One Drive not working at all

Question

One Drive not working at all

Siska Dávid 0

On a new PC, I tried setting up One Drive so I can access my work files more easily. I tried the following in every possible combination:

opening it from start menu
restarting the app via task manager
reinstalling it

Task manager only shows the Sync Services, nothing else. There is no icon appearing in the hidden icons panel, no folder opening, nothing. I can access my files only via Outlook/Teams, but it is slower than the file explorer option, which I cannot set up.

EmilyS726 264.6K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-08-30T17:23:40.8266667+00:00
Hello.

You said this was a new PC, but you select the Windows 10 product tag. Can you please clarify if you are using Windows 10 or Windows 11? New PC from the market these days typically don't install Windows 10.

Also, can you type cmd in the search on the taskbar and launch command prompt, then run this command, and share a screenshot of the result please? I need to review the type of account you use for Windows first, this might have something to do with the issue.

whoami /user

1 answer

Your answer

EmilyS726 264.6K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-08-30T17:23:40.8266667+00:00

Hello.

You said this was a new PC, but you select the Windows 10 product tag. Can you please clarify if you are using Windows 10 or Windows 11? New PC from the market these days typically don't install Windows 10.

Also, can you type cmd in the search on the taskbar and launch command prompt, then run this command, and share a screenshot of the result please? I need to review the type of account you use for Windows first, this might have something to do with the issue.

whoami /user

Answer 1

Check whether the OneDrive icon is just hidden. On Windows, the white or blue OneDrive cloud icon should appear in the notification area at the far right of the taskbar. Select the Show hidden icons arrow to verify it is not there.
Try starting OneDrive directly from Windows search. Select Start, type OneDrive, and select OneDrive in the search results. If no icon appears afterward, OneDrive is likely not starting correctly.
If this is a work or school account, check whether a policy is blocking OneDrive from starting. Open the registry and go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\OneDrive Then check whether: DisableFileSyncNGSC = DWORD:1 For OneDrive for work or school to start, that value must be removed or changed to 0. If it is being applied by Group Policy, the policy itself must be removed by the organization’s administrator. If changed manually without removing the policy, it will usually be reapplied after restart, sign-in, or periodic policy refresh. Important: modifying the registry incorrectly can cause serious problems. Back up the registry first.
Before uninstalling again, try repairing Office, because that can resolve OneDrive for work or school issues without a full reinstall.
If repair does not help, uninstall and reinstall OneDrive. Reinstalling resets OneDrive settings and triggers a full sync, but files already stored in OneDrive remain available when signed in online. On Windows:
- Open Start and type Programs.
- Select Add or remove programs.
- Find Microsoft OneDrive under Apps & features.
- Select Uninstall.
- Install the current OneDrive app and complete sign-in again.

Given the symptoms described—no icon, no folder, Start menu launch doing nothing, and reinstall not helping—the most likely supported cause is that OneDrive is not running or a Group Policy setting is preventing onedrive.exe from starting.

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