How to Fix iCloud Photos Not Syncing to Windows 10 PC Easily

Scenario

Why iCloud photos not syncing to Windows 10?

Lots of people upload their photos on their Windows 10 computers to manage and view pics, and videos on their Apple devices with their Apple ID. However, the uploading process may suddenly stop and prompt you “photos excluded (not synced)”  or “iCloud photos not syncing”  during the process, or it says uploading folders to iCloud Drive Is not supported.

Generally, there are 4 reasons making iCloud syncing failure:

● Incorrect settings on iCloud. To sync iCloud photos, you need to make sure the iCloud Photos feature is enabled and you need to allow the PC to download new photos and videos.
● Different Apple IDs signed in. Photos syncing only work with the same Apple ID with different devices.
● The path is too long. iCloud supports a document or folder path less than 256 characters long. You can try to change the name of the photo folders if it is too long for the path.
● iCloud storage is full. iCloud only provides 5GB of free storage for each Apple ID, and supports 2TB at most. If your iCloud storage is full, the photos will be not uploaded in Windows 10.

Next, you can refer to the following content and find a method to solve this problem.

How to fix iCloud Photos not syncing to Windows 10 easily

Here we list some common solutions for this issue. Before we get started, check the Internet connection and see if you are using the same Apple ID with your devices.

• Method 1. Sign out and in iCloud account

• Method 2. Check Windows iCloud settings

• Method 3. Download Photos from iCloud.com

• Method 4. Change the name of the file or folder

• Method 5. Upload iCloud Photos to Windows 10 via FoneTool

• Method 6. How to Transfer iCloud photos to Windows 10 PC

Method 1. Sign out and in iCloud account

Some people reported that iCloud for Windows is not as stable as the Mac version. Sometimes, photo syncing process just failed for no reason. You can sign out and in your iCloud account, and restart the operation to see if it works.

Method 2. Check Windows iCloud settings

You need to make sure the iCloud Photos feature is enabled on your Windows 10 PC before you upload photos, you can follow the steps below to check or change the setting.

Step 1. Download, install, and launch iCloud for Windows, and sign in with your Apple ID.

Step 2. Once you sign in, select the "Photos" and click the “Options” button behind the Photos.

Step 3. Check “iCloud Photos Library” and “Download new photos and videos to my PC”. You can also change the download location here by clicking the “Change” button.

Step 4. Click “Done” if you made any changes.

Step 5. Click “Apply” on the iCloud to start the photos syncing process.

Method 3. Download photos from iCloud.com

Apple also gives you an option to manage iCloud pictures on the website. If the app stopped syncing, you can turn to the iCloud site and download photos to your computer.

Step 1. Open your browser and go to www.icloud.com. Sign in with our Apple ID.

Step 2. Choose the “Photos” option once you enter iCloud.

Step 3. Choose all photos you want to move to your PC, and click the download button like the screenshot shows, and choose “Unmodified Original” or “Most Compatible”, and click “Download”.

✍Note:
Unmodified Original: Download the original size of the photos.
Most Compatible: Download the photos in a compatible format.

Method 4. Change the name of the file or folder

If you are uploading a file from Windows to iCloud and receive an error message of “file will not be synced because the path is too long”, you can solve it by changing the name of the file or the folder. iCloud for Windows 10.8 and later versions can’t sync a file that of the path is longer than 256 characters long. So if it is longer than that, change the name of files, folders, or subfolders.

Method 5. Upload iCloud photos to Windows 10 PC via FoneTool

Another way to sync iCloud photos to your computer is to use the reliable tool - FoneTool It provides a powerful iCloud data management features, you can download your iCloud data, like photos, contacts, videos, notes, to Windows PC. With the clean interface, you can easily complete the process.

Install FoenTool by clicking the button and follow the guide to sync iCloud photos to your computer.

 Step 1. Go to FoneTool on your Windows PC > Locate My iCloud > Sign in with your Apple ID > Then choose Manage iCloud.

Step 2. Tap Photos on the page > Preview and select the pictures you need to sync to your PC > Click Download. 

Step 3. When a prompt appears, choose a destination to save these photos > Click Download.

Method 6.  How to Transfer iCloud photos to Windows 10 PC

Sometimes, iCloud site and app are too slow for Windows computers. And if your iCloud storage is out of space, even you change your iCloud plan, you can get 2TB space at most.

So another way to solve “iCloud photos not syncing Windows 10” is to use the alternative to iCloud. FoneTool also enables you to easily transfer photos from iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch to Windows 11, 10, 8, 7 computer or transfer photos from PC to iPhone.

Besides Photos library, this tool also supports backup videos, contacts, music, and other data to a computer or external drive. Next, you can download the software and follow the steps below to see how it works:

Step 1. Install and launch FoneTool. Meanwhile, connect your iPhone or other iOS devices with a computer via USB cable.

Step 2. On the main interface, click Phone Transfer. Go to iPhone to PC and click Start Transfer.

Step 3. Click the “+” icon to choose photos. Then click OK to continue.

Step 4. Click Start Transfer > You can specify the location to save the photos and click Transfer to start.

✍Note:
1. Make sure the iCloud photos are synced to the connected iOS device.
2. If you want to move Windows photos to your iOS device, click “iPhone to PC”.

Conclusion

Hope the 6 methods can help you out of the “iCloud photos not syncing Windows 10” problem. You can choose one according to your need. If your iCloud photos library still not loading to your Windows 10 computer, FoneTool is a great alternative to transfer them to your PC.

Besides, it is also a backup software that enables to backup iPhone contact, photos, videos, and other data to a computer, external drive, NAS drive.