💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

Your iPhone stores several types of data on your iPhone for the Safari web browser:

• History, the websites you have visited.
• Bookmarks, the websites you have saved to visit again.
• Reading List, articles you have saved to read later.

While these items sync to your iCloud account, you may need to access them on your Mac or PC. You may want to transfer them easily to another web browser, or view them on a computer where you are not signed into iCloud. You may also want to recover these items from a backup (made by either iMazing or iTunes) if you've lost your iPhone and need to access this information. iMazing can help, allowing you to export each of these types of data in Excel, CSV (comma-separated values) or HTML format.

Here's how to export iPhone Safari history and bookmarks to Mac or PC

1. Install and launch iMazing.
2. Select your iOS device in iMazing's sidebar.
3. Click Safari, then History, Bookmarks, or Reading List.
4. Select one or more items, then click Export to Excel, Export to CSV or Export to HTML.

Before you begin

Download and install iMazing on your Mac or PC computer.

In-Depth Tutorial Using iMazing

1. Launch iMazing on your computer and connect your device.

Download and install iMazing. Launch the app, and connect your device to your Mac or PC.

2. Make sure that encrypted backups are enabled (Safari history only)

If you wish to access Safari history, you must first enable backup encryption for your device. This is necessary because Safari history is only accessible via an encrypted backup.

3. Select your iOS device.

In the sidebar at the left of the iMazing window, click on the iOS device whose content you want to export.

4. Click on Safari.

iMazing displays three icons below the Safari icon: History, Bookmarks, and Reading List. Click one of these categories to view its data.

5. To export Safari History

Click History beneath the Safari icon, then click an item to select it, or click multiple items to select them, then click Export to CSV or Export to HTML.

💡 Tip: Use the CTRL/Command, or SHIFT keys to select multiple items.

If you export items to Excel or CSV format, you will be able to import them into a spreadsheet such as Excel or Apple Numbers. The spreadsheet will be laid out with one row for each history item, and will contain data such as the last date visited, the name of the website and the exact URL, the website that redirected to that page, and the number of visits made to that page.

If you export in HTML format, you'll have a file that you can open as web page in any browser. All history items will show as links, and you can click them or import them to another browser.

5. To export Safari Bookmarks

Click Bookmarks beneath the Safari icon, then click an item to select it, or click multiple items to select them, then click Export to CSV, Export to Excel or Export to HTML, as explained above.

💡 Tip: Use the CTRL/Command, or SHIFT keys to select multiple items.

If you export items to Excel or CSV format, you will be able to import them into a spreadsheet such as Excel or Apple Numbers. The spreadsheet will be laid out with one row for each bookmark, and will contain the name of the bookmark, the exact URL, and the parent folder in your bookmark hierarchy.

If you export in HTML format, you'll have a file that you can open as web page in any browser. All bookmarks will show as links, and you can click them or import them to another browser.

💡 Tip: To import bookmarks to Chrome, save them as an HTML file. Then, in Chrome, go to your Bookmarks, click the ... menu and choose Import Bookmarks. Select the file, and Chrome will add all your bookmarks.

6. To export your Safari Reading List

Click Reading List beneath the Safari icon, then click an item to select it, or click multiple items to select them, then click Export to CSV, Export to Excel or Export to HTML, as explained above.

💡 Tip: Use the CTRL/Command, or SHIFT keys to select multiple items.

If you export items to Excel or CSV format, you will be able to import them into a spreadsheet such as Excel or Apple Numbers. The spreadsheet will be laid out with one row for each Reading List item, and will contain the name of the page, the URL, the last date you visited the URL, and whether you have read the article or not.

If you export in HTML format, you'll have a file that you can open as web page in any browser. All Reading List items will show as links, and you can click them or import them to another browser.

💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

Your iPhone or iPad stores your calendars, from a variety of services - such as iCloud, Google, and others - and helps you organize your time.

But there are times when you may need to access your calendars on a Mac or PC. You may want to transfer them easily to another device, or view them on a computer where you are not signed into iCloud, Google, or another service. You may also want to recover these items from a backup (made by either iMazing or iTunes) if you've lost your iPhone and need to access this information.

iMazing can help, allowing you to export events, calendars, or all of your calendars in ICS format, which you can easily add to a calendar app, or in Excel or CSV (comma-separated values) format, which you can view in a spreadsheet.

Here's how to export your calendars to Mac or PC

1. Install and launch iMazing.
2. Select your iOS device in iMazing's sidebar, then click Calendar.
3. Click on the Calendar icon.
4. Select one or more items, then click Export, Export to Excel or Export to CSV.
5. Optional: Filtering events

Before you begin

Download and install iMazing on your Mac or PC computer.

In-Depth Tutorial Using iMazing

1. Launch iMazing on your computer and connect your device.

Download and install iMazing. Launch the app, and connect your device to your Mac or PC.

2. Select your iOS device.

In the sidebar at the left of the iMazing window, click on the iOS device whose content you want to export.

3. Click on the Calendar icon.

iMazing displays all your calendars. If you have calendars with multiple accounts, they all show up in the calendar list, each one organized under a heading for its account.

4. To export Calendar events

To export one or more events, select them from the list, then click one of the Export buttons in the bottom toolbar. You will first see a dialog giving you the option to export your current selection or all items, then a save panel letting you choose a destination for the exported file.

💡 Tip: Select an item range by holding the shift key and clicking the first then the last item. Hold the Ctrl or Cmd key and click to add items to your selection. Select all items with cmd+A or ctrl+A.

If you export items to Excel or CSV format, you will be able to import them into a spreadsheet such as Excel or Apple Numbers. The spreadsheet will be laid out with one row for each event, and will contain a number of columns, including the date and time of the event, its name, its location, if any, alarms, repeat frequency, and more.

If you click the Export button, this saves a file in ICS format that most calendar apps can open. Double-click this file on your computer to import its events.

💡 Tip: Try drag and dropping your selection straight to a folder on your desktop. This will export selected events to a file in .ics format.

Finally, if you need to export an entire calendar, right click (or ctrl+click) it's name in the left sidebar. A contextual menu will let you export the entire calendar, regardless of your current filters.

5. Optional: Filtering events

By default, all calendars are displayed aggregated. In the calendar list, you can uncheck the calendars you don’t want to view or export. iMazing aggregates all the selected calendar events and displays them in its middle column.

You can filter events by date too: simply click on the From and To date boxes in the top toolbar to adjust the date range. By default, the From date is today, and the To date is one year from today.

Next to the date boxes, there are 2 more filter checkboxes you can use:

• Repeating is checked by default. Uncheck it to hide recurring events.
• Declined is unchecked by default. Check it to show events you were invited to but declined.

If you're new to iMazing, then you're on the right page! We have linked our most popular guides here so you can quickly find all the information needed to start using iMazing.

1. Download and install iMazing
2. Connect your device
3. Activate iMazing
4. How does iMazing work?
5. What can I do with iMazing?
6. iMazing Mini
7. Learn iMazing's interface
8. The iMazing cheatsheet

1. Download and install iMazing

iMazing is a computer application that needs to be installed on your Mac or Windows PC. You do not need to install anything on your iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV or Apple Vision Pro.

Download and install iMazing on your Mac or PC computer.

See the following guides for instructions on how to install iMazing on a:

• Mac
• Windows PC

2. Connect your device

Start using iMazing by connecting your device to your computer with a USB cable.

After the first connection, you can either stick to the USB connection or switch to a wireless one using Wi-Fi.

For recent devices that lack a USB port, such as Apple TV or Apple Vision Pro, pair them via Wi-Fi (currently, only available on macOS).

For more information, see Connect your device to iMazing.

3. Activate iMazing

Many of iMazing's features are available for free. However, to unlock unlimited data exports, gain access to advanced options when restoring a backup, update or reinstall iOS, manage devices and more, you'll need to purchase a license from our store.

For more information, see Manage your iMazing license.

4. How does iMazing work?

Under the hood, iMazing uses various technologies to connect to your mobile devices and grant you access to your data. A few key concepts:

• iMazing doesn't store any of your data online. Any data you access and export is stored locally on your computer, ensuring your privacy.
• You can directly access Photos, Videos, Music, Books, and third-party app files. For other types of data such as Messages, WhatsApp chats, or Call History, these are obtained from a backup of your device.

Backups

A backup is a snapshot of the current state of your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. When you backup your device, you save its current state.

On your computer, backups consist of a large collection of files with scrambled names.That's where iMazing works its magic.

iMazing reads through the thousands of files that make up your backup, and displays its contents in a simple and transparent graphical interface.

For more information, see Manage your backups with iMazing.

iMazing vs iTunes, Finder (macOS), the Apple Devices (Windows), and Music Apps

There are several differences between Apple's mobile device management apps, such as iTunes, Finder, Apple Devices, and iMazing. Here are three key concepts to understand these distinctions:

• Multiple Backup Snapshots vs Single Backup
  Apple apps maintain only one backup per device, which could lead to potential data loss. For example, if you backup your phone in iTunes or Finder after deleting some Messages chats, the new backup will overwrite the previous one, resulting in the loss of the deleted conversations.
  In contrast, iMazing stores multiple backup snapshots for each device. This allows you to safely backup and access data that is no longer on your device.

• Transfer vs Sync
  iTunes, Finder or Apple devices can be configured to automatically synchronize data between your Music/iTunes Library and your device. This ensures that the data on your device matches what's on your computer. However, this can sometimes result in data loss, for instance, if you attempt to sync your device with a new computer.
  In contrast, iMazing allows you to manually determine what to add to each device. This design gives you the highest level of control over your data.

• Browse & Export Data vs No Data Access
  Apple's applications are primarily designed to transfer content to the device, not for accessing or exporting the device's data.

5. What can I do with iMazing?

Well, there's lots you can do with iMazing, but most features can be organized in the following categories:

Below you'll find links to some of our many guides. Simply click on the dataset that you want to manage, and we'll take you to the appropriate guide page.

If you'd like to know more about how iMazing handles different types of data, have a look at our cheatsheet.

