Numerous Red X's Beside Folders, Pictures, and Documents

Question

Numerous Red X's Beside Folders, Pictures, and Documents

Paul 20

I transferred all of the important files, folders, documents, and pictures from my old computer to my new one. I bought Microsoft 365 Family, and all of those materials are in my OneDrive. However, probably 75% of them have a small circle with a red X in it. When I click on the X, I get a screen that says there is an error in the availability status. Nonetheless, I have been able to open all of them that I tried. I am hesitant to get rid of my old computer if there may be some problem with those materials on my new computer. There are probably thousands of pictures, so I can't click on all of them to see if there may be a bad one in the bunch. Any help?

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Answer accepted by question author

Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Independent Advisor

Regarding remote access, I cannot connect to your computer through this forum. Microsoft Q&A contributors do not have remote-access capability. That would be something you need to check with Support Agents.

Please close any file that is still open, wait until OneDrive again reports “Up to date,” and then perform the following:

Click the OneDrive cloud icon beside the clock.
Select Help & Settings > Settings > Account.
Select Unlink this PC, and confirm.
Sign in again with the same Microsoft account.
When informed that a OneDrive folder already exists, select Use this folder.
Allow OneDrive to rebuild the folder statuses completely, and then restart the computer.

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4 additional answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Independent Advisor

Could you please check the Properties of one of the affected folders and let me know if the Availability status shows any error? Also, please run CHKDSK (chkdsk /scan) from an elevated Command Prompt to verify that there are no file system errors affecting the folder metadata.

If both checks come back normal, this may indicate a problem with OneDrive's icon overlay or sync cache rather than an actual synchronization failure.

Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-23T18:43:52.7533333+00:00

Your system has apparently been down, so I have been unable to respond until now. When I right click on a folder and then click on properties, there is nothing labeled Availability. Here is a screenshot showing what I get:

None of the tabs have anything about availability. Please send me more detailed information about how I can check the availability status.

I ran CHKDSK (chkdsk /scan) from an elevated Command Prompt to verify that there were no file system errors affecting the folder metadata. I received this response: "Windows has scanned the file system and found no problems. No further action is required." I assume that means everything is OK there.

I look forward to hearing back regarding how to determine the availability status and your next ideas. And remember that I asked about the possibility of remote access to prevent such long delays in this process. Please let me know if that is or is not possible. Thank you.
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-24T19:14:12.3633333+00:00

Are you ready for some good news? Unlinking my PC and then signing back in . . . Worked! All of my folders and files are now red X-free. Thank you for your expertise and able assistance! You may now close this ticket. Thanks so much.
Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-24T19:29:37.4933333+00:00

It was a pleasure to close it. You will need to mark this as the answer
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-24T19:53:20+00:00

I don't know how to mark it as the answer. Let me know, and I will be happy to do so.
Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-24T20:14:01.7533333+00:00
Accepting an answer helps other community members to know that the answer helped you.

Go to a question you asked AND that has answers.

Review the answers and select the "Accept answer" button underneath the answer.

The answer is accepted and moved up after the question. The accepted answer has a green frame to visually indicate that it's the accepted answer and the "Accepted answer" label
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-24T20:50:10.21+00:00

As you know, you tried several different solutions before we finally got to the solution, which was unlinking my PC from OneDrive and then relinking it. In our conversation string, however, there is no box asking whether that solution worked. The only answer that has such an option is one that did not work, so I don't want to click on something saying it resolved the problem. Do you know how to make the magic box appear below the unlinking solution?
Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-24T20:52:26.03+00:00

I have separated that suggestion and made it an answer.

Answer 2

Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Independent Advisor

The red X icons next to your Documents, Pictures, or other folders usually indicate that OneDrive is unable to synchronize those folders. The most common causes are that OneDrive is out of storage space, sync has been paused, you're signed out of OneDrive, or there is another synchronization error.

Could you please check the following?

Click the OneDrive cloud icon in the system tray (near the clock). Does it show any error message, such as "Your OneDrive is full", "Sign in required", or "Sync pending"?
Open OneDrive on the web and confirm whether your files are present there and whether you have available storage.

Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-19T23:48:20.43+00:00

I noticed you marked this as not resolving the issue. The goal of my previous response was to gather more information to better understand the problem and work toward a solution. Could you please provide the requested information? That will help continue troubleshooting.
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-20T14:20:12.9866667+00:00

I have more than ample memory, and my OneDrive is fully synced, but a lot of the red Xs are still there. I have opened some of the Word documents and turned off AutoSave. That removes the X for those documents, but even with all documents in a folder having a green checkmark, the folder itself still has a red X. Virtually all of the picture folders have red Xs, even if all of the pictures in the folder can be opened (and when I opened most of those pictures, the red Xs associated with them went away). The situation is improving but is still there. Thanks for following up; I tried to respond earlier, but I was limited to 43 characters, which was not nearly enough!
Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-20T17:24:22.6266667+00:00
Sorry, but there's still missing the information I mentioned. Could you please check the following?

Click the OneDrive cloud icon in the system tray (near the clock). Does it show any error message, such as "Your OneDrive is full", "Sign in required", or "Sync pending"?

