iCloud Notes

iCloud consists of a huge number of servers with practically an infinite amount of hard drive storage. Like the internet, iCloud is a collection of large server farms and data centers. .Mac, MobileMe and iTools were Apple’s first attempts at cloud storage, but failed to live up to the company’s reputation for ease of use. The first 5 GB of iCloud storage is free. Your file or folder uploaded or synched to the cloud is digitally copied to your allocated space on a server. 20 GB of storage is $.99 a month, and it goes up from there. (500 GB is $9.99 per month.) iCloud storage is linked over the internet, so uploading or downloading takes just mere seconds, although traveling a great distance. Drag and drop any file from your Mac onto iCloud Drive and it will upload to the cloud.

Getting files from your Mac to your iPhone or iPad and vice versa is no longer a hassle. With iCloud Drive, seamless file and data synchronization between all your devices is built into Mac OS X Yosemite and iOS 8.

Your allocated space on a server becomes a central storage location for all your devices. iCloud Drive is much more than simple file storage. Mail Drop, located within Mail, allows you to share files (large email files are automatically uploaded to your iCloud account instead of sending the large message through your email service) and a link to where it’s stored in the cloud is automatically attached to your email, eliminating time consuming email uploading or sending files that exceed the maximum size allowed. Files are stored for 30 days and do not count against your iCloud storage. Your data is protected because it is remote, with lots of failure and theft backup technology in place. Cloud synching, once a cumbersome and intimidating experience, is now very approachable regardless of your experience and knowledge of how it all works. Also, Handoff, Apple’s new technology for starting a document on one device then picking up where you left off on another, is central to iCloud Drive.

If your iPhone or iPad contract has a data usage cap, limit your uploading over cellar to avoid using all your allowance. And be safe out there—use complex passwords. Apple now requires two-level authentication for iCloud to further reduce risks. All your data stored in iCloud is encrypted. Apple uses a minimum of 128-bit AES encryption for all iCloud data, whether it’s in transit or stored on their servers.

3/2/2015