Browse and transfer data between your computer and your device

	Photos
	Messages & WhatsApp
	Apps & App Files
	Contacts
	Notes
	Voice Memos
	Books
	Music & Videos
	Ringtones
	Voicemail & Call History
	Safari History and Bookmarks
	Calendars
	File System

Backup and restore data to your device

	Backup a device
	Restore a backup
	Transfer data from a device to another
	Manage device backups

6. iMazing Mini

iMazing comes packaged with iMazing Mini, a free companion application running in the background that backs up your iOS devices automatically and wirelessly!

To learn more about iMazing Mini, see Getting Started with iMazing Mini.

7. Learn iMazing's interface

Learn all about iMazing's Interface, and unlock all its secrets.

8. The iMazing Cheatsheet

Though iMazing makes interacting with your data really simple, Apple mobile devices are complex little things and not all types of data can be managed in exactly the same way.

Here's a little cheatsheet of what's possible for each data type:

	Backup & Restore	Browse	Export	Import	Delete
Photos
Contacts
Apps Data
Books
Music
Videos
Messages
WhatsApp
Call History
Voicemail
Notes
Voice Memos
Safari History & Bookmarks
Calendars
Accounts
Health Data
Apple Watch Data
Home Data
Keychain
Other Data & Preferences

Congratulations, you've successfully gone through our Getting Started guide!

We hope that this introduction helped you. If you need help, don't hesitate to contact us.

iMazing Mini is a menu bar app for macOS and a system tray app for Windows. It backs up your iOS device automatically, wirelessly, and privately. Here, you'll find all the information you need to quickly start using iMazing Mini.

1. Getting Started
   1. Download and install iMazing
   2. Connect your device
   3. Schedule automatic backups
2. How does iMazing Mini work?
3. What can I do with iMazing Mini?
4. iMazing vs iMazing Mini
5. iMazing Mini's interface
6. Monitor your battery level
7. Restore a backup
8. Transfer media and files
9. Device to device transfer
10. iMazing Mini Preferences

1. Getting Started

1.1. Download and install iMazing

iMazing Mini is packaged with iMazing. iMazing is an application that needs to be installed on your Mac or Windows PC. You do not need to install anything on your iPhone, iPad or iPod.

Download and install iMazing on your Mac or PC computer.

If you already use iMazing

Just make sure to update to the latest version of iMazing.

1.2. Launch iMazing and connect your device

To use iMazing Mini, you'll need to connect your device to your computer with a USB cable.

When you connect your device, a wizard will open and guide you through the pairing process. Once paired with your computer, your device will automatically connect via Wi-Fi.

For more information on device pairing, see Connect your device to iMazing.

Supported devices

iMazing Mini supports all models of the following devices:

• iPhone: all models
• iPad: all models, Air, Mini and Pro included
• iPod touch: all models

1.3. Schedule automatic backups

When you first connect your device to your computer, you'll be prompted to select your backup options. These options are set per device.

To ensure an optimal backup experience, make sure to greenlight () all available options.

❗ Important: To protect your data and enable backing up sensitive information such as Health Data and Passwords, we strongly recommend that you enable backup encryption for all of your devices.

Select Automatic Backups to schedule your device's automatic backups:

• Choose your backups' frequency.
• Set a timeframe for your preferred backup time.
• Prevent backups from running if your battery is running low.

By default, iMazing Mini will back up your devices daily via Wi-Fi, and will keep one month of backups. Everything is customizable and well labelled: snoop around and don't hesitate to adjust default settings for a truly personalized backup experience!

2. How does iMazing Mini work?

Once you've configured automatic backups, iMazing Mini will automatically launch when you login to your Mac or PC. It runs it the background and periodically checks your backup schedule to back up your chosen devices automatically, to your computer or to the storage device of your choice, never online. And unlike iTunes or Finder backups, it maintains multiple snapshots of your backup which you can browse or restore.

3. What can I do with iMazing Mini?

iMazing Mini is mainly a backup tool, but we've also included quite a few handy extras!

4. iMazing Mini vs iMazing

iMazing, the Mini's older sibling, is your go-to application for advanced control over your devices and content. iMazing can do everything the Mini does, and packs in many additional features:

To learn more about iMazing, see Getting started with iMazing.

5. Learn iMazing Mini's interface

iMazing Mini is a menu bar app for macOS and a system tray app for Windows. To open it, click the iMazing icon in your macOS menu bar or in the system tray section of Windows, located in the lower left corner.

Device List

The Device List displays all devices connected with your computer, or for which you already have a recent iMazing backup.

The Device List shows you the date of the last backup, the device's disk usage breakdown, and its connection status.

	Date and time of last backup.
	Monitor your battery health.
	Connection status: USB, Wi-Fi or Sleep.
	Access additional features, such as forgetting your device and checking its warranty.
	Access preferences, check for updates, send us feedback,...

💡 Tip: The Disk Usage bar is interactive. Try hovering your mouse's cursor over it!

Backup List

In the Device List, click on your device to open the Backup List.

The following actions are available from the Backup List:

	Restore the selected backup
	Browse your backup's contents in iMazing. If you don't already have iMazing, you'll have the option to install it now. Browsing backups in iMazing is 100% free!
	Back up your device.
	Monitor your device's battery's health.
	Access device and backup options.
	Return to the device list.
	Access advanced device info

6. Monitor your battery level

Click on the battery icon ( ) anywhere in the app to display the battery health window.

You can configure a low battery level notification, so that you don't forget to charge your device before running out the door.

For more information, see Check an iPhone or iPad's battery health and diagnostics.

7. Restore a backup

To restore a backup with iMazing Mini, click the restore icon ( ) next to your device's name. This will open a wizard will guide you though the restore process.

💡 Tip: iMazing offers more restore options then iMazing Mini. To customize your restore , or restore to multiple devices at once, use iMazing

8. Transfer media and files

You can drag and drop files and folders straight to your Apple mobile device in iMazing Mini's window:

Simply pick a compatible app from the Quick Transfer screen, and your content will be copied immediately.

Learn more about Quick Transfer in this guide.

9. Device to device transfer

When using iMazing Mini, you first back up your device, then restore that backup to another device.

If you're looking for a faster way to transfer data from one device to another, you'll want to use iMazing.

For instructions on how to use iMazing's Device to device transfer, see Transfer data from an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch to another device.

10. iMazing Mini Preferences

iMazing's Mini Preferences are organized by tab:

General

Restart Mobile Device Services

Mobile Device Services are a suite of Apple drivers iMazing uses to communicate with your iPhone, iPad, or iPod. Restarting Mobile Device Services can resolve some connection issues.

Notifications

Disable notifications

When this box is ticked, you won't receive notifications for successful or failed backups,

Backup

Default backup location

Location where iMazing will back up a newly connected device.

By default this location is set to the following:

• macOS:
  /Users/<YOUR_USER_NAME>/Library/Application Support/iMazing/Backups
• Windows:
  C:\Users\<YOUR_USER_NAME>\AppData\Roaming\iMazing\Backups

⚠ Changing the default backup location will not move existing backups or change the backup location of already connected devices.

International

iMazing Mini's display language is by default set to automatically match your system language, but you can manually set it to another language.

In this guide you'll learn how to distribute iMazing licenses to your colleagues or clients and manage your license pool.

1. Creating an account
2. Logging into iMazing Account
   1. Log in using an identity service provider (Google, Microsoft or Apple)
   2. Log in using an email and password combination
   3. First Login
3. Organization options
4. Assigning an iMazing license to a New End User
5. Assigning an iMazing license to Yourself or an Existing User in your organization
6. Adding more devices to an existing assigned license
7. Understanding the status of your license pool (Main Licenses)
8. Purchasing more devices when your license pool is exhausted
9. Understanding automatic license device unlinking after 90 Days with Business Subscriptions
10. Other important information about Roles and Licenses
    1. User Roles
    2. Differences between an iMazing Business License and an iMazing Business Subscription
    3. License Fields: Validity days and Expiry date
    4. What will happen to my license if I began using it before creating my organization account?

1. Creating an account

Upon purchasing an iMazing Business Subscription, a confirmation email will be sent to the email address used for the purchase. This email contains an invitation to create an organization account if one does not already exist.

An organization account is a collective account for your organization. It holds the licenses that your organization purchases, and it includes user accounts for you, your colleagues, and your clients. You can assign licenses to these users, and if you want to use iMazing on your personal computer, you can assign a license to your own account.

To create the account, click the Create Account button in the body of the email.

In the browser window that opens, you will be requested to fill in your organization details. At minimum, you must enter the organization name and your desired interface language. You can also select what authentication methods users in your organization (you and your colleagues) will be allowed to use. You can restrict accounts to user and password combinations only, third-party identity providers (signing in using a Google, Microsoft, or Apple accounts), or allow both. Click Continue to move on to the next step.

If you allowed email and password combinations, the next step will be to specify a password for your user account, so that you could use it to log in. If you also allowed third-party identity providers, specifying a password will not prevent you from using either.

Your user account will be set as the owner of the organization account, but you can add other owners later and also transfer ownership.

After successfully completing the above steps both your organization account and your user account will be created and you will see a confirmation message.

2. Logging into iMazing Account

After following the instructions in the above step, you will be redirected to the login page. If your account has already been created, you can go to the login page at the following address:

• https://account.imazing.com

2.1. Log in using an identity service provider (Google, Microsoft or Apple)

To log in using your Google Account, Microsoft Account, or Apple ID, simply click on the selected provider from the list on the bottom of the login form.

If you are not already logged into your identity provider, you will be requested to log in. Depending on the identity provider, you may be required to follow a number of additional steps.

Note: Your identity service provider account must be associated with the email address used when purchasing iMazing.

2.2. Log in using an email and password combination

Enter the email address that you've used when purchasing iMazing together with the password that you've specified in the above steps, and click Continue.

2.3. First login

Regardless of the method that you choose, on first login you will be asked to approve the use of your newly created account with the iMazing Account website. The two are separate services so this is a required normal step.

3. Organization options

The Info section allows you to manage your organization's details. You can edit these details by clicking the Edit Organization button.

An important feature is the Send license email when creating licenses option. If this option is enabled, emails containing iMazing license codes will be automatically sent to new user accounts upon creation and license assignment.

