One drive keeps signing me into new account can’t access old

Question

One drive keeps signing me into new account can’t access old

Jenny Jeffery 0

I used my other email address as a recovery email for my one drive account and my new email for my old account now I can’t access my old account information eg photos and documents as it keeps opening the new account. My computer is coming up with my old account and tells me my storage is full but I set it up with the new account and have purchased extra storage for it but it isn’t showing recent files. I want to be able to access both so I can download old information and upload it to my new account

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Answer 1

Vikki-T 10,015 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi Jenny Jeffery,

I can understand how concerning this is when your older photos and documents appear to be tied to an account that you can no longer access.

From your description, it sounds like you may now have two separate Microsoft accounts. Adding an email address as a recovery email does not merge the accounts or transfer OneDrive files and storage between them. This may explain why the extra storage appears on the new account while the old account is still shown as full.

To help narrow this down, could you please confirm:

Are both accounts personal Microsoft accounts or is either one a work or school account?
When you sign in with the original email address, do you receive an error or does Microsoft automatically open the new account?
In the OneDrive app, under Settings > Account, which email address is currently displayed?
Can you still see any of the older files in the OneDrive folder on your computer?

In the meantime, please open an InPrivate or Incognito browser window and sign in to OneDrive on the web using the original account’s email address and password. This can prevent the browser from automatically reusing the new account’s sign-in session.

If you can access the old account, download the important files first. You can then sign in to the new account and upload them there. If you cannot sign in to the old account, try the Microsoft account recovery form using the original account address.

Please avoid unlinking OneDrive or deleting any local OneDrive folders until you have confirmed whether the older files are also stored locally on the computer. Thank you so much for your understanding.

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

Jenny Jeffery 0 Reputation points

2026-08-18T13:31:10.2533333+00:00

Both are personal accounts the old one I had for years then bought a new computer and didn’t realise I had two accounts.

when I sign into the old account it come up as that account email address but only has the same information as my new one, none of my old photos or documents.

when I open the app on my iPad it shows the new one but only my computer it says my account is the old

if I log out of one and open the other it’s the same photos and documents but some files haven’t been updated on the old

i can’t see any of the older files.

I added the new as a recovery email on my old email and the old on my new and the information from the old disappeared. I had both for a short time and went to download the photos and information but it was suddenly gone.
Vikki-T 10,015 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-08-19T12:55:10.6166667+00:00
Hi Jenny Jeffery,

Thank you for clarifying. Since signing in with either email now shows the same files, it is possible that both email addresses are associated with the same Microsoft account rather than opening two separate OneDrive storage spaces.

Could you please sign in to the Microsoft account aliases page and check whether both email addresses appear under the same account? Please do not post either address publicly. Just let me know whether both are listed there.

Since the older photos and documents are no longer visible, please also check the following locations before making any further account changes:

Sign in to OneDrive on the web and use Search everything to look for a few specific older files.

Check the OneDrive Recycle bin and, if applicable, unlock Personal Vault to check for missing items.

On the computer, use File Explorer to search the entire device, not only the current OneDrive folder. Please also check the Windows Recycle Bin and look for any other folders named OneDrive or OneDrive Personal.

If you have a Microsoft 365 subscription and the files disappeared within the last 30 days, check whether Restore your OneDrive is available under OneDrive Settings.

Could you also confirm approximately when you last saw the missing files and whether they were originally stored on the old computer, the current computer or another device? This may help determine whether the files were uploaded to OneDrive or remained stored locally.

For now, please avoid removing either email address, unlinking OneDrive or deleting any local OneDrive folders until the account setup and available copies have been checked.
Vikki-T 10,015 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-08-20T13:45:47.9866667+00:00

Hi Jenny Jeffery,

Is there any update from you?

If yes, please feel free to let us know.