How to back up your photo library in macOS Sequoia Apfelpatient

Photos are quick to take – but just as quickly lost if something goes wrong. While iCloud is deeply integrated into macOS Sequoia and handles many things automatically, you should still back up your photo collection manually as well. If a mistake occurs or something is deleted, it's gone from the cloud. This article will teach you how to properly back up your photos on macOS Sequoia without losing anything.

Many people rely entirely on iCloud Photos. The idea is that everything is automatically synced, and nothing gets lost. The problem is that iCloud is a syncing solution, not an archiving solution. If you delete a photo on one device or something gets corrupted, the damage is visible on all devices. That's why it's important to regularly create a local backup—a copy on your Mac or an external drive that you can access at any time, independent of the cloud.

Choosing the right System Photo Library on your Mac

Before creating a backup, you should make sure that the Photos app is using the correct System Photo Library. If it isn't, your photos may not be syncing properly with iCloud. This often results in the error message "iCloud Photos features are only available in the System Photo Library."

Here's how to check:

Quit the Photos app.
Hold down the Option key and open the Photos app again.
In the “Select Media Library” window, select the desired media library.
Once it's open, go to Photos > Preferences > General tab.
Click "Use as System Photo Library." If the button is grayed out, it's already active.
Switch to the iCloud tab and make sure iCloud Photos is enabled.

Save originals locally in full resolution

When iCloud Photos is enabled, macOS downloads only optimized previews by default. The originals are stored in the cloud. However, for a complete backup, you'll need the full-resolution files on your Mac. Here's how to enable downloading:

Open the Photos app.
Go to Photos > Settings > iCloud.
Select the “Download originals to this Mac” option.

This can take up a lot of space, depending on the size of your photo library—from a few gigabytes to several hundred. Plug in your Mac and make sure it doesn't go to sleep during the download. You can prevent it from going to sleep automatically by going to System Preferences > Battery > Options and checking "Prevent the power adapter from automatically sleeping when the display is off." If you're running low on storage, you can connect an external drive and use it as the primary storage location for your System Photo Library until all the data is downloaded.

Manually back up your photo library to an external drive

Once all the originals are available locally, you can manually back up your photo collection. Here's how:

Quit the Photos app completely.
Open the “Pictures” folder in Finder.
Find the file “Photos Library.photoslibrary”.
Connect an external drive (formatted as APFS or Mac OS Extended Journaled).
Drag the file to the external drive and wait until the copy process is complete.

Important: Do not unplug the drive or put your Mac into sleep mode during the copy process.

If you want to open the media library directly from the external drive, you must adjust the access rights:

Right-click on the external drive in Finder, then select “Get Info”.
Check the box “Ignore ownership of this volume.”

This prevents problems with user permissions that can otherwise occur when accessing the photo library.

Backup to a second partition or another volume on your Mac

If you don't have an external drive handy, you can back up your media library to a second volume or partition on your internal storage. This method doesn't replace an external backup, but it does provide additional protection against accidental deletion or software errors. Here's how to set up a second volume:

Open Disk Utility.
Select your internal hard drive (“Macintosh HD”).
Click the plus sign to add a new APFS volume.
Give the volume a name (e.g. “Photo Backup”) and click “Add”.
Once it appears in Finder, quit the Photos app.
Copy the file “Photos Library.photoslibrary” to the new volume.

This method does not protect against hardware failure, but it at least logically separates your backup from the active system.

Use Time Machine as additional security

Time Machine automatically creates regular, versioned backups of your files—including your photo library, as long as it's on the internal drive. This lets you restore old versions, even if you accidentally change or delete something.

To set up Time Machine:

Make sure your photo collection is on the internal storage.
Connect a Time Machine compatible drive.
Enable Time Machine in System Preferences > General > Time Machine.
Allow automatic backups or start them manually.

Important: Do not store your photo library on the same drive you use for Time Machine. This can cause conflicts. Apple strongly advises against it.

Backing up photos on macOS Sequoia: What you need to do

macOS Sequoia provides convenient photo management with iCloud, but true data security is only achieved with a local backup. To do this, you should first configure the Photos app correctly, then load all originals onto your Mac, and finally manually back up your entire photo library—ideally to an external drive. A Time Machine backup is recommended as an additional layer of protection. If you do this regularly, you'll have your memories backed up in full resolution—regardless of what happens in the cloud or on your device. Looking for new accessories? Discover our Amazon Storefront now ! There you'll find a variety of products from top brands, ideal for HomeKit and more! (Image: Shutterstock / Kaspars Grinvalds)