4. Assigning an iMazing license to a New End User

Once logged into iMazing Account, you will be able to assign licenses to end-users.

To do so, go to User Accounts section. All of the existing user accounts in your organization will be listed there, including your own user account which will be marked as Owner. If this is the first time you invite a user, only your account will appear on the list.

To begin inviting new users, click on the + button.

In the form that will pop over, fill in the user's information, including their name and email address. If the user needs to connect more than one device to iMazing, adjust the Number of devices field accordingly.

To automatically send an invitation with the user's license to the newly created account's email address, select the Send License Email option. The email will contain an iMazing license activation code, a link to download iMazing, and links to our guides on how to use iMazing. For legal extractions, the email will also include a link to our guide on how to Print iPhone Messages and WhatsApp Chats For court or other legal purposes.

When clicking Save, the account will be created and one or more iMazing licenses will be reduced from your pool of purchased licenses (Main Licenses) and assigned to the new user account.

Note:

• Users with the End User role can only activate iMazing and use it with their assigned license, but cannot log into the iMazing Account. For more information, see 9.1. User Roles for more details.
• To learn more about license Validity days and Expiry date, refer to 9.3. License Fields: Validity days and Expiry date

5. Assigning an iMazing license to Yourself or an Existing User in your organization

There may be situations where you want to use one of your purchased iMazing licenses with your own account or another existing account in your organization, rather than sending it to a end-user.

If you're adding a license to an account for the first time, continue reading. If the account already has a license, skip to step 6. Adding more devices to an existing assigned license.

To add a first license to an existing account, go to the User Accounts section of your organization. Find and select the account, then click View Account.

This will navigate to and display the user account. Go to the Licenses section. There, click the + button.

A form will pop over where you'll be asked to enter how many devices you'd like this user account to have. By default the field is set to one device. Enter the number of devices that you'd like to use with iMazing; if this is your own account, there's no need to check the Send License Email box because you'll be able to copy your license code in the next step. Click Save to continue.

After the form closes, you'll see that an iMazing license has been added to this existing user account. The license details will be displayed in the right-side pane, and among them the license code. Copy this code and use it to activate iMazing on your computer.

6. Adding more devices to an existing assigned license

If a user already has an account under your organization in iMazing Account, adding a license for another device is easy.

In the Accounts section, locate the user account, then select it and then click on the View Account button to view it. You will now enter the user account, and the various sections on the sidebar will feature information specific to that user account.

In the Licenses section you will find the user's existing iMazing license. Select it if not already selected, and click the Edit License button.

In the form that will pop over, increase the number of devices by one or by the number of needed additional devices, and click the Save button. The number of added devices will be reduced from your pool of purchased license devices (Main Licenses) and added to the user license.

To go back to your organization account where you can see all user accounts, click the name of your organization in the breadcrumbs section in the top left.

7. Understanding the status of your license pool (Main Licenses)

Purchased iMazing licenses are first assigned to the organization. Then they can be assigned to a user, whether at new account creation or by adjusting the number of devices for an existing user as mentioned previously.

You can determine the number of licenses your organization has available for assignment by visiting the Main Licenses section. The available licenses will be listed under the name of the license.

When assigning a license to a end-user, the license will draw from the organization main license count, and will appear on the end-user account as Pending. When the end-user uses their license code to activate iMazing, the license becomes Active.

With the iMazing Business Devices license (legacy plan), licenses in Pending state can be removed from user accounts and returned to the organization for reassignation to another client. But once activated, the license can no longer be used for activation with another device.

With the iMazing Business Subscription, you can remove and reassign the license to another account anytime.

8. Purchasing more devices when your license pool is exhausted

Once you have assigned all of the purchased iMazing device licenses in your organization and they have all been activated by users, assigning further licenses to users will require making an additional purchase.

To purchase additional licenses, go to the Main Licenses section of your organization account, and select the iMazing main license of your choice, if not already selected. Then, click the Buy More Devices button on the right pane.

The iMazing store will pop over, enabling you to select the devices tier you are interested in, and to complete the checkout just as you did on your first purchase.

9. Understanding automatic license device unlinking after 90 Days with Business Subscriptions

With the iMazing Business Subscription, devices are automatically unlinked from their license if they haven't connected to iMazing for 90 days. This frees up license device slots assigned to your users.

Before you can delete an assigned license or the associated user account, all devices must be unassigned. Once a device is unlinked from an assigned license, you can reduce the number of device slots for that license, returning the slot to the main license pool for reassignment. After all devices are unlinked from a license, you can delete the assigned license or even remove the user account itself.

Setting an expiry date for an assigned license ensures that device slots return to the main license pool when the license expires, provided the devices have been automatically unlinked after 90 days of inactivity. In other words, once a license expires and all its linked devices have been unlinked, all associated device slots automatically become available in the main license pool.

10. Other important information about Roles and Licenses

10.3. User Roles

• Owner: The super admin of the organization who can manage users and licenses, view orders, and purchase additional licenses. Multiple owners can be created.
• Administrative: This role can create new end-users and assign licenses to them.
• Technical: This role can manage users and licenses but cannot manage owner user accounts.
• Billing: This role can only view orders and purchase additional licenses.
• End User: These users cannot log into their iMazing Account. They can only use iMazing with their assigned licenses.

10.2. Differences between an iMazing Business License and an iMazing Business Subscription

Here's what you need to know about the differences between an iMazing Business License and an iMazing Business Subscription:

• iMazing Business License: Devices are linked to this license for their lifetime. This means that once a device has been linked to a license, it cannot be unlinked.
• iMazing Business Subscription: Devices can be unlinked from the subscription. If a device has not been connected to iMazing for more than 90 days, it will be automatically unlinked from the subscription and will not count towards the total available device slots.

10.3. License Fields: Validity days and Expiry date

• Validity days (optional): This is the number of days the license will remain active after the license code has been used to activate iMazing.
• Expiry date (optional): This is the fixed date until which the license will remain active. You should not set this field if the Validity days field is set.

Note: These two fields are only available with the iMazing Business Subscription. They are not available with the iMazing Business License. This is because devices are linked to the Business License for their lifetime, so they do not expire and cannot be unlinked.

10.4. What will happen to my license if I began using it before creating my organization account?

If you activated iMazing using the license code provided in the email sent after your purchase and before creating your organization, the devices linked to your license or subscription will be assigned to your user account (owner account with the email used to purchase) upon creating your organization account.

To add more devices to your user account, please refer to: 6. Adding more devices to an existing assigned license

If you're new to iMazing Profile Editor, then you are on the right page! We've gathered below the most important information to get you up and running quickly with it.

1. Download and install iMazing Profile Editor
2. How does iMazing Profile Editor work?
3. Adding Configuration Payloads
4. Removing Configuration Payloads
5. Entering Data
6. Display Filters and Search
7. Saving Profiles
8. Signing Profiles
9. Exporting Payloads to Plist
10. User Provided Manifests
11. Troubleshooting

1. Download and install iMazing Profile Editor

iMazing Profile Editor is an application for both macOS and Windows, available free of charge on our website, on the Mac App Store, and on the Microsoft Store:

Download from iMazing.com

2. How does iMazing Profile Editor work?

Configuration profiles are property list files that allow system administrators to deploy various presets, preferences, restrictions, and more onto Apple iOS, macOS, tvOS, visionOS, and watchOS devices.

iMazing Profile Editor lets users create, modify, and also digitally sign configuration profiles with a friendly user interface instead of manually coding them in XML.

The app contains definitions for an extensive set of Apple's configuration options, as well as for a large number of popular third party applications. These are displayed as configuration pages where users can enter their desired settings.

Configuration options are grouped under domains (e.g. Wi-Fi, Mail, Calendar) and each group is written to a profile as a configuration payload. Profiles can contain multiple payloads of differing domains, and where supported, of the same domain.

3. Adding Configuration Payloads

The sidebar lists all available sections, grouped under System, Application, and User Domain (when set). Select a section and click Add Configuration Payload to add it to the current profile. You can also press ⇧⌘A on the keyboard, or double-click the section in the sidebar.

A number of domains support multiple payloads, for example the Calendar domain. You can tell these domains apart by observing the + button that would appear to the right of the domain title at the top of the configuration page once the first domain payload has been added.

Note that for multiple-payload domains, individual payloads can be collapsed and renamed for clarity.

4. Removing Configuration Payloads

To remove a payload from the profile, click the - (minus, or dash) button or press ⇧⌘R on the keyboard. You may have to scroll back to the top of the payload to see the button.

5. Entering Data

When you add a payload to a profile, the preference properties that can be set for the payload's domain are displayed as fields for you to set values on. Some fields may be conditionally disabled or even hidden, depending on data already entered in other fields, to avoid conflicts or clutter.

Most properties on a newly added payload will not have a value set on them. By interacting with a property field (entering text, making a selection, toggling a checkbox) you are setting a value on that property. Having a value set for a certain property is indicated by a small accent-colored circle adjacent to the property title.

Clicking on the indicator, or right-clicking in a property area, brings up a context menu that allows, where supported, unsetting the property value completely, forcing a default value, or forcing an empty value.

Checkboxes behavior

Like most other properties, booleans start with no value set (even though their checkboxes usually display their default value) and only get a value set once interacted with. However, by default, toggling a boolean property's checkbox back to the default value will unset the value from the property altogether.

This behavior can be changed in the Preferences window under the Defaults section.

💡 Tip: You can force a default value on a checkbox using the checkbox's context menu or by clicking it while the Option (⌥) or Alt key is held down.

6. Display Filters and Search

Deep Search

The search field filters available sections, and highlights matching preference properties. Sections are matched by title, description, and domain, and properties by title, name, and description.

You can search for properties by name even when the property names are not set to be displayed. In that case, conditionally hidden preference properties which match your search will temporarily appear.

Supported platforms filter

The five platform buttons on the toolbar let you filter sections and properties by compatible OS.

You can select multiple platforms, in which case only sections supporting all selected platforms are shown.

View configured sections and properties only

Use the filter button on the toolbar to display only sections and properties that are already configured, and that are therefore going to get written to the profile. You can also press ⌥⌘0 on the keyboard.

