Unable to save office files word, excel and PPT on my computer instead directed to save on One drive

Question

I am unable to save office files like word ,Excel and PPT to my computer instead I am directed to save in Microsoft One Drive. This has happened after my HP laptop crashed and HP reloaded the OS along with Office 2021 but now I am unable to use office apps like word, excel etc as it was before the crash. I even went to in Word File>>Options>>Save and Checked the box Save to computer by default and pressed OK but it did not solve the problem evn after checking the box Save to Computer by default as it is getting unchecked once I come out of Options

Answer 1

Since this is a duplication of the question posed at https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5781935/unable-to-save-word-excel-ppt-files-in-my-computer, I am locking this thread.

Answer 2

Hello,

This often happens after a reset because OneDrive is set up to "protect" your local folders by moving them to the cloud. Before we try to force the setting in Word, we should check if OneDrive has taken over your standard folders.

Click the OneDrive cloud icon in your taskbar (near the clock), click the Gear icon (Settings) and go to Sync and backup > Manage backup. Are the switches for Desktop, Documents, and Pictures turned ON?

If those are on, your local Documents folder is technically inside OneDrive right now.

Answer 3

It seems that your issue with saving Office files directly to your computer instead of OneDrive could be related to the settings or permissions after the OS reload. Here are a few steps you can try to resolve the issue:

1. Check Default Save Location: Ensure that the default save location is set correctly. You mentioned that you checked the option to save to the computer by default, but if it keeps unchecking, there might be a permissions issue or a problem with the Office installation.
2. Repair Office Installation: Sometimes, repairing the Office installation can resolve unexpected behavior. You can do this through the Control Panel by selecting Microsoft Office and choosing the repair option.
3. Check OneDrive Settings: If OneDrive is set to automatically save files, it might override your settings. You can check the OneDrive settings to see if there are options that dictate where files are saved by default.
4. Permissions Issue: Since the OS was reloaded, ensure that your user account has the necessary permissions to save files on your local drive. You can check this by right-clicking on the drive in File Explorer, selecting Properties, and then checking the Security tab.
5. Update Office: Ensure that your Office applications are fully updated, as updates can fix bugs and issues.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, you may want to consider reaching out to Microsoft support for further assistance.

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References:

• Troubleshoot why Excel doesn't save changes
• Excel or PowerPoint error: "This file cannot be saved because some properties are missing or invalid"