| page.title=Backing up App Data to the Cloud |
| page.tags=cloud,sync,backup |
| |
| startpage=true |
| |
| @jd:body |
| |
| <p>Users often invest significant time and effort creating data and setting |
| preferences within apps. Preserving that data for users if they replace a broken |
| device or upgrade to a new one is an important part of ensuring a great user |
| experience. This section covers techniques for backing up data to the cloud so |
| that users can restore their data. |
| |
| <p>Android provides two ways for apps to backup their data to the cloud: |
| <a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/data/autobackup.html">Auto Backup for Apps</a> and |
| <a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/data/keyvaluebackup.html">Key/Value Backup</a>. |
| Auto Backup, which is available starting API 23, preserves app data by uploading |
| it to the user’s Google Drive account. The Key/Value Backup feature (formerly |
| known as the Backup API and the Android Backup Service) preserves app data by |
| uploading it to the <a href="{@docRoot}google/backup/index.html">Android Backup Service</a>. |
| |
| <p>Generally, we recommend Auto Backup because it requires no work to implement. |
| Apps that target Android 6.0 (API level 23) or higher are automatically enabled |
| for Auto Backup. The Auto Backup feature does have some limitations in terms of |
| what data it can backup and it's availability on Android 6.0 and higher devices. |
| Consider using the Key/Value Backup feature if you have more specific needs for |
| backing up your app data. For more information, see <a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/data/keyvaluebackup.html#Comparison">Comparison of Key/Value and Auto Backup</a></p> |
| |
| <p class="note"><strong>Note:</strong> These data backup features are not designed for synchronizing app data with other clients or |
| saving data that you'd like to access during the normal application lifecycle. |
| You cannot read or write backup data on demand. For synchronizing app data, see |
| <a href="{@docRoot}training/sync-adapters/index.html">Transferring |
| Data Using Sync Adapters</a> or <a href="https://developers.google.com/drive/android/">Google Drive Android |
| API</a>. |