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
    2021-07-28T21:20:48+00:00

    To be honest, the solution is hard to find because there is no solution. The cloud files are the dominant/most recent version and they will completely overwrite any local files in the same file location. I've experienced this twice.

    Microsoft gave me the following advice.

    1. Make sure my files are backed up in a local hard drive.
    2. Use OneDrive Online to access files as opposed to File Explorer.
    3. When using OneDrive in File Explore, ALWAYS make sure the folder is syncing. You should see a cloud icon next to the folder name instead of a folder icon.

    Constant vigilance friends.

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  2. Anonymous
    2021-07-28T20:50:59+00:00

    It's July 2021 and, for the second time, I have the same problem. No solution from MS.

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  3. Anonymous
    2021-06-22T11:32:20+00:00

    I am also experiencing strange problems, local files gone etc. I’ve read the thread and I’m very concerned. How the hell are Microsoft getting away with abuses of personal data and work that I expect to be able to store securely on my own local hard drive. This is a serious breach of trust and simple theft / destruction of IP. Is Microsoft even accountable under law?

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  4. Anonymous
    2021-06-20T20:37:49+00:00

    Just ran into this: I have all my pictures uploaded to onedrive - some were stored in incorrect orientation. I changed this locally, and I could see they were uploaded to onedrive. 2 minutes later, the old version was downloaded, replacing my changes. No idea how to fix it.

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  5. Anonymous
    2021-06-13T19:35:44+00:00

    I'm having a similar issue. I tried disabling oneDrive a few months ago, but it is still doing things like deleting my new files. This is a terrible experience and wasting hours of my time.

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