Sync Between OneDrive and Sharepoint within Microsoft 365 - confused

Question

We own a small business and have used Microsoft products for decades, and we're having an issue I just can't figure out.

We have a Sharepoint site (contoso.sharepoint.com) that we want to use for our collaboration with the team. In our OneDrive, when we log in with business credentials, we see some of our file folders. When I open on-line, it's syncing to contoso-my.sharepoint.com.

One beauty of OneDrive is the fact that the location shows up in File Explorer. Ideally, we'd like to have all of our client files in the documents on contoso.sharepoint.com, and be able to easily save and open files from that location.

I'm lost as to how to make this work simply.

Can anyone share any configuration suggestions?

Thank you in advance!

Answer 1

One beauty of OneDrive is the fact that the location shows up in File Explorer. Ideally, we'd like to have all of our client files in the documents on contoso.sharepoint.com, and be able to easily save and open files from that location.

This used to be easy using "network locations" but Msft has opted to replace this simple "open in explorer" functionality with the flawed onedrive sync tool which has several issues. It duplicates your online files locally which can lead to versioning and unintended deletion issues and isn't what people want. If you're paying for online storage you should be able to access it directly. I still have network locations set up so can generally access online files directly in file explorer, but have to first open a site in an app like word to reconnect the locations. Once reconnected my network locations can be accessed in explorer. You can try that - it's a little clunky but way better than the sync tool.

Answer 2

Hi respected Jim Drennan,

I'm writing a follow up this case, and I haven’t received any information from you, may I know have you checked above reply? Feel free to post back if you need further assistance.

Have a good day and stay safe 😊

Sincerely,

Waqas Muhammad

Answer 3

Hi respected Jim Drennan,

Thanks for your valuable feedback and sharing updates with us and I really appreciate your effort and your precious time doing. 

And I appreciate your kind words.

At the top of your document library, there is one button "Sync", it will sync whole document library instead of subfolders.

Since you mentioned, "So we had synced some of the subfolders, but I want to do it at the top level. When I try to sync, it says I've got subfolders syncing" in your pc click on OneDrive blue could icon and select setting.

Click on Account tab>select "Stop sync" beside your library subfolder to clean first(if there is any).

Also, you may click on Unlink this pc.

Now navigate to your document library and at the top click on "Sync" button, it will sync whole library.

Your understanding and patience will be highly appreciated. I hope that you are keeping safe and well!

Sincerely,

Waqas Muhammad

Answer 4

Waqas,

Thank you for the detailed response - we're almost there!

So as I look at the structure of the site, when I click on documents, I get this:

So we had synced some of the subfolders, but I want to do it at the top level. When I try to sync, it says I've got subfolders syncing.

Is there a way to clear all of the subfolder sync for the Library so I can sync the whole library?

Answer 5

Dear respected Jim Drennan,

Good day! Thank you for posting to Microsoft Community. We are happy to help you.

As per your description, here to help guide you through it. Honestly, OneDrive for Business is primarily for storing personal work files. It's specific to an individual user. And SharePoint is designed for team collaboration, where files are meant to be shared and accessible by multiple team members.

You may try to setup/sync SharePoint Document Libraries with File Explorer via go to your SharePoint site (contoso.sharepoint.com)>Navigate to the Document Library you want to sync>Click on the "Sync" button in the library. This will prompt OneDrive to sync the library to your local computer, making it accessible via File Explorer.

Once synced, you can find the SharePoint Document Library in File Explorer under your organization’s name or a folder named after the SharePoint site. You can open, edit, and save files directly from this location, and changes will sync to SharePoint automatically.

Team members with access to the SharePoint library can also sync it to their devices.

If there is any misunderstanding, I apologize and please feel free to post back to us with more detailed information for better understanding and guiding you further.

Please understand that our initial reply may not always immediately resolve the issue. However, with your help and more detailed information, we can work together to find a solution.

I'm sorry and I apologize for that.

Appreciate your patience and understanding and thank you for your time and cooperation.

Sincerely,

Waqas Muhammad