how do I disable sync specific floder for oneDrive

Question

How can I disable the One-Drive from syncing specific folders and files for both my PC and my phone?

tried to find the "gear" on the cloud icon but it's not there, nor can I find an option on the given folder/file to disable the syning with on-drive.

It's syncing files that I don't want in the cloud, or I don't need it "backed up".

To be honest If I can not remove these syncs I'd just as soon diasable one-drive completly.

Answer 1

Dear @Larry Bilodeau.frogutopia,

Good day! Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.

We apologize for any inconvenience you may encounter when using our services/ products. Based on your description, kindly try these following steps: Selective Sync for OneDrive Folders

• Click the OneDrive cloud icon in the system tray (bottom-right).
• Select Help & Settings (gear icon) → Settings.
• Go to the Account tab → click Choose folders.
• Uncheck any folders you don’t want to sync locally. They’ll stay in the cloud but disappear from your PC.

Note: This only works for folders inside your OneDrive directory, not system folders like Desktop or Documents. Choose which OneDrive folders to sync to your computer - Microsoft Support

Stop Syncing Desktop, Documents, Pictures

• In Settings, go to Sync and backup > Manage backup.
• Toggle Off for Desktop, Documents, or Pictures. This moves them back to local storage.

If You Want to Stop Sync Entirely

• In Settings > Account, click Unlink this PC. This stops all syncing but keeps files online.
• For a permanent solution, you can uninstall OneDrive via Add or Remove Programs in Windows settings. Turn off, disable, or uninstall OneDrive - Microsoft Support

Pause syncing

• Click the OneDrive cloud icon in the system tray (bottom-right)
• Select Pause syncing then choose either 2 / 8 / 24 hours or select Quit OneDrive. How to cancel or stop sync in OneDrive - Microsoft Support

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Answer 2

If you have sufficient OneDrive storage space, I would let OneDrive do its thing. If you don't want a file to sync, you must remove it from the OneDrive folder. Don't place it in the Documents, Desktop, Pictures, Music, or Videos folders if you are syncing those folders in Manage Backup.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/back-up-your-folders-with-onedrive-d61a7930-a6fb-4b95-b28a-6552e77c3057