OneDrive deleted local files and started syncing old files !

Anonymous
2020-04-03T18:14:49+00:00

Hi,

OneDrive has suddenly deleted files in local folders that was not synced with OneDrive.

I installed OneDrive a while ago on my work computer and copied a lot of different files including Visual Studio projects to the OneDriver folder.

Later found out that OneDrive was causing problems for the Visual Studio projects and even though I had marked all folders to also be kept locally it wasn't working correctly.

So I moved all of the Visual Studio projects and several other folders back to the original location to make sure I had them locally.

Time goes by, and today when I turn on my computer I notice a lot of old files have been synced to my Desktop which is synced using OneDrive.

Then I also realize that the files that I moved out of the OneDrive synced folders have suddenly appeared again and old versions from back when I initially copied the folders are being synced again.

When I look at the local folder that is NOT synced with OneDrive, many of the files are gone - just like that - GONE.

There is no way to get the files back and all my recent work is lost.

I have looked in the online Recycle Bin and the Second stage recycle bin and none of the files are there (since they were never in OneDrive but only locally).

It seems like OneDrive has reverted the old actions of when I moved the files to the local folder and now old versions from back then are being synced.

This is completely unacceptable.

I have lost all my recent work.

How do I get my local files that has now been deleted by OneDrive but which was not synced with OneDrive back?

Microsoft 365 and Office | OneDrive | For home | Windows

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  1. Anonymous
    2021-12-12T20:44:20+00:00

    We have similar problems. We do changes in files in our local OneDrive directory, they are uploaded to the OneDrive Cloud, minutes thereafter the old versions of the files are downloaded and the changes are overwritten, and not a trace of the changed file is anywhere. First I thought it only happened when I tagged photos and complained to Microsoft (Case #:1027860865, unresolved), but now we have seen that it also happens with Excel files. As a result, we now have to turn off OneDrive syncing completely.

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-12-13T06:46:01+00:00

    In case anyone was curious, this is still happening in December 2020. Bought a new laptop, everything uploaded over just fine, then 1 week later my one drive has reset to what it was a month ago. Hours of work lost. I cant believe this has been happening for 6 months, with no response or fix from Microsoft.

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  3. Anonymous
    2020-11-16T07:19:20+00:00

    I had long suspected that OneDrive was deleting new files/folder and reverting to old ‘backups’.  

    I’ve spent the past week in quarantine locked in a room so I thought I would tidy up my OneDrive folders on my PC - expecting them to replicate to the cloud.

    I created a series of new folders and moved old data files into the new folders.  The exercise was completed last night.   There were 20GB++ of changes.

    15 hours later all the new folders are gone and they are not in my PC or OneDrive recycle folders.   TO BE CLEAR, THE CHANGES I MADE ON MY PC WERE DELETED FROM MY PC.

    All the changes were made on my PC where I keep a local copy - so there is no issue that some files are cloud only.   Properly working, OneDrive should update my cloud records with what I’ve changed on my PC.   

    Instead, it’s almost as thought OD got confused with the volume of changes and has reverted to some random backup.

    This is really unacceptable and Microsoft need to address the problem.

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  4. Anonymous
    2020-08-31T00:17:47+00:00

    My One Drive account just asked me to back up my locally saved files last night. I did, then it told me there wasn't enough space. So I deleted the One Drive versions of some of the files and when I opened my tablet this morning all my locally saved files are gone. My desktop does not even have the folder links or app icons it had saved to it prior. Tons of photo and video content is now swimming around in my One Drive recycle bin but I cannot recover it all because the size of what was saved to my tablet goes beyond the limits of my One Drive account. How do I even go about fixing this? How can Microsoft let this happen? I feel like my home was broken into and now I have to take inventory, figure out what I can salvage, and reorganize it all. Awful. Truly Awful.

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  5. Anonymous
    2020-08-13T19:50:22+00:00

    I was on Google Apps for years and then one day decided to drink the Microsoft cool-aid that they were selling at a conference I went to.  I saw all this great flashy stuff that would be great if it actually worked.  Office 365 reminds me of one of those Hollywood western towns where everything is a façade but there is nothing behind it. Now with things like this happening its worse.  Behind the façade isnt just nothing there are pools of lava that will destroy your business and possibly your career.  Office 365 is not only incompetent its dangerous.

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