Solved About OneDrive

I have an external drive and I back up photos and documents to it. Do I really need One Drive? Seems like it is using up disk space. Do users find it worthwhile? Just wondering...

Patsy1011 said:

I have an external drive and I back up photos and documents to it. Do I really need One Drive? Seems like it is using up disk space. Do users find it worthwhile? Just wondering...

Click to expand...

You do realize that you just opened up a fresh can o worms, right!
The reason I say that is because there is a plethora of OneDrive threads here on the forums, both Pro and Con, often with strong sentiment.
You'll get lots of good advice here, though!

Here's my 2¢...
I don't use OneDrive, I don't find it worthwhile and, I don't feel it's a necessity.

Onedrive should take virtually no space if you are not using it and are not syncing your user folders to it.

Although you only get 5GB free, it is handy to transfer files to other devices.

There are folks who will practically claim onedrive is the tool of satan.

To me it is really important but I get 1TB of cloudspace with Office 365 and use it a lot.

In the end it is personal choice. You can completely uninstall it if you prefer.

Patsy1011 said:

I have an external drive and I back up photos and documents to it. Do I really need One Drive? Seems like it is using up disk space. Do users find it worthwhile? Just wondering...

Click to expand...

I've used OneDrive for over 15 years. All my data and photos are kept in my OneDrive folder and mirrored in real-time in my 1 TB cloud OneDrive.

A good backup strategy should have one of the backups be offsite. A decade ago our house was robbed, and all our electronics were stolen. That included all computers and local backup drives. Had it not been for OneDrive, we would have lost all of our family photos.

Patsy1011 said:

I have an external drive and I back up photos and documents to it. Do I really need One Drive? Seems like it is using up disk space. Do users find it worthwhile? Just wondering...

Click to expand...

Good afternoon, @Patsy1011:

At the bottom of this post, I will give you a "few" links to tutorials on OneDrive. @Brink is the author of most, if not all of them.

Although you can totally remove OneDrive, I don't think should. My reason for this is that there are tons of other options like Unlink Account and PC from OneDrive in Windows 11. Unlink and re-link OneDrive - Microsoft Support

OneDrive will still be there, but it will be "out of sight, out of mind". Besides, OneDrive is in the Cloud and not on your computer.

• Uninstall and Reinstall OneDrive in Windows 11
• Set up OneDrive in Windows 11
• Unlink Account and PC from OneDrive in Windows 11
• Turn On or Off OneDrive Run at Startup in Windows 11
• Enable or Disable OneDrive Personal Vault
• Set up OneDrive Personal Vault in Windows 11 and Windows 10
• Add or Remove OneDrive in Navigation Pane of File Explorer in Windows 11
• Turn On or Off OneDrive Folder Backup Syncing Across Windows 11 Devices
• Enable or Disable OneDrive Files On-Demand in Windows 11
• Enable or Disable Show OneDrive Status on Navigation Pane in Windows 11
• Enable or Disable OneDrive Syncing in Battery Saver Mode in Windows 11
• Enable or Disable OneDrive Syncing on Metered Network in Windows 11
• Add OneDrive to Send to Context Menu in Windows 11
• Move or Restore Default Location of OneDrive Folder in Windows 11
• Reset OneDrive in Windows 10 and Windows 11
• Add or Remove OneDrive Desktop Icon in Windows 11

Quit and Close OneDrive in Windows 10 and Windows 11

Indeed a can of worms... love that post. I will check everything out. Thanks to all!

Patsy1011 said:

Indeed a can of worms... love that post. I will check everything out. Thanks to all!

Click to expand...

Truth be told...,
Essentially, there's nothing wrong with OneDrive, those who understand how it works, and use it, most often find it invaluable...,
those who don't, often find it intrusive.
I see OneDrive as a decent service, free up front but, they'd like you to buy into it cuz they know damn well that 5GB isn't near enough space to store all your junk!
That MS marketing team, they're a clever bunch!
Everyone has options.

