Cloud backups and restore

Recover the library around your audio

Audely Pro cloud backups protect the library around your source audio. They are separate recovery points stored in iCloud. Sync is for everyday continuity, while backups provide a way back after an unwanted edit, deletion, or reset.

What a backup contains

A backup can include books and their parts, shows and their episodes, audiobook metadata, notes, artwork, saved transcripts, favourites, played state, listening positions, supported preferences, and the creating device’s Now playing item, play queue, and playback speed.

Collections retain their membership, colour, and saved order. Restoring an older backup that contains no collections removes the current collections as part of replacing the library.

It also keeps matching details such as original filenames and folder-relative paths so restored items can reconnect to local files.

Backups do not contain source audio, source folders, their content type, pending mixed-folder choices, device-specific permissions, absolute paths, or device-specific file locations.

The listening session includes the Now playing item and its current position, including when a backup is created during playback, as well as the queue and playback speed.

Restoring applies that session only to the device that starts the restore, and loads it paused. Press play to resume when the audio is available. If local audio is missing, Audely retains the restored selection while you restore access. That session is not copied to other devices. Their existing sessions remain for items that are still present after the restored library syncs.

Backups count against the available storage in the signed-in iCloud account. Artwork and transcripts usually account for most of the backup size.

Create a backup

iPhone and iPad

Open Settings inside Audely and choose Backup.

Mac

Open Audely › Settings and select Backup.

Turn on Back up to iCloud. Choose Manual, Daily, or Weekly. Manual turns off automatic creation while keeping Back up now available.

Ordinary retention keeps five recent verified recovery points across your devices. A safety backup made before restore is protected until a strictly newer ordinary verified backup exists. Restore never removes recovery points, so the list may temporarily exceed five. Later list refreshes and ordinary verified backups retry cleanup while retaining protected safety points.

With Daily or Weekly selected, a scheduled backup is created when Audely is used and the newest cloud backup is older than the chosen frequency. It is not a fixed clock-time event.

A new backup appears only after it finishes successfully. If creation fails, existing backups remain unchanged. Older recovery points are removed only after the new one is safely available.

Restore a backup

Open the Backup page in Settings.
Select the recovery point you want and choose Restore.
Review the preview showing the counts of saved books or shows, parts or episodes, and transcripts.
In Restore backup?, confirm Restore.
Let Audely create a safety backup of the current library and apply the selected version.
Link or scan source folders on the current device if playback access is missing.

Restore creates the synced library in iCloud if needed. It leaves ordinary sync off on this device if it was already off, and does not replace or delete your cloud backups.

Audely creates and verifies a safety backup before replacement. If that safety backup fails, restore stops by default. Continuing without it requires a separate warning because the current library may not be recoverable.

If Audely verifies a failure before library replacement, the current library remains unchanged. In the rare case that the result cannot be verified, restart Audely before trying again as the alert directs. If the library was restored but sync was paused for safety, the restored library remains on the device and the alert explains how to retry sync.

Finishing a restore safely

Once a restore has replaced the local library, Audely keeps the recovery work needed to finish that replacement safely. Restarting the app can resume unfinished recovery. If sync is turned off or Audely Pro access ends after that point, Audely may still finish the pending iCloud repair for that restore. This does not restart ordinary syncing or allow a new restore without Pro.

A later Delete synced library data action still takes priority. Audely keeps the local restored library and switches sync off rather than recreating the deleted synced library. Follow the status or recovery message in Settings if an interruption needs attention.

Why source folders may need to be linked again

Folder permissions and content choices belong to one device and are not included in backups. After reinstalling or restoring on another device, link the folder that contains the matching audio, choose its content type, and run a source scan. Audely uses restored part and episode information to reconnect matches where possible.

Delete a backup

iPhone and iPad

Open the backup row’s options and choose Delete.

Mac

Select a backup in the table and use the delete control below it.

Deleting a backup removes only that version from iCloud. It does not change the current library, synced library data, other backups, or source audio.

When your Audely Pro subscription ends, existing backups remain visible and can still be deleted. Creating, downloading, or restoring a backup requires Audely Pro.

Sync compared with backup

Sync keeps current library changes moving between devices.
Backup preserves recent recovery points in case a current change should be undone.

Both use the signed-in iCloud account, but they solve different problems.

Resetting a local library or using Delete synced library data does not delete cloud backups.