View Property Names

You can choose to show or hide the key names of all properties by selecting Property Names in the View menu, or by pressing ⌥⌘N on the keyboard.

7. Saving Profiles

Standard format

The app generates standard Apple configuration profile .mobileconfig files, which are ready for loading locally or for pushing to users via MDM solutions. They are also compatible with any first- or third-party software that also conforms to the standard.

If you have iMazing installed, you could also save profiles to the iMazing Library and manage profiles on fleets of devices when you use iMazing Configurator. Simply select the Save to iMazing Library menu option to save profiles there directly.

Set and unset properties

In general, only preference properties that have a value set on them as indicated by the accent-colored indicator circle next to the property title, will get written to the profile file on save. This is especially true for fields which can be perceived to have a value when they do not, like selection boxes whose No Value item is selected or boolean fields.

Invalid fields

It is possible to save profiles even if some preference keys contain invalid values. For example, if a value is missing on a required preference key, a red error mark will be displayed, but the profile can still be saved.

8. Signing Profiles

The option to cryptographically sign a profile with a certificate is available from within the app. To set a signing identity which will be used to sign the profile on save, simply select one from the Profile Signing field that can be found in the General section of the profile.

On macOS, the field is populated with identities stored in Keychain. On Windows, with ones stored in Certificate Manager (Current User/Personal).

Opened profiles already saved with a signature will be saved again using the same signing identity provided that it exists on the computer.

For more information head over to our Sign Apple Configuration Profiles guide.

9. Exporting Payloads to Plist

Certain third-party MDM solutions accept settings in domain-specific .plist files instead of configuration profiles. iMazing Profile Editor provides the ability to export preferences that you define in any payload into such files. To do so, select the section you wish to export and choose Export as Plist from the Payload menu.

On sections with more than one configured payload, a sheet will show and allow you to choose the exact payloads to be exported.

10. User Provided Manifests

iMazing Profile Editor supports using custom manifest files provided by the user in PFM format. Users can add and override individual manifests in the app, or use a completely custom manifest repository, both online and locally.

To quickly add an individual manifest PFM, place it in an empty folder of your choice and choose that folder as a Local folder for custom and override preference manifests in the Manifests tab of the Preferences window of the app.

To see your custom manifest in the sections list, reload the open profiles when prompted.

For more advanced custom manifest workflows, visit our Working with Custom Manifests guide.

11. Troubleshooting

If you're experiencing issues with configuring a specific profile, or if a successfully configured profile doesn't have the desired effect, the following checklist may help:

• Is the setting available for a different platform than the one you are targeting?
• Is the setting only available on supervised devices?
• Is the setting only available when deployed via MDM (rare)?

If none of the above help, don't hesitate to contact us.

Congratulations, you've successfully gone through our Getting Started guide!

For more information about creating configuration profiles, head over to our Create or edit Configuration Profiles for iOS, macOS, tvOS, visionOS, or watchOS guide.

Documentation

Managing iOS devices effectively with iMazing's CLI requires a very good understanding of available commands and their behaviours. Please read the iMazing CLI Documentation (PDF download) carefully before proceeding.

Installation

Install iMazing if you haven't already. The CLI is integrated with the standard iMazing download.

Download and install iMazing on your Mac or PC computer.

Launching the CLI

On macOS, the executable is the same as iMazing's. Default location:

/Applications/iMazing.app/Contents/MacOS/iMazing

On Windows, the executable is different. Default location:

C:\Program Files\DigiDNA\iMazing\iMazing-CLI.exe

Trial

The following commands are fully available without a license:

*** Device Commands ***
--device-list
--device-list-not-paired
--device-list-all-connected
--device-list-cache
--device-pair
--device-forget
--device-info
--device-disk-usage
--device-console
--backup-device

*** License and Updates ***
--check-needs-update
--license
--remove-license

*** Cache ***
--remove-temp-folder
--remove-cache-folder

In order to use all the other commands, please purchase an iMazing CLI license from our store and enter your license code using the CLI's license command.

What to keep in mind

Listing devices and the importance of timeouts

Commands which do not apply to a specific device have a default timeout of sixty seconds. Try running this command:

./iMazing --device-list

iMazing will look for reachable devices, both via USB and Wi-Fi, during 60 seconds before returning the list. If you only want to list immediately available devices, use a shorter timeout:

./iMazing --device-list --timeout 1

Shared Settings

iMazing CLI offers a GUI free interface to iMazing. Consequently, iMazing settings configured in the GUI also apply when using the CLI, and vice-versa. The following default settings are particularly important:

1. Wi-Fi connection between the computer and the device can be enabled or disabled both with the GUI and with a CLI command. The setting resides iOS side and is hence persistent and shared. Important: by default, iMazing enables Wi-Fi for all newly connected devices (just after pairing). For security reasons, this is not the case if pairing is done by the CLI.
2. Backup location for newly connected devices is automatically set to the default backup location configured in iMazing's preferences.
3. Backup archiving is by default enabled, with 1 month of backup retention.

Use any and --usb wisely

Consider the following command:

./iMazing --device-erase --udid any --confirm

iMazing will begin looking for all available devices and send erase commands as connections are made. This means that ANY iOS or iPadOS device that's been paired and accepts Wi-Fi connections with the host may get erased. Not fun. To prevent catastrophes, use the --usb switch – it restricts commands to USB connected devices:

./iMazing --device-erase --usb --udid any --confirm

Don't forget the --pair and --activate switches

The command below outputs device information for all paired USB connected devices as they connect:

./iMazing --device-info --usb --udid any

Run the command and plug a device which hasn't yet been paired with the computer. You'll notice... nothing, iMazing simply ignores it. Now, add the --pair switch:

./iMazing --device-info --usb --udid any --pair

iMazing will now automatically try to pair new devices, and output a user interaction message if needed. Handy!

The --activate switch works the same way: if you connect a device that's new or recently erased, iMazing will automatically attempt to activate it before executing the command.

Welcome to iMazing 3! We're excited to introduce our redesigned interface, along with many other improvements and new features.

If you're transitioning from iMazing 1 or 2, you'll notice numerous changes beyond the colorful interface refresh. Please head to the dedicated page to learn what's new and what's been improved.

You can also use the in-app guided tour to quickly learn about main changes.

Reorganization of the iMazing Interface and Main Changes

For a more detailed guide on iMazing 3's interface, please refer to:
Learn iMazing's 3 interface

❗Important Changes in iMazing 3

1. Backup Archives have been renamed Backup Snapshots
2. Old Backups have been renamed Archived Backups

1. Home Screen
   1. Discover
   2. Devices
   3. Backups
   4. Configurator
2. Device View
   1. Overview
   2. Data
   3. Tools
   4. Settings
      1. Backup Encryption
      2. Backup Location
      3. Backup Snapshots
      4. Automatic Backups
      5. Manage Device Settings
3. Device Backup Snapshots
4. Operation Panel
5. Dark and Light Mode on Windows and macOS

1. Home Screen

1.1. Discover

Explore iMazing's features. You can also use the in-app guided tour to quickly learn about main changes.

1.2. Devices

Manage all Apple mobile devices in one place.

Grid View

List View

1.3. Backups

Manage backup snapshots and archives.

Grid View

List View

1.4. Configurator (macOS)

Advanced management tools for Apple mobile devices.

2. Device View

2.1. Overview

Access detailed device information and actions.

2.2. Data

Transfer content like messages, photos, music, call history, contacts and more.

2.3. Tools

Use iMazing's tools for file transfer, backup, app management, spyware detection, device transfer, updates, log export, and more.

2.4. Settings

Set backup and device settings, schedule automatic backups.

2.4.1. Backup Encryption

2.4.2. Backup Location

2.4.3. Backup Snapshots

2.4.4. Automatic Backups

2.4.5. Manage Device Settings

3. Device Backup Snapshots

Manage your device's backup snapshots.

Click on a snapshot to view your device's past state or to export data from it.

Manage Backup Snapshots

4. Operation Panel

Monitor and review the status and progress of any operations iMazing is performing from the Operations panel.

5. Dark and Light Mode on Windows and macOS

Dark mode is now available on both Windows and macOS.

Windows

macOS

iMazing is a computer application. To use iMazing, install it on your Mac or Windows PC, then connect your device via USB or Wi-Fi. There is nothing to install on your mobile device.

The Window version of iMazing requires Windows 7 or later. iMazing 3 is optimized for Windows 10 and 11.

If you are on a Mac, please refer to the following guide: Install iMazing on Mac

• Download iMazing
• Install iMazing
• Uninstall iMazing

Download iMazing

Download and install iMazing on your Mac or PC computer.

Install iMazing

To install iMazing on your Windows computer:

1. Open the folder you downloaded iMazing to (by default your Downloads folder), and double-click iMazing3forWindows.exe to open the installer.
   

   

2. Click Yes to authorize the iMazing Installer to install iMazing on your computer.
   

   

3. Click Next to start installing iMazing and follow the installer's instructions. We recommend leaving default options in every step.
   

   

💡 Tip >- During the installation process, iMazing may need to download Apple components (drivers). This is normal as iMazing requires the latest Apple drivers in order to communicate efficiently with your devices.

Uninstall iMazing

To uninstall iMazing from your Windows PC:

1. In the Windows Control Panel, click Uninstall A program.
   

   

2. In Uninstall or change a program, select iMazing and click Uninstall.

   

3. Click Yes to begin uninstalling iMazing.

   

4. Click Yes if you want to delete iMazing's settings and cached data. This protects your privacy and frees up additional space on your hard drive.

   

iMazing is now fully uninstalled from your computer.

❗ Important

• Uninstalling iMazing does not delete your backups from your computer. To delete your backups from your computer, see Backup Management.
• Uninstalling also does not remove the pairing between your trusted devices and your computer. For more information on removing pairing, refer to Remove Pairing.

iMazing is a computer application. To use iMazing, install it on your Mac or Windows PC, then connect your device via USB or Wi-Fi. There is nothing to install on your mobile device.

The Mac version of iMazing requires macOS 10.11 or later. iMazing 3 is optimized for macOS El Capitan and above.