Edwin said:

Truth be told...,
Essentially, there's nothing wrong with OneDrive, those who understand how it works, and use it, most often find it invaluable...,
those who don't, often find it intrusive.
I see OneDrive as a decent service, free up front but, they'd like you to buy into it cuz they know damn well that 5GB isn't near enough space to store all your junk!
That MS marketing team, they're a clever bunch!
Everyone has options.

Click to expand...

I had thought about the same thing, @Edwin, but decided not to bring it up.

I see two ways of Microsoft thinking . . . forcing those who don't have an Office subscription to pony up for more space, but I'm not so sure they can win this one . . . there are too many other forms of storage these days. I think Microsoft is aware that if they give 1 terabyte of OneDrive storage with Microsoft 365 (Office), they'll get more subscribers. So, it seems to be a win for us and a win for MS.

As I've said before, some of my students want to get rid of OneDrive entirely, so I started to research. Because I don't entirely understand OneDrive myself, I put it on the back burner, but I think I have enough information to be able to show my students how to decide what's best in their individual situations.

Our genealogy teacher bought a subscription to Microsoft 365 6 pack for the express purpose of sharing with four others in our classes. I have a 6 pack subscription, so I have a couple more I can share. That way, six class members will now have 1 terabyte of space on OneDrive, so probably won't be so anxious to get rid of it.

I'm still trying to figure out if it's an actual fact that one will have the right to put Microsoft 365 on all the computers in their house with only one instance Microsoft 365 shared with them.

Wynona said:

I'm still trying to figure out if it's an actual fact that one will have the right to put Microsoft 365 on all the computers in their house with only one instance Microsoft 365 shared with them.

Click to expand...

Yes, it's an actual fact.

I subscribe to the Microsoft 365 family plan for $99/year. I put it on autopay, so it always renews.

I share the family plan with my wife. Each of us has our own full Microsoft Office 365 suite and our own 1 terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

The family plan allows up to 5 individuals to be on the plan, each with their own Office suite and their own 1 Terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

Each individual has his/her own Microsoft Account. I'm the only one with the Microsoft 365 subscription.

Wynona said:

I'm still trying to figure out if it's an actual fact that one will have the right to put Microsoft 365 on all the computers in their house with only one instance Microsoft 365 shared with them.

Click to expand...

I have my 365 on both of my computers. They both share the same 1 TB of one drive.
When I move back and forth, it syncs everything between the 2.
This was shared with me as one of the 5 extra users.

About OneDrive being intrusive, it's not so much about being intrusive IMHO It's more like a rogue employee that doesn't always do what you want him/her to do and vice versa, he/she sometimes does unexpected things. That's why I completely removed OneDrive from all my Windows computers in my household, except for one.

I have a W10 computer in the family room that everyone in the household uses and what OneDrive does on that computer bothers nobody, not even me LOL I notice that OneDrive behaves better and better over the years, but I would still need more granular and more predictable control before I myself use it.

FWIW, conceptually I like File History much better than OneDrive, but implementation of File History was abysmal and it fell by the wayside because MS cannot monetize it.

Porthos said:

I have my 365 on both of my computers. They both share the same 1 TB of one drive.
When I move back and forth, it syncs everything between the 2.
This was shared with me as one of the 5 extra users.

Click to expand...

Thanks, @Porthos. That's what I needed to know.

So, if you have two computers, and your wife has one, will hers be able to install Microsoft 365 too?

Wynona said:

So, if you have two computers, and your wife has one, will hers be able to install Microsoft 365 too?

Click to expand...

You will share the one TB of storage. For example, if I save a picture or document it will be on both computers.
If I add something to the desktop of one computer it will show on the other.

The purpose is for a single user to be able to use both computers seamlessly.

Remember I am only talking about the seat that was shared with me.

It would not be an ideal situation in a husband and wife or any other family setup. That is what 365 family is for.

Haydon said:

About OneDrive being intrusive, it's not so much about being intrusive IMHO It's more like a rogue employee that doesn't always do what you want him/her to do and vice versa, he/she sometimes does unexpected things. That's why I completely removed OneDrive from all my Windows computers in my household, except for one.

