How to disable Files On-Demand in OneDrive MacOS? It's enforced since the last update ...

Anonymous
2022-01-27T12:43:10+00:00

For OneDrive home and business, I cannot disable Files-On-Demand since the last update. This is crucial, I need full access to my files at all time.

What is going on? Why would you enforce Files On-Demand on your customers, isn't it enough to enable it by default? My 70GB of cloud data is not local anymore, sometimes I have no internet, you are locking me away from my files. Also making it impossible for me to do full text searches. Files On-Demand is also too slow, waiting a second to display folder contents is too much when you organize things in deep folder structures.

How I can disable Files On-Demand? Will you please stop knowing the best for your customers? We aren't toddlers. Thanks!

If Files On-Demand is enforced by policy, I will leave your cloud service once and for all.

Microsoft 365 and Office | OneDrive | For business | MacOS

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  1. Anonymous
    2022-01-30T16:37:37+00:00

    Hi Mia. This needs to be escalated within Microsoft. It is is simply extraordinary that this has happened without any warning. The update has deleted my files stored on my local drive. In what universe can anyone at Microsoft consider that that is appropriate? It is a quite extraordinary interference with my personal data. I have to have locally stored and searchable files. I am trying the "workaround" you suggest above; but why are you in a position where Microsoft needs to suggest a "workaround" to a problem that didn't exist before the update in relation to a service - locally stored and synced files - which has been a fundamental and basic part of cloud storage solutions for years?!!! Many thanks John

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  2. Anonymous
    2022-01-30T17:02:16+00:00

    Also, it looks like auto save is all messed up. When I open a file in Word I seem to have to manually turn on auto save. And when I close and reopen I have to switch auto save back on and when it uploads it tells me the file already exists. What on earth has happened to the App?

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  3. Anonymous
    2022-01-30T20:44:05+00:00

    For this updated setting, we do understand that it would be better if there have another button/option to turn off the Files On-Demand feature instead of selecting all files/folders manually.

    It WOULD be? You literally removed it. This is ridiculous. You just made me one step closer to switch to Google Drive. Congrats MS team.

    edit: I have had my files downloaded locally, and now they're gone. As it happens I just purchased a brand new SSD, and now I can download almost a terabyte data AGAIN.

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  4. Anonymous
    2022-01-30T21:57:12+00:00

    Hi. I am very, very angry about this new intrusion into my privacy and into my ownership of my data. Effectively, you have unilaterally decided to delete all my most important files from my harddrive. It frankly feels like data theft in all respects.

    Besides the fact that you have deleted my files from my computer – I am quite worried about whether I will be able to get the data back. What I (obviously) want to do now is to download all my data, leave OneDrive because it is clearly extremely unreliable and unethical, and go to another cloud storage provider. But I am unable to move (i.e. download) the files out of the OneDrive network drive (it just stalls) and I am equally unable to go to the web portal and download my files. It just downloads a zip-file with a bunch of error messages in .txt-files ("The following files/folders have not been downloaded ...").

    Please give me a 100% certain solution to download all my data – which you have deleted without asking – immediately!

    Has anyone else found a working solution to download the data Microsoft deleted?

    A few hours ago I (in anger and frustration) subscribed to pCloud, and it turns out they have a "backup"-solution that allows you to enter your OneDrive login-data and pCloud will transfer all data for you. It's not fast, will probably take 2-3 days for my 300GB, but I'm so shocked and provoked that MS deleted all my files that it's worth it.

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  5. Anonymous
    2022-01-30T22:09:35+00:00

    Mia, I would like to add that I have NO NEED to save space on my SSD. I paid for lots of local storage for a reason. I have super fast internet, but no wish to re-live the old days when a folder needed to "load" to show the contents. With 'pinned' files, Finder still can't preview them, not to mention that the "always keep on this device" is flimsy and doesn't work.

    Now I have to spend the following weeks not only fixing my own problems with this, but also explain to my wife, parents and in-laws why their "OneDrive" favourite folder is gone, why it takes forever to load a file, and then to instruct them on why these problems exist and also moving their data to a new cloud service.

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