OneDrive account does not show my files

Question

I'm not able to see my files in my OneDrive account. How can I access them?

Answer 1

Hi, I'm John!

To help narrow down the issue:

1. What exactly do you see in OneDrive right now, empty folders or any error message?
2. Where are you accessing OneDrive, from a browser, PC app, or mobile app?
3. When did the files go missing, was it after a change, update, or sign-in?

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Click "Add comment" to let me know.

Regards,

John J.D.

Answer 2

Follow these steps in order to access and locate files in a personal OneDrive account:

1. Sign in to OneDrive on the web
   1. Go to https://www.onedrive.com.
   2. Sign in with the Microsoft account used for OneDrive.
   3. In the top bar, use Search everything to look for files.
      • Search not only by filename but also by words in the file, tags, dates, or places (for example: "April", "Paris").
      • Files stored in Personal Vault will not appear in search results.
2. Check the OneDrive Recycle Bin
   1. On the left side of the OneDrive website, select Recycle bin.
   2. If missing files appear there, select them and choose Restore.
   3. Restored items will return to their original OneDrive locations.
3. Confirm the correct Microsoft account
   1. Sign out of OneDrive on the web.
   2. Sign back in, and if there might be more than one account (for example, personal and work/school), try each account.
   3. Files saved under a different account will only appear when signed in to that specific account.
4. Restore OneDrive to a previous point in time (Microsoft 365 subscribers)
   1. If subscribed to Microsoft 365, open the Restore your OneDrive page: https://onedrive.live.com/?v=restore.
   2. Choose a date within the last 30 days and restore.
   3. This undoes actions on files and folders within that period.
      • Caution: Files or folders created after the restore point date are moved to the OneDrive Recycle Bin and can be restored from there.
5. Check local device storage
   1. If files may have been saved outside OneDrive or not yet synced:
      • On Windows, use File Explorer to search the PC.
      • On macOS, use Finder.
      • On mobile devices, use the Files app (or equivalent) to search locally.
   2. Also check the device Recycle Bin or Trash for deleted local copies.

If files still do not appear after these steps and are not in the OneDrive Recycle Bin or any other account, there is no additional native recovery method beyond continuing to try different search terms and locations.

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References:

• Find lost or missing files in OneDrive
• "OneDrive cannot connect to Windows" error when accessing files in OneDrive
• OneDrive shows "This file can't be synced"
• Unable to restore deleted files from C:OneDrive - Microsoft Q&A