I have a W10 computer in the family room that everyone in the household uses and what OneDrive does on that computer bothers nobody, not even me LOL I notice that OneDrive behaves better and better over the years, but I would still need more granular and more predictable control before I myself use it.

FWIW, conceptually I like File History much better than OneDrive, but implementation of File History was abysmal and it fell by the wayside because MS cannot monetize it.

Click to expand...

If you fully understand how OneDrive works, you are in full control. I fully control my OneDrive and there are absolutely no surprises or anything unexpected. All our family members use OneDrive with no problems whatsoever. I have a Microsoft 365 family subscription and each family member has their own 1 terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

I will agree that if you don't fully understand how OneDrive works, you will have the experiences you describe.

I also use Microsoft File History. It's still in Windows 11 and has definitely not fallen by the wayside. It works just as well as it always has.

TraderGary said:

I will agree that if you don't fully understand how OneDrive works, you will have the experiences you describe.

Click to expand...

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner.

TraderGary said:

If you fully understand how OneDrive works, you are in full control. I fully control my OneDrive and there are absolutely no surprises or anything unexpected. All our family members use OneDrive with no problems whatsoever. I have a Microsoft 365 family subscription and each family member has their own 1 terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

I will agree that if you don't fully understand how OneDrive works, you will have the experiences you describe.

I also use Microsoft File History. It's still in Windows 11 and has definitely not fallen by the wayside. It works just as well as it always has.

Click to expand...

LOL, it seems that in spite of your use of OneDrive and File History, you don't actually notice what is going on, just like 99.999% of the user base.

TraderGary said:

Yes, it's an actual fact.

I subscribe to the Microsoft 365 family plan for $99/year. I put it on autopay, so it always renews.

I share the family plan with my wife. Each of us has our own full Microsoft Office 365 suite and our own 1 terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

The family plan allows up to 5 individuals to be on the plan, each with their own Office suite and their own 1 Terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

Each individual has his/her own Microsoft Account. I'm the only one with the Microsoft 365 subscription.

Click to expand...

With the family plan, each user can share files if they wish. I have a lot of music files and the SO has many videos and pics which we can share with each other. Between the two of us, we almost have 1 TB combined. We also have all those files backed up on external hard drives along with them being stored on our main PC. On the laptop and one other PC, I use files on demand.

Haydon said:

LOL, it seems that in spite of your use of OneDrive and File History, you don't actually notice what is going on, just like 99.999% of the user base.

Click to expand...

It's a fact that millions of individuals and businesses use OneDrive and don't have the problems and beliefs the conspiracy theorists have.

TraderGary said:

It's a fact that millions of individuals and businesses use OneDrive and don't have the problems and beliefs the conspiracy theorists have.

Click to expand...

I don't believe in any conspiracies, but if OneDrive and File History work for you, just go on.

BTW, my original comment was in response to @Edwin use of the word 'intrusive', not to you.

TraderGary said:

Yes, it's an actual fact.

I subscribe to the Microsoft 365 family plan for $99/year. I put it on autopay, so it always renews.

I share the family plan with my wife. Each of us has our own full Microsoft Office 365 suite and our own 1 terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

The family plan allows up to 5 individuals to be on the plan, each with their own Office suite and their own 1 Terabyte of cloud OneDrive.

Each individual has his/her own Microsoft Account. I'm the only one with the Microsoft 365 subscription.

Click to expand...

In fact, the licence is even more flexible.

A personal licence can be installed om as many pcs as you like but onlly 6 pcs can be active at any one time. They can all share the 1 TB onedrive space.

A family licence can be shared amongst 5 users who can each run it on up to 6 active devices i.e in theory one licence can be active on up to 30 pcs and of course as stated in post above, each user has their own 1 TB onedrive space.

@Wynona, for your group, you could perhaps have one family licence and lend a licence to 4 of your students so they can learn the basics without having to pay up front. The licence owner (you) has complete control over other users i.e. you can revoke them as a user, and pass licence to another user.