OneDrive – Shared folders can no longer sync locally since yesterday

Anonymous
2025-03-06T21:28:30+00:00

I have been experiencing an issue with the synchronization of shared OneDrive folders that started yesterday. Until now, I could successfully add shared folders to my OneDrive and have them sync locally, but now the folder is only appearing as a shortcut/link and is no longer treated as a regular folder in my OneDrive storage.

Problem:

  • Until yesterday, I could add shared folders to my OneDrive folder, and they would automatically sync so I could use the files directly on my PC.
  • Since yesterday, the shared folder is now only appearing as a link/shortcut, and it is not syncing locally.
  • The folder remains visible as an online link in the OneDrive Explorer, but I can't use it as a normal folder.
  • This affects all shared folders, both from external users and internal ones.
  • This change occurred suddenly on March 5, 2025, and was not present before.

What I have tried:

  1. Added the folder for synchronization again: This results in a link, not an actual sync.
  2. Updated the OneDrive client: I have installed the latest version of OneDrive, but the problem persists.
  3. Reinstalled OneDrive: I uninstalled and reinstalled OneDrive to fix any potential issues, but the problem remains.
  4. Cleared cache and stored credentials: This did not resolve the issue either.
  5. Checked the settings for a solution: I have reviewed all relevant options, but haven’t found a solution.

Questions:

  1. Was this feature intentionally changed by Microsoft, or is this a bug?
  2. Is there any way to reverse this change or make shared folders sync locally again like before?
  3. Is it possible to sync shared folders without the online link appearing?
  4. What steps should I take to resolve this issue?

Additional Information:

  • I am using OneDrive for Personal and syncing multiple folders from different users.
  • The files are still available online, but I am no longer able to use them offline as I did before.

I would greatly appreciate your assistance in resolving this issue. Thank you for your support!

Microsoft 365 and Office | OneDrive | For home | Windows

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  1. Anonymous
    2025-04-28T12:50:47+00:00

    I read somewhere that this is a temporary migration issue? For me, it just started after resetting One Drive which was stuck on syncing files. Does anyone have more info? This is what I got from ChatGPT:

    The issue you’ve encountered with OneDrive—where shared folders appear as internet shortcuts instead of syncing properly—is a known problem stemming from a backend migration by Microsoft. This migration affects the synchronization of shared folders, particularly when the sharing users are on different stages of the migration process.

    Microsoft has acknowledged that during this migration, syncing shared folders may not function correctly if one user has been migrated and the other has not. They are working to expedite the process, and once both accounts involved in sharing are migrated, the shared folders should resume syncing normally within a few days .

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  2. Anonymous
    2025-04-25T01:15:13+00:00

    I switced to kDrive by Infomaniak and it seems quite fair. Still testing.

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  3. Anonymous
    2025-04-23T14:22:18+00:00

    Same issue here, for over a month now. My family cannot download the shared folders locally. This sucks so much, thinking about migrating to another cloud service...

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  4. Anonymous
    2025-04-22T20:14:14+00:00

    According to this post updated 17th they have given up on fixing sync for shared folders on Windows devices and say you should use Onedrive as a service. Previous text from 4th of april said "investigating".

    Link: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/fixes-or-workarounds-for-recent-issues-in-onedrive-36110213-f3f6-490d-8cb7-3833539def0b#id0ebbt=windows

    If they don't fix it I will change storage provider as well...

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  5. Anonymous
    2025-04-22T04:10:32+00:00

    Still waiting. I'm considering migrating to another cloud storage provider. It's outrageous.

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