


A Mac running macOS 10.7 or newer, or a PC running Windows Vista or newer.An understanding of the desired new backup location path.In order to change your computer's default iTunes backup location, the following is necessary: Please note that if the iTunes backup location is changed to a volume that is not available at all times, the iTunes backup process will fail when the new location is unavailable. This is an easily reversible change, so it is possible to restore the default backup location to its original directory. Simply put, this is done by replacing the iTunes backup folder with a symbolic link to the desired location. It is possible to configure a computer such that iTunes backs up to a secondary hard-disk, or to an external HDD or NAS.

Many users have large backups or backups from a number of iOS devices, and as a consequence they find themselves running low on disk space. However, if your computer has lots of free storage, you don’t have to worry unless you suspect issues with file corruption or if there are multiple IPSW files for any Apple devices that you no longer use.The default iTunes backup location is set to the PC or Mac's primary disk, and in macOS 10.15, iOS backups as created by Finder are stored in the same place. So if you keep running out of disk space, you can safely delete them. To recap, IPSW files hold the system software and firmware for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod and are only used when updating or restoring your mobile devices. If you do, you could end up bricking your iPhone, iPad, or iPod. But if you decide to create a symlink to an external drive, make sure not to disconnect it during an update or restore. You can then copy them back should you need them later.Īlternatively, you can use symbolic links on the Mac or PC to shift the directory that stores IPSW files. However, if you have issues with storage but don’t want to delete anything, feel free to copy the contents to external storage. Can You Change the IPSW Download Location?īoth Finder and iTunes do not provide a built-in option to change the download location of IPSW files. That should again prompt Finder or iTunes to download a fresh copy from the Apple servers. Additionally, you might want to delete an IPSW file if it’s corrupted and you keep running into issues while updating or restoring an iPhone or iPad.
