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OneDrive isn't properly syncing my folders, and now has changed up all my file paths.

Before leaving for a work trip, I moved my base folder "Personal Files" into OneDrive thinking a drag-and-click would suffice. When I pulled out my laptop, I found that the folder had been copied, but deeply nested folders were completely empty. I tried multiple times, but could never get all the files placed online.

Back from my first work trip, I've now turned on a complete "Desktop Folder Sync" which has uploaded the "Personal Files" section to the cloud... except once again, these files don't seem to be accessible on my laptop (only a few file folders seem to be available, all empty).

To make matters worse, I opened my streaming software on my desktop which has hundreds of paths linked, and they are now all broken. Because Desktop/Personal Files doesn't exist? Only OneDrive/Personal Files does? I'm worried I've lost my files and that I can't seem to untangle this mess.

I'm in OneDrive hell and completely and utterly regretting buying a yearly subscription.

Hi AdamSergison,

 

Thanks for visiting Microsoft Community.

 

I understand the difficulty and confusion you are experiencing with OneDrive file synchronization. I will assist you in troubleshooting the issues you're encountering with your OneDrive sync folder. 

 

  • First, ensure that your OneDrive application is linked to only one account. 

  • Next, we need to ascertain the current status of your files – specifically, where the Personal Files folder containing all content actually resides. If it's no longer found locally, it may have been uploaded to the OneDrive cloud and transformed into an online-only folder. To confirm this, log into onedrive.live.com, and in My Files, search for this folder, or start by looking for the Desktop folder, then delve deeper to find this folder. If you locate it there, download the folder to your local machine as a backup to prevent potential loss during future use.

 

Regarding the issue of broken links you mentioned, this occurs when desktop file synchronization is enabled. OneDrive, while backing up data to the cloud, releases the corresponding desktop file space, making it online-only (indicated by a cloud icon at the lower left corner of the file). The path for the file or folder changes from something like Desktop/... to OneDrive/.... You can right-click this file and change its sync status to Always keep on this device (indicated by a green checkmark at the lower left corner). 

It's important to note that based on our current testing, once you disable desktop syncing, both the synced status files and those always kept on the desktop will vanish, and a "Desktop OneDrive shortcut" file will appear. Opening this shortcut allows you to find previously synced desktop files, including those with synced status and those saved locally. Both types of files can be accessed, and you can drag and drop them back onto the desktop.

 

I hope the above information proves helpful. Should you have further questions or need additional assistance, you can also contact OneDrive's support team via email. Here is the link to send an email to the OneDrive support team: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?LinkId=528676

Need to make sure you visit onedrive.live.com using your browser - click on the link above - and it will automatically bounce back to your OneDrive web side and allow you to send the email.

 

Wishing you a successful resolution to your problem.

Best Regards,

Jonathan Z - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

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Hi Jonathan,

Thanks for trying to help. Yes, my OneDrive is linked with only one account. All my personal files (Desktop/Stream and Desktop/Adam) are now locked into OneDrive desktop pathnames: C:\Users\Adam\OneDrive\Desktop\Stream etc.

I've tried clicking "Always keep on this device" but it has not restored the files back to their original C:\Users\Adam\Desktop\ location. I'm currently unable to access my presentation as all file directories/pathways are broken and am running out of time. I've lost 4+ hours of work to this issue and it won't be ready at this rate anyways.

Adam

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Question Info

Last updated November 12, 2024 Views 437 Applies to: