iOS: Backup core data database in iCloud?

Question

I did some research but all I could find was syncing data core with iCloud. I need to know if it is possible / recommended to backup a core data in iCloud. I have an app which uses data core to store information. I would like to have some kind of backup implemented for whenever the user decides to reformat his phone..get a new phone..etc. Is iCloud the way to go ? We already implemented export to CSV and we're planning to implement import from CSV. I was just wondering if iCloud was a solution for backing up core data once a day lets say..or smth like that. Thank you !

Answer 1

That's what iCloud is for. You can implement it, then when the user moves to a new device, all the data is there for them. It's not really a backup solution though, in the way you're thinking about it, the user doesn't really have access to a file they can copy to a USB stick. It's a way to have the data available to all devices and to move the data to new devices. It doesn't backup once a day, it backs up at more regular intervals. It works well with Core Data too, loading the updates asynchronously, only sending delta updates through the network, syncing quickly over WiFi. Check out the WWDC 2011 session 303 video or Using Core Data with iCloud Release Notes and iCloud Storage Guidelines.

I don't think it's that easy to implement iCloud with Core Data, they're both complicated to learn, but it will probably save you trouble in the future to use them.