Apple has started warning its users running very old versions of the iOS operating system about a very good reason to consider an upgrade. Backups made through the iCloud service will no longer work, and will even be deleted, for devices running the iOS 8 (or older) operating system.
Old devices will require updates or the use of alternative back-up methods
Apple has published a new support page about this upcoming big change:
Starting December 18, 2024, device software backups will require iOS 9 or later. This decision was made to align this feature with the minimum system requirements as well. Until this date, the back-up function can be used as before. After this deadline, all backup data will be deleted if users do not update their operating system to iOS 9 or later.
So, if you have a device running iOS 8 (or older), starting December 18th you will no longer be able to back it up via iCloud. Also, all backups stored in the cloud for such devices will be deleted (if not updated to iOS 9 or later).
However, for users who own such iPhones and cannot or do not want to update their operating system, there is an option to perform manual backups through a Mac or PC computer. For example, if you have the opportunity to connect such an iPhone to a Mac computer running MacOS Catalina or later, you will be able to perform a manual backup through the Finder application.
Similarly, if you have a Windows PC or Mac computer running an older version of the iOS operating system, you can use the Apple Devices or iTunes apps to perform manual backups for devices running iOS 8 (or older).
Source: 9 to 5 Mac
Source: www.go4it.ro
