How do I back up all of my phone's information?

Before sending your device in for repair or replacement, we recommend you take the time to back up all of your device's information. This should make for a smooth transition once you receive the device back or the replacement device.

Note: Motorola does not take responsibility for any information lost prior to back up, during back up, or after back up. These are tools provided by various companies for free for consumers to use and primarily by Google as part of the native Android software. Always use discretion before using a third party backup tool.

Contacts

Google Backup

To see which of your contacts have been backed up to Google visit contacts.google.com. Make sure you are signed into the same Google account as on your device.

File Backup

In order to make sure all of your contacts are backed up, we highly recommend using a .vcf file.

First, we need to make sure all of your contacts are showing.

1. Go to Contacts
2. Select Menu  scroll down and touch settings. (  )
3. Touch Contacts to Display. Set it to All Contacts.

Now, we need to create the file.

1. Touch the back arrow.
2. Touch Export (Import/Export)
3. Select Export to .vcf file.
4. Name the file something you will remember and touch Save.

Time to save the file to your Google Drive.

1. Open Files (Open Downloads)
2. Touch and hold the file you just created.
3. Select the share icon , and select save to drive.
4. Name the file and touch Save.

The file is on your Google Drive and will not be removed if you erase your phone.

Once you get the replacement or repaired device back, to restore your contacts simply open Drive, open the file, and allow permissions.

Photos & Videos

We recommend using Google Photos backup for your photos and videos. They offer free, unlimited high quality storage. (You can also purchase space from Google to store your photos at original quality.)

Setup Google Photos Backup

1. Go to Photos
2. Select Menu scroll down and touch settings.
3. Touch Back up & Sync
4. Touch Backup account. Select the Google account you want to back up to.
5. Touch Back up device folders and select any additional accounts such as Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, etc.
6. Check that Upload Size is set to High Quality (free unlimited storage) unless you plan to purchase storage from Google.
7. Make sure nothing is turned on under Cellular data back up unless you do not have wi-fi. Please keep in mind backing up photos and videos over cellular data may use up a large amount of data and is not recommended unless you have unlimited data.
8. Press the back arrow twice to get back to your photos.
9. You should see a cloud with a check mark in the upper right. This indicates your backup is complete.

You can check that your photos are all backed up by visiting photos.google.com from a web browser. Make sure you are signed into the same Google account that you selected on the device. You can now erase your phone without having to worry about your pictures being deleted.

Simply sign into the same Google account on the replacement or repaired device and you will have access to all your images.

Files and Folders

We recommend uploading any important files or folders to Google Drive.

1. Locate the file or folder on your device.
2. Touch and hold the file or folder.
3. Select the share icon 
4. Touch Save to Drive.
5. Name the file or folder. Touch Save.

The file or folder has now been added to your Google Drive. Erasing your device will not remove the file or folder.

Text Messages

Unfortunately, there is no native Android backup method for text messages. For this, we recommend using a third party application such as SMS Backup+. There are many choices for this in the Google Play Store.

Remember, Motorola is not responsible for the results from use of any of these applications.

Transfer Files via USB Cable

In order to move files from your device to your computer via cable you will need a USB to microUSB or  USB-C to USB cable capable of data transfer.

1. Plug the device into your computer.
2. Pull down the notification bar and touch USB for Charging
3. Set this to File Transfer (MTP)
4. You should now see your device as a connected drive on your PC.
5. You will find photos on your device in the DCIM > camera folder.
6. Copy any photos you want, select the location you want to store them on the PC, and paste.
7. Locate any other files or folders you want and do the same.

We do not recommend backing up your entire device as much of this information is system content and not readable by a PC.