How to automatically back up Instagram photos to SkyDrive

Backing up photos from your iPhone, Android, or Windows Phone is easier than ever and doesn't even require you to use a computer. Services like Dropbox and SkyDrive can automatically back up your photos so you can access them from practically any device.

Instagram photos, however, aren't typically included in the automated backups. After carefully cropping your image and selecting the perfect filter, you might like to keep a backup of it as well. Here's how to automatically back up your Instagram photos to SkyDrive using an IFTTT recipe:

Create your own recipe

Step 1: Go to the IFTTT Web site and sign up for a free account if you don't already have one, then click on "Create a Recipe" from the dashboard.

Step 2: Click on the blue "this" link, then choose Instagram as your trigger channel. You may need to give permission for IFTTT to access your Instagram account.

Step 3: Click on "Any new photo by you" as the trigger, then click on the Create Trigger button.

Step 4: Click on the blue "that" link, then click "View all Channels" to see the SkyDrive channel in a new browser tab.

Step 5: Activate the SkyDrive channel and give IFTTT access to your SkyDrive account.

Step 6: Once the SkyDrive channel's been activated, close the tab and continue your recipe by picking SkyDrive as your action channel.

Step 7: Select "Add file from URL" as your action, then click on the blue Create Action button.

Step 8: Click on the blue Create Recipe button to save your new recipe and turn it on.

You now have a recipe that will check your Instagram account for new photos every 15 minutes, then save them to your SkyDrive account. Keep in mind that the recipe doesn't copy over your old photos, just the new ones.

Use a shared recipe

If you prefer not to create your own recipe, you can use recipes created and shared by other users on IFTTT's site. To use the recipe from this tutorial, click on the recipe link below.