Samsung Cloud Gallery sync confusion

[Android Central Question]

Hello. It's my first time posting here so forgive any mistakes.
Some time ago I enabled Samsung Cloud gallery sync, thinking it would be something like Google Photos, (which backs up your gallery and retains local copies). Now that the default 15GB storage is maxed out, I'm looking to transfer my over 12,000 pictures and videos from my local samsung gallery app to Google Photos. The thing is, Google Photos is not "detecting" many of the folders, and even certain pictures from the folders it does detect. I figured it's because of the godforsaken, horribly confusing Samsung Cloud Gallery Sync feature.

Now I want to completely unlink the Samsung Cloud Gallery sync thing from my local gallery, so that there is only the 12,000 pics and vids in my LOCAL gallery, with no relation to Samsung Cloud.
My question: How do I unlink Samsung Cloud Gallery, retaining all my pictures in the same folders they are in my local gallery currently.

If I straight up turn Sync off, will local folders be deleted? Will all my pictures just be a mess in the vertical scrolling Samsung Cloud, with no folders? Did Samsung Cloud already delete local copies of my pics when it started syncing a while ago? I'm too confused and I have no idea what I am to do to keep my around 50 folders LOCAL and unscathed.

TL;DR; I want to unlink Samsung Cloud without losing my pictures and videos in the exact folders and orders that they are in my local gallery. (So that I can start ACTUALLY BACKING them up in a much better service such as Google Photos.)

I'm sorry if this is confusing. Please ask more questions to make it clearer. I'm running out of options

 

[mustang7757]

It's best if you can register here as a guest account you can't communicate , and we need to go over few things to Better assist you .

https://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=409154

 

[Dan741]

It's best if you can register here as a guest account you can't communicate , and we need to go over few things to Better assist you .

https://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=409154

Done.

 

[mustang7757]

Done.

Hi, welcome !
Samsung cloud will hold 15gb of cloud storage and if you go to gallery in it's settings you can turn sync off it won't be deleted in gallery just won't be sync to cloud storage anymore . Google photos can back your gallery but won't do folders , you can use smart switch on computer also.

 

[Dan741]

Hi, welcome !
Samsung cloud will hold 15gb of cloud storage and if you go to gallery in it's settings you can turn sync off it won't be deleted in gallery just won't be sync to cloud storage anymore . Google photos can back your gallery but won't do folders , you can use smart switch on computer also.

I appreciate the reply, but it's a very simple answer and does not clear anything up for me.

If I turn the sync off, as you suggested, will all my samsung gallery folders stay as they are?
But the Samsung Cloud app says that I have 8,000 something photos and videos stored on it. What will happen to them if I turn sync off? Will they stay in the cloud?
I heard that when you turn sync on, your local gallery basically becomes the Samsung Cloud gallery. If I turn the sync off, will the "2 galleries" become "unlinked"?

 

[mustang7757]

I appreciate the reply, but it's a very simple answer and does not clear anything up for me.

If I turn the sync off, as you suggested, will all my samsung gallery folders stay as they are?
But the Samsung Cloud app says that I have 8,000 something photos and videos stored on it. What will happen to them if I turn sync off? Will they stay in the cloud?
I heard that when you turn sync on, your local gallery basically becomes the Samsung Cloud gallery. If I turn the sync off, will the "2 galleries" become "unlinked"?

No problem!
What's backup on Samsung cloud now will stay there , if you turn sync off there will be no more back up new photos but everything else will stay way it is

 

[Dan741]

No problem!
What's backup on Samsung cloud now will stay there , if you turn sync off there will be no more back up new photos but everything else will stay way it is

Ok I get that.
But the photos and videos that are ALREADY on Samsung Cloud, will they be available offline in my local gallery? Or will they dissappear from my folders and stay only in the Samsung Cloud?