• Download iMazing on Mac
• Install iMazing on Mac
• Uninstall iMazing on Mac

For Windows PC Instructions, see Install iMazing on Windows

Download iMazing

Download and install iMazing on your Mac or PC computer.

Install iMazing

To install iMazing on your Mac computer:

1. Open the folder where you downloaded iMazing (by default, this will be your Downloads folder). Double-click on iMazing3forMac.dmg to open the iMazing install disk image.
   
2. Drag-and-drop the iMazing icon to the macOS Applications folder to install iMazing.
   
3. Now launch iMazing from your Applications folder. The first time you launch it, macOS will inform you that you are about to launch an app downloaded from the Internet, click Open:

💡 Tips

• Did you notice the second part of the warning: Apple checked it for malicious software and none was detected.? Your Mac reassures you because iMazing adheres to Apple's latest security guidelines. Every iMazing update is submitted to Apple for a security review before its release. This security process, known as Notarization, was introduced with macOS 10.14 Mojave. It is a welcome initiative from Apple to enhance customer protection.
• Installing iMazing does not give it access to all your data. Since macOS 10.14, the system will ask for your permission when a 3rd party app like iMazing attempts to access certain protected folders on your Mac. Check our dedicated video about privacy changes in recent macOS versions..

Uninstall iMazing

To fully uninstall iMazing from your Mac computer, you should first clear it's cache. This guarantees that besides your backups, no working files associated with iMazing will remain on your computer.:

1. Launch iMazing, and in the macOS menu bar, go to iMazing > Preferences...
   

2. If you want to delete iMazing's settings and cached data, click Clear iMazing Cache. This protects your privacy and frees up additional space on your hard drive.
3. In your macOS Applications folder, locate iMazing and move it to the trash.
   

❗ Important

• Uninstalling iMazing does not delete your backups from your computer. To delete your backups from your computer, see Backup Management-
• Uninstalling also does not remove the pairing between your trusted devices and your computer. For more information on removing pairing, refer to Remove Pairing.

Apple devices can be connected to iMazing either via USB or Wi-Fi. However, the initial connection for iPhone, iPad, and iPod needs to be made via USB. Once connected, a wizard will guide you through the required pairing process.

For devices without a USB port, like recent models of Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro, remote pairing via Wi-Fi is possible. However, this feature is only available in iMazing 3 and currently supported on macOS due to limitations with Apple mobile device drivers on Windows.

• Supported devices
• Understanding pairing
• Connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to your computer and pair it via USB
• Pair an Apple TV or Apple Vision Pro Remotely via Wi-Fi
• Remove Pairing
• Wi-Fi connection
• Security & Privacy
• Supervision Prohibited Pairing

Supported devices

iMazing supports all models of the following devices:

• iPhone: all models
• iPad: all models, Air, Mini and Pro included
• iPod touch: all models
• iPod: all models (classic, mini, nano)
• iPod shuffle: only on the Windows version of iMazing
• Apple TV: supported, some limits inherent to tvOS (no backup for example)
• Apple Vision Pro: supported, some limits inherent to visionOS (currently backups are not restorable, we hope Apple will fix that soon)

Pairing

Pairing is a security feature that refers to the trust relationship between your Apple mobile device and your computer. iPod classic, nano, mini and shuffle do not need to be paired.

The first time you connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to a computer via USB, your device will ask you to trust that computer. Trusting a computer pairs it with your device. Since you have to enter your passcode on the device after tapping the Trust button on the prompt, this pairing process is a crucial privacy safeguard.

Once paired, your computer can access your device via USB and Wi-Fi. The device stays paired with your computer until you unpair it, or until the device's operating system necessitates a new pairing. This generally happens after an OS update, or if the device hasn't connected to iMazing for a certain period, typically 30 days.

Paired devices are listed in the sidebar, even when not connected. If they are are not connected via USB, iMazing will try to connect via the local Wi-Fi network. If a device is not connected via USB or Wi-Fi, but was previously backed up, then it will appear in the the Backups section of the sidebar.

• For more information, see our article on iMazing's User Interface.
• For more information on Apple's pairing model security for iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro, and the pairing expiration policy, refer to Apple's official documentation: Pairing model security for iPhone and iPad

Connect an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to your computer and pair it via USB

To pair your device with your computer, follow these steps:

1. Launch iMazing and connect your device using a USB cable.
   
2. If your device is locked, unlock it by entering your passcode, or using Face ID or Touch ID.
   
3. If this is the first time you're connecting your device to your computer, iMazing will ask you to respond to the Trust This Computer prompt on your device. Simply tap Trust and enter your device passcode.
   
     

4. Your device is now connected and will appear in iMazing's Devices section.
   

💡 Tip: Always unlock your device the first time you connect it to a computer via USB. You might see a message such as Accessory Connected / Unlock device to use accessories. If this happens, unlock your device to establish the connection with your computer.

Pair an Apple TV or Apple Vision Pro Remotely via Wi-Fi (macOS only)

Remote pairing is currently only available on macOS because of Apple's component and driver restrictions on Windows. We hope that Apple will soon provide similar support for Windows.

To pair your device with your computer, follow these steps:

1. Launch iMazing 3. iMazing 3 Release Candidate can be downloaded here.
   
2. Ensure that both your computer and Apple TV or Apple Vision Pro are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.
3. Navigate to the remote devices section within the Settings app:
   • On your Apple TV, navigate to the Settings app:
     Remotes and Devices > Remote App and Devices
   • On your Apple Vision Pro, go to the Settings app:
     General > Remote Devices
     
4. Wait for the Pair Device dialog to appear.
5. Enter the verification code in iMazing.
6. Your device is now connected and will appear in iMazing's Devices section.
   

Wi-Fi Connection

When you pair a device, Wi-Fi connection is enabled by default. If your computer and your device are on the same Wi-Fi network, you can simply unplug your cable.

The connection indicator in iMazing changes to a Wi-Fi icon.

You can change the Wi-Fi connection option from the Device Settings section.

⚠ Important: Starting with macOS Sequoia 15, to allow Wi-Fi connections in iMazing, you must go to your Mac's System Settings in Privacy & Security > Local Network and allow the applications iMazing and iMazing Mini to find and communicate with devices on your local network.

For more information, see How to connect an iPhone or iPad to your Mac or PC computer over Wi-Fi?

Security & Privacy

Anyone with access to your computer's user account can access the data you store on that computer.

To protect your privacy, we recommend that you take the following precautions:

1. Secure your computer's user account with a strong password.
2. Enable backup encryption in iMazing.

If you no longer want a computer to be able to access a device which was previously paired to it, you will need to remove pairing as described below.

• To learn more about all security and privacy aspects and which encryption technologies are used in iMazing: iMazing Security & Privacy
• For more information on iOS/iPadOS backup encryption, please refer to our detailed article: Backup Encryption in iMazing
• For more information on Apple's pairing model security for iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro, and the pairing expiration policy, refer to the official documentation: Pairing model security for iPhone and iPad

Remove Pairing

To unpair a device from your computer:

1. Select your device, then navigate to the Tools section and click on Remove from iMazing located at the bottom of the tools list. Alternatively, you can right-click on your device and select the Remove from iMazing action from the contextual menu anywhere within the app.
   
2. In the confirmation dialog, keep Remove Pairing checked and click Remove from iMazing.
   
3. Unplug your device once the dialog in iMazing confirms that the device has been removed. Doing so will prevent the device's Trust This Computer dialog from reappearing.

Your device is no longer paired with your computer. The next time you connect it, you will need to go through the pairing process again before you can access its data.

In summary, removing a device:

• Removes the device from the Devices section in iMazing.
• Deletes the device's cached content stored on the computer.
• Offers an option to remove the pairing.
• Provides an option to delete all backups currently associated with that device.

When you remove a device, iMazing offers the option to delete the device's backups. While it's not necessary to delete these backups to unpair your device, doing so can reclaim hard drive space and eliminate all traces of your data from your computer.

💡 Tip 1: You can remove pairing for all devices previously connected to your computer from iMazing's Preferences

💡 Tip 2: If you do not have access to a computer to which your device is paired and need to break the pairing relationship, you can remove the pairing in the device Settings app:

• For iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, from the Settings app:
  General > Transfer or Reset iPhone/iPad > Reset > Reset Network Settings

• For Apple Vision Pro, from the Settings app:
  General > Remote Devices > Clear

• For Apple TV, from the Settings app:
  Remotes And Devices > Remote App and Devices > Select a Device > Forget This Device

Supervision Prohibited Pairing

When a device is supervised by an organization, pairing it with a computer might be restricted. This happens if the option, often referred to as Allow pairing with non-Apple Configurator hosts by Apple and some MDM vendors, is set to false.

This can be set via a DEP profile with the property allow_pairing set to false, locally through iMazing Configurator (Allow pairing without supervising organization) or Apple Configurator (Allow devices to pair with other computers), or a Restriction configuration profile with the allowHostPairing option (com.apple.applicationaccess). It can also be set remotely by an MDM solution via Automated Device Enrollment / DEP.

To pair a device with iMazing that is supervised and has restricted pairing, you need to import the supervising organization (identity) in iMazing Preferences > Library by clicking Manage Organizations. For more information, please refer to: Importing an Existing Organization or Identity at section 2.8 Organization.

💡 Tip: Some MDM solutions, such as Jamf Pro, allow exporting the supervising identity so it can be imported to Apple Configurator or iMazing. However, many MDM solutions don't offer this function. Please contact your MDM vendor to learn how to export the supervising identity for pairing and supervised devices locally with Apple Configurator or iMazing.

1. Trial

iMazing is free to download and install without registration. While many features are accessible without a license, certain features, referred to as Premium features, necessitate a license.

For more information on the trial limitations visit our FAQ page.

2. Activate iMazing

Activation refers to the process of entering a valid license code in iMazing. Once your license is validated, iMazing is activated and features are unlocked according to your license type.

