Are iCloud Drive files backed up?

[kondo]

I just did a backup of a new Catalina machine. I'm running SD 3.3.1.

After backup, I'm looking for iCloud Drive files but see no folder for it on the external drive. I did a search on a filename but nothing came up.

Do iCloud Drive files get backed up?

Thanks.

[dnanian]

Files actually on the drive are all backed up. Did you start up from the backup? The iCloud Drive files are all buried in the user Library...

[kondo]

Thanks. I had to do some serious digging. I can't seem to access them because they are buried so deep but the clone size matches closely with my internal drive. I haven't booted up using the external but I will check that out.

Thanks.

[picaman]

Can I just clarify this for my own peace of mind? I’m backing up Big Sur with the older version of SD. So as I understand it, any new files that are saved to the cloud on the iCloud Files (the icon on the sidebar in a Finder window) are downloaded and added to my local backup drive each time I do a new SD backup?

[dnanian]

Whatever files are on the drive we're copying are backed up. Anything that's only in the cloud wouldn't be (but, of course, it's in the cloud).

[picaman]

So is there a way to use SD to back up my iCloud files onto an external drive?

[dnanian]

If they're local, yes, they're backed up, as I said. So, if you're not on a network, and you can access the files, they're backed up.