Open OneDrive on the web and confirm whether your files are present there and whether you have available storage.
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-20T19:28:39.5+00:00

Sorry; I thought I provided that. The OneDrive icon does not show any error message. Specifically, it does not say the OneDrive is full, that sign-in is required, or that sync is pending. In fact, it shows that it is backed up and synced. I look forward to your further thoughts. Thank you.
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-20T19:29:09.3166667+00:00

Sorry; I thought I provided that. The OneDrive icon does not show any error message. Specifically, it does not say the OneDrive is full, that sign-in is required, or that sync is pending. In fact, it shows that it is backed up and synced. I look forward to your further thoughts. Thank you.
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-20T19:29:45.46+00:00

Sorry; I thought I provided that. The OneDrive icon does not show any error message. Specifically, it does not say the OneDrive is full, that sign-in is required, or that sync is pending. In fact, it shows that it is backed up and synced. I look forward to your further thoughts. Thank you.
Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-20T21:22:21.9266667+00:00

Please Navigate to one of the affected folder, right-click the folder and select Free up space. This tells Windows to change the status of all files inside to "cloud-only." Wait a few moments for the red X to change to a blue cloud icon. Right-click the exact same folder again and select Always keep on this device. This downloads fresh local copies and should replace the red Xs with solid green checkmarks.
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-21T13:08:07.2666667+00:00

I appreciate your attempts to resolve this problem. I followed your instructions. When I clicked on Free Up Space, my computer synced and told me it had completed that task. I then waited about 15 minutes and even refreshed the files. As before, each component of a given folder has a blue cloud (presumably showing that it is safely in the cloud), but the folder itself still has a red X. I will await you next suggestion. Thank you.
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Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-21T16:50:35.8733333+00:00

Could you please share a screenshot of how your files look
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-21T18:18:47.7633333+00:00

I will try. I took 3 screen shots. The first shows the folders in a file named Travels. As you will see, most of the folders have red Xs, including the one named Bamberg Pictures. The second shows the contents of the Bamberg Pictures Folder, with all of the pictures having a green check mark. The third shows a different view of the contents, again with all contents in the green.

I will point out one interesting fact. I had opened the Bamberg file before, and all of its contents had red Xs. When I hit Control A and highlighted all of them and then opened them, they had green checkmarks. But, when I reopened them just now, the red Xs were back. It's like the opening did not take and they reverted. Maybe the computer is not saving my changes? I thought this might make you think of something.2026-07-21.png

As I try to add the screen shots, it looks like it will only let me post one. Let me know if you want me to send the other two one at a time.
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-21T18:22:44.0066667+00:00

Here is a second screenshot. 2026-07-21 (1).png
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-21T18:23:16.5933333+00:00

and the third: 2026-07-21 (2).png
Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-21T19:52:13.0466667+00:00
Sometimes, an invisible system file (like a corrupted thumbnail cache) gets stuck in a sync loop.

Open File Explorer.

Click on the View menu at the top (if you are on Windows 11, click View > Show).

Check the box for Hidden items.

Open your "Bamberg Pictures" folder. Look for any slightly faded files (often named Thumbs.db or starting with a ~$). If you see any hidden files with a red X, you can safely delete them.

Since your OneDrive app reports that it is fully backed up but File Explorer disagrees, we can reset OneDrive. This will not delete any of your files; it just forces OneDrive to completely refresh its sync connections and icon overlays.

Press the Windows Key + R on your keyboard to open the Run window.

Copy and paste the following exact command and press Enter: %localappdata%\Microsoft\OneDrive\onedrive.exe /reset

The OneDrive cloud icon in your system tray will disappear. It should reappear on its own after a minute or two as it restarts.

Answer 3

Thanks for the explanation. I actually pasted it with the space the first time and got the same response as I sent to you. I then saw the space and thought it might be an error, so I took it out (but that didn't work for the reason you stated). This time, I pasted the first C drive reset language you just sent, and OneDrive did reset. I received confirmation that everything synced except three word documents I had open; it said they would sync when I close them. I went back to my Bamberg pictures, and they remain in the X status, as shown below.

If there is a way you can access my computer remotely, I am open to letting you in to try things in real time rather than instructing me to do so. If you can't, however, I am willing to continue trying.

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Answer 4

Paul 20

I first checked Hidden items and did not see any slightly faded files or ones starting with ~$. There were a few with the word Thumbnail in the title, but not Thumbs.db. But, since they were duplicates, I deleted them to see if that would help. It did not change anything. The red X stayed in place for the folder.

Next, I copied and pasted the command you gave. It would not run. I got a response saying something to the effect that it could not be found. I have pasted a screenshot below so you can see the exact language. I copied and pasted it again (%localappdata%\Microsoft\OneDrive\onedrive.exe/reset) to be sure I had it right, and I received the same response. After you consider this, I will await your next thoughts. Again, thank you.

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Jeronimo Fuerte 44,960 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-21T20:23:33.51+00:00
In your screenshot, the command ends with onedrive.exe/reset. Because there is no space between .exe and /reset, Windows thinks you are looking for a single file with that entire, long name. It needs the space to understand that /reset is an instruction being sent to the onedrive.exe program.

If the primary command still gives you a "Windows cannot find" error, your OneDrive might be installed in your Program Files directory instead. If that happens, try copying and pasting these alternatives into the Run window:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft OneDrive\onedrive.exe /reset

C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft OneDrive\onedrive.exe /reset
Paul 20 Reputation points

2026-07-21T20:41:40.7166667+00:00

Thanks for the explanation. I actually pasted it with the space the first time and got the same response as I sent to you. I then saw the space and thought it might be an error, so I took it out (but that didn't work for the reason you stated). This time, I pasted the first C drive reset language you just sent, and OneDrive did reset. I received confirmation that everything synced except three word documents I had open; it said they would sync when I close them. I went back to my Bamberg pictures, and they remain in the X status, as shown below.

If there is a way you can access my computer remotely, I am open to letting you in to try things in real time rather than instructing me to do so. If you can't, however, I am willing to continue trying.