To activate iMazing:

1. In the upper toolbar, click the User icon, or select the Unlock iMazing menu item from the Home Screen.
   
2. The Welcome window will be displayed. Click Enter License Code.
   
3. Copy and paste or type your license code and click Submit.
   

iMazing should now be activated on that computer. License management from then on takes place in the License menu.

⚡ Cannot activate? Please refer to this activation troubleshooting article.

3. Manage Your Device License

3.1. Link Devices to Your License

Whenever you use a premium feature with a device that hasn't yet been linked to your license, iMazing will offer to link it. In the screenshot below, we are exporting photos from Sarah's iPhone, a device which hasn't been linked to the license yet:

From here, you can either:

1. Click the Later button and keep using iMazing's free features with Sarah's iPhone.
2. Click Link & Continue to permanently associate Sarah's iPhone to your iMazing license and unlock unlimited use of all premium features with that device.

3.2. View Licensed Devices

The License menu's View Licensed Devices item opens the Licensed Devices window:

From here, you can review which devices have already been linked to your license. The device identifier listed here is a unique identifier that you can communicate to our support team if needed.

3.3. Extend Your License

Your iMazing Device License supports a limited number of Apple mobile devices. If your license is already fully used, accessing a premium iMazing feature with a new device will display the following screen:

Click the Buy More button to open the license store and extend your license so that it can support more devices.

3.4. Remove a Device from Your License

Linking a specific iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple TV, or Apple Vision Pro device to your license is permanent and cannot be undone. Licensed devices can be used with all iMazing updates (including major versions), for their entire lifetime, on any Mac or PC computer.

💡 If your Apple device is lost or broken, if iMazing fails to perform the expected task with a specific device, or if you mistakenly linked a device to your license, please contact our support team immediately with the details. We trust our users and will quickly handle legitimate requests.

3.5. Upgrade to the Personal Subscription Plan

If you use iMazing's premium features with more than 4 new devices per year, the Personal Subscription plan may be more advantageous. Get in touch with our support team for upgrade conditions.

4. Manage Your Family or Business Subscription

4.1. Link Devices to Your Personal Subscription

Whenever you use a premium feature with a device that hasn't yet been linked to your license, iMazing will offer to link it. In the screenshot below, we are exporting photos from Sarah's iPhone, a device which hasn't been linked to the license yet:

From here, you can either:

1. Click the Later button and keep using iMazing's free features with Sarah's iPhone.
2. Click Link & Continue to permanently associate Sarah's iPhone to your iMazing license and unlock unlimited use of all premium features with that device.

💡 With an iMazing Business Subscription, devices are automatically linked to the license when a premium feature is used. There's no need to confirm the linking of the device to the license.

💡 Both iMazing Family and Business subscriptions automatically unlink devices after a certain period of inactivity, freeing up some device license slots.

• Family Subsciption: Devices not connected for 9 months are not included in the total count of used devices.
• Business Subsciption: Devices not connected for 90 days are not included in the total count of used devices.

4.2. View, Update or Cancel Your iMazing Plan

If you've opted for a subscription plan, the License menu's Plan sub menu is where you can easily manage it:

View Plan

Click the View Plan option to review your plan's type, number of devices or seats and billing information:

Manage Plan

Click the Manage Plan option and iMazing will send you an email containing links to update your payment method, purchase more devices or seats, or cancel your subscription. Here is what the email looks like:

From this email, you can:

• Purchase additional devices or seats to your existing plan at a prorated price, keeping billing clean under one single subscription.
• Update your payment method in case of failed billing.
• Cancel your subscription. Your license will remain fully active until the end of the subscription period.

Note that we do not store any credit card information: you'll be redirected to our payment platform Paddle for billing related tasks.

5. Remove Your License from iMazing

Removing a license from iMazing is only necessary for older seat-based licenses, or if you want to use a different license with the computer, or prevent a user from using your license. Nowadays, iMazing licenses are device-based rather than computer-based. The device-based license is only tied to your licensed apple mobile devices, and therefore can be used on any number of macOS or Windows computers.

You can free up a seat on your legacy license or remove it from a computer by selecting the Remove License option from the License menu.

After the license is removed, iMazing will revert back to trial mode. You can use the same license code to activate iMazing on another macOS or Windows computer.

💡 If you forget to remove your license from a computer to which you don't have access anymore, please contact our support team with your license code.

6. Retrieve Your License Code

Misplaced or lost your license code? You can retrieve it at any time from iMazing's License menu, or from our website's license code retrieval page. You will need to provide the same email address used to purchase the license.

If you do not remember that email address, please contact Support with your full name and/or order number.

1. Home & Device Screens

The iMazing interface consists of two main parts: the home screen, where all your devices and backups are listed, and the device screen, where you can view a specific device or backup.

Home Screen

Device Screen

2. General Toolbar

The upper toolbar contains the following buttons:

2.1. Refresh - refreshes the current view
2.2. Search - search or filter the current view
2.3. Operations Panel - lists all current and completed operations
2.4. Unlock iMazing - buy or activate iMazing, manage your license or plan
2.5. Help - opens contextual help in your web browser

2.1. Refresh

Click the Refresh button to update the current view.

2.2. Search

You can search or filter any content by typing into the search bar.

2.3. Operations Panel

The Operations panel displays all ongoing and past operations since you opened iMazing (e.g. importing music, exporting messages, ...)

2.4. Manage License

First, purchase or activate iMazing. After it is activated, manage your license by clicking this icon.

To unlock all of iMazing's features, you'll need to purchase a license and enter your activation code.

For more information, see Manage your iMazing license

2.5. Help

Anywhere in iMazing, the Help button opens a related iMazing Guide in your web browser.

3. Home Screen

The usual iMazing workflow consists of selecting a device or backup from the iMazing home screen, then browsing a data section or triggering an action.

3.1. Discover

Explore iMazing's features and access them quickly.

3.2. Unlock iMazing

This menu item is only visible when iMazing is running in trial mode. Click on Unlock iMazing to purchase an iMazing license, learn more about the free features available in trial mode, or activate it with a license code.

Unlock iMazing

iMazing Welcome Trial Window

3.3. Devices

View all devices currently connected or previously paired with iMazing. A hint box is also available with a link for further information on how to connect and pair your devices with iMazing.

In this section, you can also adjust how the devices are displayed, either as a grid or in a detailed list view.

Devices Grid View

Devices List View

3.4. Backups

View all your device backups. Similar to the Devices section, you can alter the display of your backups, choosing between a grid or a detailed list view.

Backups Grid View

Backups List View

3.4.1. Backup Snapshots

A backup may include one or more snapshots. To view all backup snapshots, click on the Backup Snapshot menu.

Double-click on your backup snapshots to browse them. To manage or delete specific backup snapshots, select Backup Snapshots | Manage, as shown in the following screenshot.

3.4.2. Archived Backups

When iMazing loads a backup which is not the device's current main backup, it will display it as Archived Backup and will appear in gray-scale. This happens in the following cases:

• Backup is of a device which you removed from iMazing
• Backup is stored in a location which is not the current backup location of the device
• Backup is an iTunes archived backup

Archived Backups can take a lot of space on your hard drive. These backups are often not needed anymore - check their contents before deleting them to regain storage space on your computer.

For further details on managing your backups with iMazing, refer to this guide: Manage your backups with iMazing

3.4.3. Load Backups

iMazing allows you to load backups from any location or add a location that contains multiple backups (backup disk). You can do this by clicking the + icon. Once a backup is loaded, it will appear in the Backups section, and its contents can be browsed.

Add Backup Menu

• Add iMazing File: Import a .imazing file, iMazing 1's default backup export format.
• Add Backup Folder: Load a specific backup folder. When you select this option, iMazing will ask whether you want to copy the backup folder to your default backup location to see it always loaded, or if you want to open it from its current location.
• Add Backup Disk: When you select a disk as your backup location, iMazing creates an iMazing.Backups folder at the root of that drive. Adding a backup disc loads all the backups inside the iMazing.Backups folder of the selected local, external or network drive.

3.4.4. Manage Backup Locations

You can manage backup locations by clicking the Gear icon.

Configure Backup Locations

Backup Location Preferences

For further details on managing your backups with iMazing, refer to this guide: Manage your backups with iMazing

3.5. Configurator (macOS)

The Configurator section provides a comprehensive set of tools for managing Apple mobile devices in bulk. These features are included in the iMazing Business plans. The iMazing Configurator features are available with iMazing Business plans.

For more info on the iMazing Configurator, please visit the following links:

• iMazing Configurator Commercial Page
• iMazing Configurator Quick Start Guide
• iMazing Configurator Overview

💡 The iMazing Configurator blueprint editor is only available on macOS. However, you can apply blueprints exported from iMazing for macOS on a Windows PC.

4. Device Screen

The device screen provides access to all information, data, and tools specific to a device.

4.1. General

4.1.1. Sidebar

In the sidebar, you'll find the main device info, connection status, battery level and the following 4 sections:

• Overview
• Data
• Tools
• Settings

4.1.2. Connection Status

The device's connection status icon is displayed in the device sidebar.

Icon	Legend
	Device is connected via USB
	Device is connected via Wi-Fi
	iMazing is searching for the device
	Device is asleep
	iMazing could not connect to the device, but you can still browse its backed up contents

4.1.3. Battery Level

The device's battery level is displayed in the device sidebar as well.

4.1.4. Device Info Popup

You can access all device info by clicking the Info icon.

4.1.5. Device Contextual Menu

The contextual menu offers quick access to all iMazing features. You can access it by clicking the 3 dots icon or by right-clicking the device image anywhere in the app.

4.1.6. Switch Quickly from One Device to Another

You can swiftly transition between devices by clicking the Devices Menu, as indicated in the following screenshot.

4.1.7. Backup Snapshots Menu

When iMazing backs up your device and you've enabled Backup Snapshots in the Device Settings, it creates snapshots for each backup while optimizing the storage space needed on your computer. Double-click on your backup snapshots to browse them. Manage your backup snapshots by selecting Backup Snapshots | Manage, as shown in the following screenshot.

For more details on how to manage, edit, delete, or restore your backup snapshots with iMazing, please refer to this guide: Manage your backups with iMazing

4.1.8. Navigate Back and Forth

You can navigate back and forth using the Back and Forth buttons.