For example: I have a gallery folder with 10 pictures. 2 of them are uploaded and synced with Samsung Cloud, but 8 aren't. If I turn sync off, will the 2 dissappear from the local gallery folder? Or will there be 2 copies, one in Samsung Cloud, and 1 in my local gallery?
Because right now it seems like my phone gallery itself has become Samsung Cloud gallery. (This is what's confusing me)

 

[mustang7757]

Ok I get that.
But the photos and videos that are ALREADY on Samsung Cloud, will they be available offline in my local gallery? Or will they dissappear from my folders and stay only in the Samsung Cloud?

For example: I have a gallery folder with 10 pictures. 2 of them are uploaded and synced with Samsung Cloud, but 8 aren't. If I turn sync off, will the 2 dissappear from the local gallery folder? Or will there be 2 copies, one in Samsung Cloud, and 1 in my local gallery?
Because right now it seems like my phone gallery itself has become Samsung Cloud gallery. (This is what's confusing me)

Let me verify that on my phone ,

 

[Dan741]

That would be great. Thank you.

 

[mustang7757]

So this is what I see:
I turned syn off and gallery went from 1600 pictures and videos down to 61 as soon as I sync again went back to same amount

 

[Dan741]

Hmm. So the pictures that get synced permanently become part of Samsung Cloud, I gather.

 

[mustang7757]

Hmm. So the pictures that get synced permanently become part of Samsung Cloud, I gather.

I believe so , like when I tried to play video in gallery it said playing from cloudd storage

 

[Dan741]

That's horrible design. How stupid. I regret ever turning auto sync on.
Can I ask you to download a few photos from Samsung Cloud and see where they end up? Do they end up in the same folder they were, or does samsung create a different folder for "cloud downloads"?
For example, if I was to take another, empty phone and login to my samsung account, would all the photos be back in the folders that I had them in inside my other phone, or would they be in a random list like Google Photos?
Hope you understand what I'm trying to ask.

 

[Dan741]

That's horrible design. How stupid. I regret ever turning auto sync on.
Can I ask you to download a few photos from Samsung Cloud and see where they end up? Do they end up in the same folder they were, or does samsung create a different folder for "cloud downloads"?
For example, if I was to take another, empty phone and login to my samsung account, would all the photos be back in the folders that I had them in inside my other phone, or would they be in a random list like Google Photos?
Hope you understand what I'm trying to ask.

 

[mustang7757]

That's horrible design. How stupid. I regret ever turning auto sync on.
Can I ask you to download a few photos from Samsung Cloud and see where they end up? Do they end up in the same folder they were, or does samsung create a different folder for "cloud downloads"?
For example, if I was to take another, empty phone and login to my samsung account, would all the photos be back in the folders that I had them in inside my other phone, or would they be in a random list like Google Photos?
Hope you understand what I'm trying to ask.

If you log into another Samsung phone it would load up same folders and everything because it's using the same frame work , Google photos won't do that with folders

 

[mustang7757]

That's horrible design. How stupid. I regret ever turning auto sync on.
Can I ask you to download a few photos from Samsung Cloud and see where they end up? Do they end up in the same folder they were, or does samsung create a different folder for "cloud downloads"?
For example, if I was to take another, empty phone and login to my samsung account, would all the photos be back in the folders that I had them in inside my other phone, or would they be in a random list like Google Photos?
Hope you understand what I'm trying to ask.

I believe if I were to download 1 photo from Samsung cloud it would be in gallery under download folders

 

[mustang7757]

I just tried to download a photo it said already on the phone so there goes that theory lol

 

[Dan741]

So, in desperation, is there ANY way of un-syncing samsung cloud from the gallery AND keeping all my device folders as they are?
It's nigh impossible to find 5000 pictures from different times and days in a randomlist of thousands of jumbled up pictures and sort them back into a folder that I originally had them in.

 

[Dan741]

I just tried to download a photo it said already on the phone so there goes that theory lol

Wait what. So....I'm confused...

 

[mustang7757]

So, in desperation, is there ANY way of un-syncing samsung cloud from the gallery AND keeping all my device folders as they are?
It's nigh impossible to find 5000 pictures from different times and days in a randomlist of thousands of jumbled up pictures and sort them back into a folder that I originally had them in.

Looks like without sync you can't keep in both places