Onedrive is horrible, invasive and impossible

Anonymous
2023-02-09T16:57:08+00:00

Without my knowledge or consent, when I plugged in my new Dell computer and signed in to my MS 365 account, all my files were put in a cloud including copies of driver's licenses, passports, and family medical records. I thought okay, I'll just take them out of the cloud, which as we now understand also deletes them from the desktop.

I have gone back and forth about a dozen times in emails with MS techs. Some of their advice caused all of my files to disappear from my computer. I asked repeatedly if there is a way to choose what to backup and got no answer from MS. I've had a tech at my home twice, and he finds there is no way to manually backup or choose what files to backup. We decided to quit onedrive. I now have duplicates of files and paths still pointing to onedrive, so I will have to get more help with this. Research that I have been working on for years has been convoluted and possibly lost due to multiple duplicates.

I've been working from home for over 30 years and have never had problems like this. I'm used to figuring out solutions, but this is beyond absurd. I simply bought a new computer to replace my 10-year-old machine and am now in this nightmare.

Microsoft 365 and Office | OneDrive | For home | Windows

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Anonymous
2023-11-01T06:34:15+00:00

Thanks for this, VJA142. I wish I had seen these before I turned on my new PC. After watching the video you suggested and Leo's The Problem with OneDrive Backup, I'm less confused and beginning to wrap my head around it. I don't use the "Documents" folder and have individual folders on my desktop where I save things, but I get the gist.

Good suggestion too about automatic updates. I have always paused updates for several weeks and do one computer at a time to manage the nasty surprises.

Hi Enerak, glad you found Leo’s YouTube videos Re OneDrive helpful, I know I sure did, the light finally came on for me. He also has a web page (ask Leo.com) where he posts articles with links to his videos. The replies to his OneDrive articles are like this forum, full of people (including some IT types) who are all experiencing issues with OneDrive.

What’s crazy is that we all PAID for this Microsoft software, with many of us having invested in new computer hardware, only to turn on our PC’s and have our digital lives literally scrambled and yanked inside out.

I’m glad we’ve had this forum to vent & share info!

Thanks, Vikki

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  1. Anonymous
    2024-01-31T16:59:07+00:00

    So, having reformatted my Windows 11 PC just a few days ago - the only thing now complaining is OneDrive.

    The most annoying about this is that I have no use for OneDrive itself as my home PC (and therefore my home MS account) is used 99% for gaming.

    Now, I have attempted restores of game folders that I haven't played in years. Worse - folders that are still relevant becoming clogged with save game files from years back.

    A simple question. Why can't OneDrive be disabled by default and then YOU, being the user - simply select what you want to backup?

    Then when you get a new PC or a fresh reinstall, YOU being the user - simply select which folders and files that you wish to restore from OneDrive?

    It's not difficult. It would be so simple to implement. And it would actually make OneDrive useful for the majority of users who detest it.

    Stop trying to make a simple and effective solution into an automated PITA that thinks it knows better.

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  2. Anonymous
    2024-01-31T01:26:50+00:00

    So, my computer was getting sluggish and it seemed like it was time to bring it all down and reinstall Windows from scratch. I keep a full backup on an attached drive, so went ahead with it. Then OneDrive happened yesterday. It's the ONLY thing that has given me issues. I've got everything else installed, and running smoothly, and setup like I like it. There is one program that needs the path to the Desktop, so I entered it because it was easier than browsing around for it. C:\Users|[My Name]\Desktop, right? No, suddenly THAT didn't exist, and I found the OneDrive problem -- it's so insidious, I didn't even know it was running, its icon even hid itself in the notification area.

    I am now on DAY TWO trying to get all of my files back to my local drive. I followed instructions at another post about syncing until all the folders turned green, turning off the folders to backup, restarting and I was then supposed to have everything local again and I could unlink OneDrive and uninstall it. Well, of course, NONE of that worked. Everything was still on OneDrive and all the folders had these stupid shortcuts to click to get to the files being PROTECTED on One Drive. Now, I'm just manually copying them all down to the local drive.

    ****, Microsoft? Try ASKING if OneDrive should be installed during the installation! If it was asked, I must have blacked out and just clicked "Yes," because I don't remember a word about this HORRIBLE software invading my life. So while I was waiting for yet another copy to come down, I Googled "OneDrive is a horror," and this was the first link. LOL Thanks for letting me vent. Happy New Year!

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  3. Anonymous
    2024-01-22T09:56:36+00:00

    I had the same problem. I deleted the One Drive folder and it totally wiped everything off my computer. There's no Cloud Icon in task bar anymore, so there's no access OneDrive that way. It has taken weeks to recopy saved files and download apps and still some things are lost forever. I thought I uninstalled Onedrive but it's still there under Default Apps. When I click Uninstall - nothing happens. I'm trying to convert some files now but to my dismay they can't be converted because the app only recognizes the files through a Users/Name/Onedrive path that doesn't exist. Can anyone offer a suggestion?

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  4. Anonymous
    2023-12-24T22:07:42+00:00

    Totally agree, OneDrive is a nightmare horror show, when I try to get a file, it is unavailable since it is "synching",

    I have tried to disengage and lost files, it has created duplicate folders then folders build out on different paths and I cannot find the files. I have disconnected Onedrive but don't know how many files are lost; it constantly asks if I want to store backups on Onedrive, same with Edge browser which I avoid but it tries to make it my default browser.

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