4.1.9. Refresh Data

You can refresh data anywhere in the app by using the Refresh icon.

4.1.10. Search and Filtering

You can search for and filter displayed items at any time by typing in the search field.

4.1.11. Close Device

To close a device and return to the Home Screen, click the Close button.

4.2. Device Overview

This section offers shortcuts to primary data sections, quick actions, device information, storage usage, and battery diagnostic.

4.2.1. Data Shortcuts

From here, you can quickly access main data sections and shortcuts. Click on More to view all data sections and shortcuts.

4.2.2. Device Info

All device information can be found here. Click on Show All to see the full list of device details.

💡 Tip: You can export all device information to a .txt file by clicking on Export.

For more information, refer to How to find an iPhone or iPad's UDID and other device info (serial,model, IMEI, ...)?

4.2.3. Quick Actions

This area provides access to the primary actions and tools for this device. Click on More to view all available actions and tools.

💡 Tip: When iMazing is minimized, some actions may not be visible until you scroll down.

4.2.4. Storage Usage

The Storage Usage bar provides a breakdown of the storage used by each type of data. Click the blue text to access a detailed pie chart and additional information related to disk usage.

4.2.5. Battery Health

The battery health can be found in this area. Click on Details to access the full battery diagnostic.

For more information, see How to check an iPhone or iPad's battery health and diagnostics?

4.3. Device Data

To close a device and return to the Home Screen, click the Close button.

💡 Tip: You can create shortcuts to third-party apps installed on your device that have file sharing enabled by clicking New Shortcut. This creates a quick access to a dedicated file browser, allowing you to transfer files to and from a specific app.

4.4. Tools

In this section, you can access all the tools and actions available for this specific device.

For more information, refer to Actions & Tools in iMazing.

4.5. Device Settings

In this section, you can modify iMazing settings for the chosen device, particularly all backup options. These include the backup location, encryption, snapshots, and automatic backups.

For more details on the available options, please refer to: Device Settings in iMazing

5. Main Menu

In addition to the traditional File, Edit, and Help menus, the main menu provides access to iMazing's Preferences and to License Management options.

5.1. iMazing Preferences

General, Backups, Language settings and more can be accessed from iMazing's Preferences Window.

5.2. View

From the View menu, you can manage options related to how iMazing displays some data browser views. You can also invert the appearance to control the iMazing interface in either Light or Dark mode.

5.3. Tools

The Tools menu offers shortcuts to launch other utilities included with iMazing:

• iMazing Mini is iMazing's menu bar companion app which performs automatic backups. Getting Started with iMazing Mini
• iMazing Converter is a small utility which converts images in High Efficiency Image Format to JPEG or PNG. How to Convert HEIC to JPEG
• iMazing Profile Editor is a fully fledged Apple configuration profile editor, useful for system administrators. Getting Started with iMazing Profile Editor

5.4. License

The License menu provides access to iMazing's licensing management.

5.5. Help

The Help menu provides shortcuts to iMazing's Support Center, the iMazing Guided Tour, and social media pages, as well as options to send feedback or bug reports.

6. File Browsing

The Apps and File System sections share common features and actions that allow you to browse your files and copy them between your computer and your device:

5.1. Browser Views - change your view to icons, list or columns.
5.2. File Path - navigate to a different folder.
5.3. Browsing Area - select files or folder.
5.4. Bottom Toolbar - interact with your selection.

6.1. Browser Views

Click one of the view buttons to change the view in the browsing area.

Mac Browser Views

	View objects as icons
	View objects as a list
	View objects as columns

Windows Browser Views

	View objects as large icons.
	View objects as tiles.
	View objects as icons.
	View objects as a list.
	View objects' details.

Sort Files

From the List (macOS) or Details (Windows) view, you can sort your files by Name, Date Modified, Date Created, Size or Kind.

To sort your files, simply click one of the column headers.

6.2. File Path

Click on this dropdown menu to view or select a parent folder in the browsing area.

6.3. Browsing Area

Where iMazing displays all files and folders in the selected view. This is where you can make your selection.

You can also drag and drop files to and from views that allow File Sharing.

❗Warning: Some folders in the Browsing Area are read-only. For example, you can copy files to an app's Documents folder, but not to its Backups folder.

6.4. Bottom Toolbar

Access all available action for your selection from the bottom toolbar.

Actions are contextual: depending on your view, some might be disabled (grayed out).

💡 Tip: Actions are also available by right-clicking inside of the browsing area.

💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

• What is a Backup?
• What's in a Backup?
• iMazing Backups
• Backup Snapshots
• How to Backup your Device?
• How to Change your Backup Location?
• How to Browse the Content of a Backup?
• How to Restore a Backup to Another Device?
• How to Export a Backup?
• How to Import a Backup?
• How to Move a Backup?
• How to Delete Backups?
• How to Edit Backups?

What is a backup?

A backup is a snapshot of your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or Apple Vision Pro at the moment it was saved.

In the context of iMazing, backups are always stored locally. This could be on your computer, external storage, or network drive. They are not hosted in the cloud. Since Apple restricts direct access to device data, backups are critical for iMazing's functionality (described below).

Backing up an Apple device involves more than just copying your device files to the designated backup location. Apple's iOS backup format is "flattened": each file gets an identifier, also known as a “hash”, which is then used as its filename on the computer. All these files are stored in the same backup folder. These files don't have user-friendly filenames or extensions, meaning you can't identify a file by its name or type. Furthermore, if Backup Encryption is enabled, the file will be encrypted.

This is where iMazing comes in handy. It creates a virtual reconstruction of your backup, allowing you to easily preview or extract files to your computer.

What's in a Backup?

An iOS backup contains the following datasets and settings:

Datasets	Accounts, settings, other

For more information, see What data is included in an iOS backup?

What are iMazing Backups?

iMazing leverages Apple's own backup protocol. It does not control the backup process itself nor does it decide what files to backup, but brings several key enhancements:

• The ability to browse backups, extract data from them, and edit them
• Automatic Backup Snapshots (described below)
• Disk Usage break down of each backup
• Control over what data and apps are restored from a backup

Backup Snapshots

Apple's software maintains only one backup per device. Every time you back up your device, your last backup is overwritten. If you accidentally delete a file or photo on your device and back it up afterwards, the accidentally deleted file is gone forever.

iMazing creates snapshots of your backups automatically, a unique solution that is similar to Apple's macOS Time Machine feature, but for your iOS or iPadOS devices.

How does it work?

iMazing makes a 'shallow' copy of your current backups, so that the next time you backup, you still have access to your previous backup, and only the files which have changed take up disk space.

How much drive space do these backups it take?

Precise numbers will depend on the frequency of your backups and how much new data you generate in between. Generally speaking, you should be able to keep dozens of backups for only marginally more space than a single backup.

For more information, see Backup Options in iMazing.

How to Backup your Device?

For instructions on how to back up your device, see How to backup an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch to your Mac or PC computer?

How to Change your Backup Location?

Backup locations are specified per device. You can back up your iPhone locally on your hard drive, and your iPad on an external drive or NAS.

You can change each of your device's backup location from the Device Options Window.

For more information, see How to backup an iPhone or iPad to an external drive, or another location?

View, Browse and Load Backups

Some datasets can be accessed directly from your device, but others can only be accessed via a backup. In order to access and display all of your data, iMazing needs to backup your device.

requires a backup	can be accessed without a backup

💡 Voice Memos only require a backup up on iOS 15 and above.

By default, iMazing will display the current state of your device. To view the contents of an earlier backup, open the Backup List from the upper toolbar.

For more information, see How to view the contents of an iPhone or iPad's backup?

Restore a Backup

When you restore a backup, you can:

• Return your device to the state it was when that backup was made.
• Move your data to a new device.

With iMazing, you can restore the entirety of your backup, or choose what datasets and apps you would like to restore. You can also restore a backup to multiple devices in one action.

For more information, see How to restore an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch from an iTunes backup?

Export a backup

You can export an iPhone or iPad backup with iMazing to a location of your choice.

Export the latest backup:

1. Right-click your device in the sidebar and select Export Backup as Folder.
2. Choose the location where you want to export this backup; the folder name will be the name of your device.

💡 Tip: You can also drag out any device from iMazing's sidebar to export the latest backup

Export a particular backup version:

1. Select your device in the sidebar.
2. In the upper toolbar, click the Backups button. This will open the Backup List.
3. Click the "Export" icon (square with up arrow) on the backup of your choice.
4. Choose the location where you want to export this backup; the folder name will be the name of your device.

Import a backup

You can import an iPhone or iPad backup in iMazing to browse its contents, restore or edit it.

1. Click the + button at the bottom of iMazing's left sidebar.
2. Select Add Backup Folder or Add Backup Disk (if you want to import multiple backups).
3. Select the backup folder you wish to import.
4. Choose if you want to Copy or Open the backup. Copy imports the backup to iMazing's default location definitively. Open will only temporarily open the backup with iMazing.

💡 Tip: You can also drag in a backup folder to iMazing's sidebar to import it in iMazing

Delete Backups

As iMazing maintains multiple backups of your device, you have the option to delete a single backup or all backups of that device.

To delete a single backup:

1. In the sidebar, select your device.
2. In the upper toolbar, click the Backups button. This will open the Backup List.
3. From the Backup list, select the backup you want to delete.
4. Click Delete and confirm.

To delete all backups:

1. In the sidebar, right-click your device.
2. From the contextual menu, select Delete Backup.
3. Click Delete and confirm.

❗ Important: Deleting all backups, does not remove the pairing between your device and your computer. To remove all traces of your device, you'll want to Remove your device from iMazing.

Move Backups

iMazing can copy all your device's backups, including its snapshots to another drive or location, in case you need to recapture the drive space they consume or simply want another copy.

1. In the sidebar, right-click your device.
2. From the contextual menu, select Export Backup and All Snapshots to Another Location.
3. Select the location to copy your device backup includin to.
4. When complete, decide if you want to save this new backup location for future use and if you to use this new backup location for this device from now on.

For more information, see How to move an iPhone or iPad backup to another location?

