NO COMPUTER
No computer in the middle
The iPhone connects directly to the server over Wi-Fi. No desktop app, no always-on computer, no cloud, no telemetry — nothing leaves your network.
Open source iPhone backup server
Your iPhone backs up
straight to your server
AirVault turns your NAS into a backup server for every iPhone in the house — full backups over Wi-Fi, kept as snapshots you can open in the browser or restore to any paired phone.
Self-hosted. Open source. Nothing leaves your network.
- Open source
- Wi-Fi backups
- Incremental & deduplicated
- Encrypted backups
- Runs on any Docker host
// what it does
What AirVault does
FULL BACKUP
A full backup, not a file sync
Settings, messages, app data, photos — the same complete backup Finder makes, restorable to a phone or downloadable in Finder's format.
INCREMENTAL
Only changes transfer
After the first backup, runs are quick enough to schedule daily — and each one is kept as its own restorable snapshot.
ENCRYPTED
Encryption included
With iOS backup encryption on, passwords, Health data and call history are in the backup — unreadable without your password.
INTEGRITY
Verified twice
Every file is checksummed as it's stored and checked again before it goes back onto a phone — or whenever you run Verify.
BROWSE
Open any backup in the browser
Photos by month and album, Messages and WhatsApp chats with their attachments, notes, contacts and calls — straight from a restore point, without restoring it.
SEARCH
Find that one message
Search every chat in a backup at once, then jump to the match inside the conversation, with what was said around it.
PHOTOS
Photos without a full backup
Open the camera roll of a connected iPhone in the browser — thumbnails, previews, and downloads in original quality.
APPS
Apps and their files
See every installed app, browse its documents and pull files out — or install an .ipa and uninstall right from the dashboard.
HARDWARE
Hardware at a glance
Storage, battery health and cycle count, temperature, serial numbers — for every paired iPhone, without digging through Settings.
// inside a backup
Every backup
opens in the browser
Find a photo, a chat or a phone number in any restore point without restoring it. It is read on your server, nothing leaves your network, and an encrypted backup opens only with its password.
Open any restore point and pick what to look at. An encrypted one asks for its password first.
// how it works
Pair once, restore anytime
- 01
Pair
Connect the iPhone once and tap Trust. The server remembers the phone from then on.
- 02
Back up
Run backups over Wi-Fi from the dashboard or on a schedule. After the first one, only changes transfer.
- 03
Restore
Put any snapshot back on the same iPhone or its replacement — or open it in the browser to pull out a single photo or chat.
// install
Up and running
in minutes
Any Docker host works: paste the compose file, install the Community Applications template on Unraid, or drop it into Container Manager on Synology and Custom Apps on TrueNAS. Pair the iPhone once — after that everything is Wi-Fi.
Save the file as
docker-compose.ymland rundocker compose up -d.Plug the iPhone into the host once — USB is only needed to pair.
Open
http://<host>:8080, paste the token from the log and pair the phone.
requirements
amd64 Docker host · USB for the one-time pairing
services:
airvault:
image: ghcr.io/wizier/airvault:latest
container_name: airvault
restart: unless-stopped
# Host networking is required: Wi-Fi discovery is link-local mDNS multicast
network_mode: host
environment:
- AIRVAULT_PORT=${AIRVAULT_PORT:-8080}
- AIRVAULT_AUTH_TOKEN=${AIRVAULT_AUTH_TOKEN:-}
- AIRVAULT_LOG_LEVEL=${AIRVAULT_LOG_LEVEL:-info}
- AIRVAULT_MUX_LOG_LEVEL=${AIRVAULT_MUX_LOG_LEVEL:-warn}
- TZ=${TZ:-Etc/UTC}
# Advanced (optional): AIRVAULT_LISTEN_ADDR, AIRVAULT_DATABASE_URL,
# PUID/PGID/UMASK
# USB pairing: bind the bus
device_cgroup_rules:
- "c 189:* rmw"
volumes:
# /config: settings, database, pairing records. /backups: the backups.
- ./config:/config
- ./backups:/backups
- /dev/bus/usb:/dev/bus/usb
- /run/udev:/run/udev:ro// faq
Common questions
What does the backup include?
Everything a Finder backup includes: settings, messages, app data and photos. With encryption on, it also carries what iOS otherwise holds back: saved passwords, Health data and call history. Apps themselves re-download from the App Store on restore.
Can I see what's inside a backup without restoring it?
Yes. Any restore point opens in the browser: photos and videos by month and album, Messages and WhatsApp chats with their attachments, notes, contacts and call history. Search finds a message across every chat, and files save in original quality.
Do I need a computer or a cloud account?
No. The iPhone backs up to the server directly over Wi-Fi, and you manage everything from a browser.
Which iPhones are supported?
AirVault uses the same backup protocol Finder and iTunes use, so any iPhone that can back up to a computer can back up here. Wireless backups use the Wi-Fi sync you enable once during pairing.
How much storage do backups use?
The first backup is roughly the used space on the phone. Snapshots share unchanged files, so the history grows only by what changed.
How long does the first backup take?
Roughly the used space on the phone has to cross your network once, so give it time. Backups run over USB too — you can leave the cable in for the first one. After that, runs transfer only changes and finish quickly.
Can backups run on a schedule?
Yes — daily, every three days or weekly, optionally only within set hours. iOS asks for the passcode before every backup, so AirVault starts one shortly after you unlock the iPhone at home and you just enter it.
Are encrypted backups supported?
Yes — standard iOS backup encryption, managed from the dashboard. Without your password the backup is unreadable, to AirVault too: opening one in the browser asks for it.
Can I restore to a new iPhone?
Yes. Any snapshot can be restored to any paired iPhone, including a factory-new phone during its setup. It also downloads as a regular Finder backup, so a Mac can restore it too.
How many iPhones can back up to one server?
Every iPhone in the house — each device keeps its own snapshot history.