Computer Related > OneDrive syncing Computing Issues
Thread Author: James Loveless Replies: 7

 OneDrive syncing - James Loveless
I hope someone can help me to understand this, as I seem to be getting absolutely nowhere with Microsoft support.

I have W10 on the PC, which has OneDrive installed on Drive C. I want OneDrive to sync with Drive D, which is where I keep all my data. I have copied files and folders from D to OneDrive, but they are not updated. To be frank, the Microsoft person doesn't seem to understand what I'm trying to do.

He says I need to move the location of OneDrive - I'm not told where I should move it, nor why this would help.

I have an external drive for back-up of Drive D; OneDrive, obviously, serves a different purpose.

Is it even possible for OneDrive to sync with Drive D? If so, how?
Last edited by: James Loveless on Mon 14 Jun 21 at 10:01
 OneDrive syncing - No FM2R
This is a bit a*** about face on One Drive compared to Google Drive. Mostly because the focus of One Drive is to keep all your files in one central cloud based drive, and thus available from anywhere, not to sync with what is on the PC.

Essentially you choose the folders/files which will exist in One Drive. One can easily do this by dragging and dropping them to the One Drive folder - which is usually C:/Users/your_ account/OneDrive.

(please note I am using forward slash when it should be backward slash because this software can't easily show a backward slash)

Having done that, one then selects which of those folders/files you also wish to exist on your PC.

The problem with that is that it will synch them all into the one drive location on C:

So, you need to first change the One Drive location to the D: drive. This is not the same as its installation location, it is the location of it's folder.

Having done that you then need to drag all of the D: driver stuff you want to sync into the folder.

And then, using One Drive settings, set them all as available on your PC.

I take a slightly different approach.

For most of my Office files they exist ONLY on One Drive.

Some of my Office files exist locally also, but it is the local drive which is sync'd with the One Drive changers, not the other way around.

I also use One Drive for non sync'd back up copies of some stuff.
 OneDrive syncing - James Loveless
Thanks for this. I think this may be what my intellectually-challenged Microsoft helper was trying to say.

"The problem with that is that it will synch them all into the one drive location on C" - but only if they exist on Drive C in the first place, presumably.

The problem with putting the OneDrive folder location onto D is that my external back-up drive is going to get clogged with duplicates of every data file. Unless I can stop it "seeing" the OneDrive folder.
Last edited by: James Loveless on Mon 14 Jun 21 at 21:51
 OneDrive syncing - No FM2R
Unless you only have the copy in the One Drive folder..


So now you have;

d:/dir1
d:/dir1/file1
d:/dir2
d:/dir/file2

And you're thinking of adding;

d:/onedrive
d:/onedrive/dir1
d:/onedrive/dir1/file1
d:/onedrive/dir2
d:/onedrive/dir/file2

Which will give you two copies of everything.

Why not do away with the first lot, ONLY have them all in /onedrive and then back that up?

Though that depends on the capacity of your onedrive and the amount of data on d: - My One Drive is at least 2TB, so no problem.

What amount of data are we dealing with here?

 OneDrive syncing - No FM2R
>>"The problem with that is that it will synch them all into the one drive location on C" - but only if they exist on Drive C in the first place, presumably

No, they will exist on C: because you have dragged them into the One Drive folder which is on C: by default, wherever they came from.
 OneDrive syncing - VxFan
>> C:/Users/your_ account/OneDrive.
>>
>> (please note I am using forward slash when it should be backward slash because this
>> software can't easily show a backward slash)


For someone who can easily overcome the swear filter, I would have thought it would have been Childs play for you ;)

C:\Users\your_ account\OneDrive
 OneDrive syncing - James Loveless
Many thanks to all who replied. At least you were able to inform me and explain better than the person from Microsoft.
 OneDrive syncing - bathtub tom
>>For someone who can easily overcome the swear filter, I would have thought it would have been Childs play for you ;)

As the best good looking mod he may be too busy admiring his reflection in the mirror?
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