Edit a Backup

Backups are read-only by default. By clicking the Edit button, you create a copy of your backup. This protects the original backup by keeping it safe and unaltered.

Editable backups appear in the Backups section on the iMazing Home Screen, they are tagged with the label Editable Backup:

For more information, see How to edit an iPhone or iPad's backup?

❗ Important: Backup editing is an advanced feature only recommended for advanced users.

💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

iMazing's Device Options lets you adjust the following settings for the selected device:

• Backup Options
• Wi-Fi Connection
• Device Settings
• Additional Options

To access Device Options, click the cogwheel to the right of your device's name.

To ensure an optimal experience with iMazing, make sure to greenlight all of your device's options:

Backup Options

The Device Options give you access to the following backup options:

• Configure Automatic Backups Scheduling
• Change Backup Location
• Change Backup Archiving Options
• Enable or disable Backup Encryption

For a more detailed break down of backup options, see Backup Options in iMazing.

Wi-Fi-connection

Enable or disable Wi-Fi connection for the selected device. Nearly all types of data transfer can be done via Wi-Fi, including backing up. To restore a backup or install iOS, you will need to connect your device via USB.

💡 Tip: To enable Wi-Fi connection, your device needs to be connected via USB.

💡 Tip 2: You can configure whether or not iMazing enables Wi-Fi by default on newly connected devices in iMazing's Preferences window, Devices tab.

Device Settings

Here, you can change a device's name, language and region, and accessibility options. Changes are only applied when you click the Apply button at the lower right of the window.

💡 Supervised devices: Please use the Supervision wizard to access supervised device settings such as wallpapers, passcode unlock and single app mode. To learn more, head to our Managing Supervised iOS devices guide.

Additional Options

• Receive a notification when your device needs to be charged.
• Automatically launch iMazing when you connect your device to your computer.

💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

The actions panel is where you'll launch most common operations. Some like Restore trigger a wizard, others have immediate effect. The list of available actions depends on whether your sidebar selection is a device or a backup.

• Wizards
• Device Actions
• Backup Actions

When iMazing's window is at its minimum size, some of the action buttons will not be visible until you scroll down.

Wizards

Wizards are easy to follow step-by-step assistants for the following operations:

• Backup a device
• Restore a backup to a device
• Transfer data from one device to another
• Manage apps on the device or in iMazing's Apps Library

💡Tip: At the end of each wizard, you will have the option to Close Window. Closing the window is perfectly safe: it will take you back to iMazing's main interface, and will not cancel your ongoing operation.

To view the status of ongoing and finished operations, open the Operations window.

Device actions

The following actions are available when a device is selected in the sidebar.

Backup Actions

The following actions are available when a backup is selected in the sidebar.

💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

iMazing groups the data on your phone in what we call datasets. Most datasets are equivalent to Apple apps pre-installed on your device, like Messages, Photos, Contacts, Phone...

The Dataset Panel gives you access to datasets as well as to shortcuts to specific apps and/or folders.

When iMazing's window is at its minimum size, some of the data buttons will not be visible until you scroll down.

💡Tip: The contents of the data panel can also be accessed from the sidebar.

Datasets

By clicking one the dataset buttons, you open the corresponding dataset's view. Some datasets like Messages or Voicemail will be displayed from your latest backup - if you haven't backed up in a while, simply click refresh in the top toolbar to trigger a refresh of your backup and browse your most up to date data.

Shortcuts

See Shortcuts in iMazing.

💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

• Apps Shortcuts
• Folder Shortcuts

Apps Shortcuts

The last button in the panel is the New Shortcut button. It opens a wizard which lets you pick an application you would like to create a shortcut to - very convenient to keep VLC or GoodReader files just a click away! Apps which you create a shortcut for show up in the Dataset Panel, just like VLC in the screenshot below:

💡Tip: If you do not see your shortcuts, or the New Shortcut button, make sure that you have selected a connected device and not a backup: shortcuts are only available for live devices.

Folder Shortcuts

For advanced users, iMazing also offers shortcuts to specific locations in a device’s file system. It can be to a sub-folder of an application's Documents folder, or to a specific location in the device's Media folder for example.

Adding this type of shortcut is done via the File System view:

1. In the sidebar, select the File System section of a device
2. Select the folder of you choice, and click New Shortcut in the bottom toolbar
3. Enter a name for your shortcut, and click OK. Your shorcut will now appear in the Datasets Panel.

iMazing offers many options to configure how and where your mobile devices are backed up:

• Backup Encryption
• Backup Location
• Backup Snapshots
• Automatic Backup Scheduling

These settings are configured per device, and can be accessed at any time from the Device Settings section:

The first time you back up a device, iMazing will show the backup settings view, allowing you to adjust your settings before the backup starts.

Backup Encryption

Backup Encryption is an Apple security feature that protects your data. An encrypted backup includes data that unencrypted backups do not:

• Keychain
• Wi-Fi settings
• Health data
• Home data
• Safari history
• Call history

To protect your data, we strongly recommend enabling backup encryption for all of your devices.

iMazing does not encrypt your backups by default. To encrypt a backup in iMazing for the first time, you need to turn on the Backup Encryption option and set an encryption password. After you enable backup encryption, all future backups of the device will be encrypted, regardless of the software you back it up with.

❗ Warning: If you lose or forget your encryption password, you will not be able to browse previous backup snapshots or create new ones. Keep this password safe and make sure to click the Remember Password checkbox. The password is securely saved in your macOS Keychain or Windows Credentials.

You can enable or disable backup encryption from the Device Settings section.

To learn more about backup encryption please read our dedicated article: Backup Encryption in iMazing.

Backup Location

Choose the folder or disk where you'd like iMazing to store backups of the selected device. Each device can be backed up to a different location.

To change iMazing's default backup location (i.e. where iMazing backs up your device if you do not specify a location), see iMazing Preferences.

For detailed instructions on how to change your backup location, see How to backup an iPhone or iPad to an external drive, or another location?

Select an existing location (recommended)

Select one of the backup locations displayed in the list where you would like iMazing to store your device backup.

Backup location preferences

Click the Backup location preferences button to manage your backup locations and configure new ones.

💡 Note: When adding a disk as a backup location, iMazing will create an iMazing.Backups folder at the root of your disk to prevent permission issues.

Backup Snapshot

Here, you can customize iMazing's unique automatic Backup Snapshots feature. For an optimal backup management experience, we recommend the default settings.

Enable backup snapshots

iMazing automatically takes incremental backups, similar to Time Machine on macOS for your Apple mobile device, allowing you to keep multiple snapshots. Disk usage is optimized, enabling you to easily store dozens of backups.

For more information on iMazing backups, refer to Manage your iPhone or iPad backups with iMazing.

Automatically delete backup snapshots

When this options is enabled, iMazing automatically deletes your oldest snapshots when they start to take up too much space. By default, iMazing will ask for permission before doing so.

When it is disabled, iMazing will never suggest deletion of snapshots.

💡 Tip: iMazing will only start deleting your snapshots when their cumulative size is over half of your original backup.

For example, if your original backup is 20GB, iMazing will allocate 10GB of extra space for your snapshots. Once your snapshots take up more than 10GB, iMazing will start deleting your oldest snapshots to make space for the new ones.

Backup snapshots retention

As an added safety measure, iMazing only deletes backup snapshots if they have reached a certain 'age'.

Let's say iMazing has allocated 10GB of space for your snapshots, and your snapshot retention is set to 1 month. If within a week, your snapshots reach this 10GB limit, iMazing will not automatically delete your oldest snapshot, because it was made less than a month ago.

If the Always ask me for permissions before deleting backup snapshots. checkbox is ticked, iMazing will ask for your permission prior to deleting older snapshots. This option is on by default, disable it only if you are certain that you only need your latest snapshots.

Automatic Backup Scheduling

Enabling Automatic Backups will back up your devices on a specific schedule. We recommend making one backup per day.

Important considerations

⚡

• We strongly recommend enabling backup encryption to protect your data.
• Both iMazing and iMazing Mini can back up your devices via the local Wi-Fi network when your computer and Apple mobile devices are connected to it.
• The first backup made by iMazing or iMazing Mini can take a long time, depending on the amount of data stored on your device. We recommend connecting the USB cable to speed up the process. Subsequent snapshots are much faster because they are incremental and can be done over Wi-Fi. For more details about slow backups, please refer to our article: Understanding & fixing slow iPhone or iPad backups
• Since iOS 16.1, you need to enter your device passcode for every backup. This is a security measure imposed by Apple.
• If you run a backup manually, iMazing Mini will consider the backup done for the current day and will execute a backup operation only the next day.

💡iMazing 3
This guide is not yet complete or updated for iMazing 3. An update will be available soon.

Encryption is a security measure that protects your data by encoding the information so that it is unreadable without entering the correct password to decrypt it.

With regards to iMazing and iOS/iPadOS backups:

1. Encrypting your Apple device backups is strongly encouraged as good practice to protect your data.

   • If a computer or hard drive your Apple device is backed up to is lost, stolen, or simply accessed by a 3rd party, no one would be able to read any of the information contained within.

2. Encryption is required to create a full backup of your device, as certain important datasets are excluded by Apple's design from unencrypted backups, including:

   • HealthKit
   • HomeKit
   • Keychain data (all passwords, including for Wi-Fi networks)
   • Call history
   • Safari history
   • Encrypted backups do not include: Face ID, Touch ID, or device passcode data.

3. iMazing uses Apple's own iOS BackupAgent to perform backups and encryption:

   • Your data is encrypted on the device itself by iOS, not iMazing.
   • Your data is protected using the exact same high standards Apple employs, including AES-256 for the backup encryption algorithm.
   • Your backup password is known only to you, never recorded by iMazing. It is never transmitted to iMazing's servers, or anywhere else.
   • If you choose to save the password for your encrypted backup with iMazing, the password is stored locally in the macOS Keychain (Mac) or Windows Credentials (PC).

Further Reading

If you are interested in learning more about Apple’s encryption and data protection standards:

• Apple Platform Security: Keybags for Data Protection
• Apple Platform Security (Full PDF)
• Apple Support KB: About encrypted backups on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch