# Troubleshoot sync and performance

Read the iCloud status rows, move missing scores with Send and Import, speed up the reader on older iPads, and free storage without touching your scores.

> Type: Troubleshooting · Status: Beta · Platforms: iPadOS 17+ · Last reviewed: 2026-07-18

## A score, annotation, or recording is missing on another device

Sync between devices goes through your own iCloud account. Before treating a
missing item as deleted, confirm both devices are talking to the same iCloud
backup and run one explicit pass in each direction.

1. On **both** devices, open `Settings` and select the `Sync` tab.
2. Confirm the `iCloud Backup & Sync` toggle is on. Under it, the account row
   must read `Signed in to iCloud`. If it shows anything else, see
   [Sync shows a warning](#sync-shows-a-warning) first.
3. On the device that **has** the content, tap `Send to iCloud now` and wait
   until the state row returns to `Library backed up`.
4. On the device that is **missing** the content, tap `Import from iCloud` and
   wait for `Restoring from iCloud…` to finish.
5. Keep the app open in the foreground with a network connection during both
   passes. `Send to iCloud now` and `Import from iCloud` are unavailable while
   a pass is already running — wait for it to finish rather than repeating it.
6. If the item still doesn't appear, check the library's active collection,
   filters, and search field before concluding it is gone. A piece hidden by a
   filter looks identical to a missing one.

> **Note** — The `Apple Account` section in `Settings` › `General` is a
> separate sign-in (Sign in with Apple) used for score conversion and public
> library contributions. It plays no part in iCloud sync: signing in or out of
> it does not change what syncs, and signing in to iCloud does not sign you in
> there.

> **Important** — Do not delete and reimport a piece as a first remedy. A fresh
> import can create a new piece identity, leaving the existing takes,
> calibration, and annotations attached to the old one.

## Sync shows a warning

The row under the `iCloud Backup & Sync` toggle reports the account state.
Each state has one fix:

- `No iCloud account` — sign in to iCloud in the iPad's own Settings app, then
  return here.
- `iCloud is restricted` — Screen Time or a device-management profile is
  blocking iCloud on this device; sync cannot run until the restriction is
  lifted.
- `iCloud temporarily unavailable` or `iCloud status unknown` — iCloud could
  not be reached. Check the network, leave and reopen `Settings`, and try
  again later.
- `Backup issue` followed by a message — the last pass failed; the message
  names the cause. Run `Send to iCloud now` again once the cause (usually
  network or iCloud storage) is resolved.

## Automatic sync hasn't run

Scheduled sync is opt-in and only runs while the app is open.

- `Routine sync` (in the `Sync` tab: `Off`, `Daily`, `Weekly`,
  `Every 2 weeks`, `Monthly`) fires the next time you **open the app** after
  the interval has elapsed, at or after the time of day set in `Run around`.
- `Sync when I leave the app` pushes only new changes a few seconds after you
  leave the app without coming right back.

> **Limit** — iOS does not let the app run on a timer while fully closed, and
> never tells an app the moment it is force-closed. A routine pass therefore
> waits for the next launch, and a quick app-switch or force-quit will not
> trigger the leave-the-app push. If you need the backup current right now, use
> `Send to iCloud now`.

## The reader is slow or closes tabs

Work through these in order — the cheap steps first.

1. Close score tabs you are not using. Every open tab keeps its pages live.
2. Stop work you don't need right now: `Follow`, a recording, take playback,
   or a running Smart Score conversion or analysis job.
3. Open `Settings` › `General` and turn on `Performance mode`. The `Your iPad`
   card below it shows what the app measured about this device and its
   suggested settings; `Use recommended` applies them in one tap.
4. With `Performance mode` on, set `Open tab limit` (2–8) to the recommended
   count or lower. Opening a tab beyond the limit automatically closes the
   least recently used ones — this is expected under `Performance mode`, not
   data loss; reopen the piece from the library.
5. For more headroom, use the three extra switches under the limit:
   `Disable the Lab` turns off the heaviest optional surface (real-time DSP
   and graphics — the tracker and reader are unaffected), `Limit movement
   menus` skips per-tab movement scans in the reader chrome, and turning off
   `Background duplicate scan` keeps library matching from competing with
   Follow and playback.
6. Test the problem page at normal zoom. Very large scanned PDFs and images
   use the most memory when zoomed far in.
7. Restart the app after stopping or finishing background work.

> **Note** — `Performance mode` removes no features permanently. Turn it off
> and everything returns.

## Storage is high on this device

Open `Settings` › `Sync` and scroll to the `Storage` section.

- `On this device` shows the total the app occupies, broken down by folder
  (scores, recordings, versions, annotations, index), so you can see what is
  actually taking the space.
- `Free up space now` merges duplicate copies of the same score created by
  re-imports and deletes files no score in your library points to. It asks for
  confirmation (`Clean up now`) before touching anything, then reports exactly
  what it merged, removed, and freed. Scores, annotations, and recordings
  stay.
- `Cached data (safe to clear)` shows how much regenerable data is held:
  cloud-score copies, thumbnails, and temporary files. `Clear cache` removes
  only that; the app may re-download or rebuild it later. It does not remove
  scores, recordings, or annotations. `Clear automatically` runs the same
  clearing on a schedule you pick.

## iCloud storage is high

Two controls in the `Sync` tab use iCloud space beyond the backup itself:

- `iCloud Drive folder (visible in Files)` keeps a second, browsable copy of
  your scores in iCloud Drive — roughly the size of your library. Turn the
  toggle off to remove that copy; your library and the private backup are
  unaffected.
- `Delete this app's iCloud backup…` permanently removes the backup
  Page Turner keeps in its own iCloud space and turns backup off.
  Nothing on the device is deleted, and the rest of your iCloud (Photos,
  Drive, other apps) is not touched — but any other device relying on that
  backup can no longer import from it.

> **Important** — Before deleting the iCloud backup or clearing a library, save
> an independent copy with `Export my library (.zip)` in the `Sync` tab. The
> export is a portable file — PDFs, versions, annotations, anchors, system
> maps, recordings, and a metadata manifest — that you keep in Files or
> anywhere else. It is a snapshot: edits made after the export need a fresh
> one. A green `Library backed up` row is not a portable archive.

## If the issue persists

Note the device model, iPadOS version, free storage, the exact text of the
account and state rows in the `Sync` tab, the affected piece, and the last
action that worked, then contact [Support](/docs/support). The `How does this
work?` row at the bottom of the `Sync` tab explains what the backup contains
and where each copy lives.