploaded over the internet, and copied to one of Apple’s servers. And each of these servers is connected to the internet. Apple has warehouses around the world that are stuffed with servers, providing them with more bytes of data than you can imagine. A “server” is just a computer that’s meant to be accessed over the internet rather than in person. Getting into the nuts and bolts of it, iCloud (and services like iCloud) work via servers. We won’t get into all of these questions in this article, but they’re the sorts of questions you should be asking when you sign up for a cloud service like iCloud. How does Apple store millions of users’ data, how does Apple avoid losing files, how are these files secured, where are they kept, how do they know which files are yours, and what happens if Apple stops offering iCloud?

Most of us understand the concept of a data cloud by now, but few of us actually know how they work.

Should I use Carbon Copy Cloner or Time Machine?.Does Time Machine back up iCloud files?.Network-Attached Storage: Synology Diskstation.Budget Backups: Western Digital HDD/SSD.

The best Time Machine hard drives for Mac.

iCloud: Which is better for backing your data up?

Backup mac to icloud vs time machine