Support
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Scanning & Matching
How does duplicate detection work?
CloudSweep finds duplicates two ways. Exact matches are found by comparing checksums — if two files are byte-identical, they match, regardless of file name or which cloud they live in. Visually-similar matches catch photos that were re-encoded, resized, or lightly edited: the app computes a compact visual fingerprint for each photo on your device and compares fingerprints. Both kinds of matching run entirely on-device — nothing is uploaded for analysis.
What does “Limited Photos access” mean?
iOS lets you grant an app access to your whole photo library or only to photos you select (“Limited access”). With Limited access, CloudSweep can only scan and match the photos you've explicitly shared with it — duplicates among your other photos won't be found. For a complete sweep, grant full library access in iOS Settings > Privacy & Security > Photos > CloudSweep. Either way, all matching stays on your device.
Removing Duplicates
Why doesn't CloudSweep delete inside Google Photos or Amazon Photos?
Because what CloudSweep scans is a copy, not the original. Your Google Photos Takeout export and downloaded Amazon Photos library are exports of the photos that still live in each service — deleting the exported copy doesn't touch the original. Instead of pretending, CloudSweep guides you to the original so you can delete it in Google Photos or Amazon Photos yourself. Your device's Photos library, iCloud Drive, and OneDrive support direct removal (to each service's recoverable trash). Google Drive and Dropbox scanning are coming in a future update.
Are deletions permanent?
No. Every removal goes to a recoverable trash — Recently Deleted for your Photos library, the recycle bin for cloud services, and the system Trash on macOS. Files are typically recoverable for around 30 days, subject to each provider's own retention policy. CloudSweep never permanently deletes anything, always keeps at least one copy of a file, and never touches a file that changed after the scan.
Back Up to Drive Upcoming
Where will my backups go?
Verified backup to your own Google Drive is planned for a future update — it is not part of the first release. When it ships, photos will upload directly from your device into a “CloudSweep Backups” folder in your Drive, verified by checksum, without ever passing through our servers (we don't have any).
Pricing & Billing
What's free and what's Premium?
The free tier gives you unlimited scanning and unlimited duplicate review across all your connected sources, plus 10 removals included. CloudSweep Premium unlocks unlimited removals for $2.99/month or $19.99/year (auto-renewing, via the App Store; prices shown in the App Store are authoritative and may vary by region). Scanning and reviewing never require a subscription — you can always see exactly what CloudSweep found before deciding whether Premium is worth it.
How do I restore purchases or cancel my subscription?
Restore: on a new device signed in with the same Apple Account, use Restore Purchases in the app's Settings — your Premium entitlement re-establishes within seconds. Cancel: go to Settings > [your name] > Subscriptions > CloudSweep on your device. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period; you keep Premium until then. Refunds are handled by Apple via reportaproblem.apple.com.
Connected Accounts & Your Data
How do I remove a connected account and its data?
Open Settings in the app, choose the connected source, and tap Disconnect. This clears that source's entire duplicate index (names, sizes, checksums, fingerprints, thumbnails) from your device and revokes CloudSweep's access with the provider where the provider supports it. You can also revoke access from the provider's side at any time — e.g. Microsoft Account > Privacy > App access for OneDrive. Deleting the app removes all indexed data for every source.