Why is OneDrive for Business syncing so slow

Question

Hi,

We have 365 tenant with Microsoft Teams. Some users want to manage files using the Windows Explorer on Windows 11. They sync folders from to their own computer by using the "Add shortcut to My Files" in Teams so it creates a link to the Teams document library in OneDrive.

This works fine however OneDrive. The files show up with a blue cloud icon so they are not fully downloaded initially. Also exactly what we want.

The problem is that the OneDrive status of "Processing changes" takes literally days to complete. One of our Teams has about 40k items, the computer has an Intel i3 10th generation processor, 16GB RAM, 512SSD. Internet is wired 500/500 fiber connection. It seems to process about 2 items per second when you look at the progress in OneDrive. Computer works just fine, nothing else feels slow. But this syncing takes so long it's causing problems because every file you create will only be uploaded back to Teams after this initial sync completes for the first time.

Any idea why and how to fix this?

Answer 1

Hi @Caspar - ABO

OneDrive syncing may be slower depending on the settings of the app or device. You can check the following settings and adjust them as needed:

• Make sure your upload and download rates are not limited in OneDrive. Right-click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar and click Settings > Network > Unlimited upload and download rates.
• Make sure you are using the latest version of OneDrive and that it is up to date. Right-click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar and click Help & Settings > Check for updates.
• Make sure your firewall or antivirus software is not blocking OneDrive from accessing the internet. Check the settings of your firewall or antivirus software and add OneDrive as an exception or allow it through.
• Make sure your files are syncing to the correct location on your device. Right-click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar and click Account > Settings > Select folders. Select the folders you want to sync, and then click OK.

There are some unsupported file names and file types in OneDrive for Business (such as "*: < >? / \ |) that may cause downloading to stall. For more information, you can refer to this. Please check if there are invalid or blocked file types, characters, etc. in your files. If there are, it is recommended that you rename or temporarily remove these files after backing up.

OneDrive sync may be affected by the size and number of files to be synced. Large files may take longer to upload, and smaller files may take longer to upload in batches. You can try the following tips to optimize sync performance:

• Pause and resume the sync process regularly. To do this, right-click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar and click Pause sync > 2 hours (or whatever duration you prefer). Then, repeat the same steps and click Resume sync. This helps refresh the connection and clear any errors.
• Sync a smaller number of files at a time. To do this, select only the files that need to be synced and move them to a separate folder in OneDrive. Then, sync that folder first and move on to the next one. This helps reduce the load on the app and speed up the sync process.
• Sync over a wired (Ethernet) connection instead of wireless (Wi-Fi). To do this, connect your device to your router or modem using an Ethernet cable. This can help improve your internet stability and speed.

There’s more information on how to maximize your upload and download speeds in this article, so hopefully it helps. Thanks for your understanding and support.

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Answer 2

It turns out the OneDrive sync speed has everything to do with the speed of your computer. Internet connection, CPU, RAM, SSD, Indexing speed on Windows.

I have tested a brand new pc and syncing is super fast, just a few minutes vs days. And the slow computer isn't even that old, couple of years.

So if OneDrive sync is extremely slow, check your CPU if it's an outdated one and check available RAM as OneDrive eats quite a lot of RAM.