Delete and offload are different

On iPhone, deleting an app removes the app from the device and is intended to remove its local data. Offloading removes the application binary while keeping documents and data so the app can be reinstalled later. Neither action should be treated as a backup strategy.

An app's remote account, subscription, cloud records, shared files, or provider-side backups may have separate lifecycles. Apple also notes that deleting an app does not automatically cancel its subscription.

Ask four questions before touching Delete

  1. Where is the current vault data? It may be local-only, included in a device backup, stored as a separate encrypted backup, or synchronized through an account.
  2. What unlocks or restores it? A device passcode, vault pattern, recovery phrase, provider account, or combination may be required.
  3. Have you tested the recovery path? A displayed “backed up” status is not the same as a successful restore.
  4. Are the exports complete? Check originals, videos, paired Live Photo resources, filenames, dates, albums, notes, and documents that matter to you.

A safer removal workflow

  1. Update the app only if its official guidance requires it and you trust the release.
  2. Open representative items, including large videos and older imports.
  3. Create a protected backup or export to a destination you control.
  4. Verify the new copies independently of the vault app.
  5. Record which recovery secret applies, without storing it beside the encrypted data.
  6. Cancel an unwanted subscription separately.
  7. Delete the app only after accepting what will happen to every local-only item.

If privacy is the reason for removal, inspect cloud backups, provider accounts, Files, Photos, Recently Deleted, and exported copies afterward. Deleting one application does not erase files that already left its storage boundary.

What this means for NullVault

NullVault's local vault is designed to be app-managed encrypted storage. Deleting the app may destroy the local database and keys it controls. An optional encrypted backup is a separate copy, and restoring it may require the corresponding recovery material.

Support is not designed to bypass a missing pattern or recovery secret. Review recovery phrase versus encrypted backup before relying on reinstall as a recovery plan.

What if the app no longer opens?

Avoid repeated destructive troubleshooting. Do not delete and reinstall merely because an app crashes unless its verified support documentation says the data is recoverable. First:

  • preserve the device and its current backup state;
  • record the app version and exact error;
  • check the developer's official recovery instructions;
  • confirm whether an encrypted backup exists;
  • avoid sharing private files or recovery secrets with support.

A filesystem or device backup may preserve bytes without giving another app the ability to decrypt or interpret them.

Primary platform references

Apple explains how to delete apps and the separate behavior of offloading unused apps.

Guide reviewed: 23 August 2026.