Global question about iCloud (terrifying event 4 me) on macOS Ventura 13.1 | Ma...

Hi.

I am new to Mac so I didn't really grasp this and I thought I was being clever but I wasn't which is typically usual.

I got a message on my Mac telling me I am halfway through my iDrive allowance that they give you as a start for free.

It said (roughly) you can have 50GB i think of new space for approx £0.50? a month.

I don't want any cloud storage to be truthful. I come from Windows so I use Google Drive for what little needs I have through the chrome browser.

I stupidly turned off iDrive thinking that was ok. It said it would delete stuff but I assumed I had all my important stuff like FL Studio and Kontact software actually on the Macbook M1 64GB 16".

I really don't understand the file structure and how Macs work still and I've had this thing for 3 months (my fault I guess).

When I canceled the link to iDrive nearly EVERYTHING went. I lost all my FL projects and Kontakt stuff. I nearly had a heart attack.

200+ hours at least of work is gone. I had a fit.

I turned the iDrive back on but no joy. Everything was gone. I managed to get to iDrive on the web and found a way to download 23250 files. Thank god! I set them to download and it came back "can't do it, try later". I tried it again for all files but it said the same. I had given up when I think, all of them actually came down. Or did they reestablish the link between the cloud?????

Where is all this stuff??

I ideally don't want any cloud stuff but where are the files saved?

On a PCP they would be C:/.......which I understand.

Here with downloading lots of VSTs and stuff, I don't know why everything is 'on the cloud' if you get me.

Is that what it is?

I am LOST and don't want to have that happen again. FL IS working now, it seems to have put 2K+ files back to where they were.

Or synced? them at least.

Can someone explain to me what is going on and can I say to the Mac "I want it all on the hard drive - talking to it is not working"

I have some screenshots of what is left in the cloud I believe.

I can deal with them being there or even being deleted.

I just don't get it.

thanks for the help if you guys can, cheers, ste.