Looking inside iCloud when copying a file across to cloud storage. How CloudDocs, CloudKit, MMCS, and other subsystems work together.
iCloud
What does iCloud mean when its says it’s ‘preparing’ a file? Seeing through the smoke and mirrors of iCloud Drive.
A tag containing the filename of a file still held remotely in iCloud, attached to a stub. Only in iCloud files.
Scripts and apps which could look at folders in iCloud should watch for stub files. Here’s how they work, and why they can mislead.
Its purpose is unknown, but it is automatically attached to contents of apps downloaded from iCloud Drive, if to a different system from the uploader.
How the two user modes differ, what iCloud Drive does to files transferred between two different clients, and an apparently unique tag it applies to apps which pass through.
Don’t use iCloud Drive to copy docs between Sierra and High Sierra, as they may well lose metadata in the process. Bug or feature?
So you think you know about iCloud Keychain? A careful exploration turns up some surprises, and suggests some good rules for troubleshooting.
A strange problem with backups that start, but fail to complete successfully, apparently because of duplicate filenames. T2M2 to the rescue, bringing some important lessons.
Developers should consider letting users export and import suites of settings, to determine an app’s persona, or flavours of working environment.
The Eclectic Light Company 