how to keep files separate in family subscription?

Question

Two family members have one family subscription. Two separate laptops, but desktop files of one member are synced with other member. How do we keep files separate? I signed into one drive , went to my files and manage access but all files say "Private". Yet clearly they are shared. Help.

Answer 1

Hello, thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A.

If you have two separate Microsoft accounts signed in on OneDrive, your files will not be shared with another account or member, even if they are part of an Office 365 Family group/subscription.

Each member in the family group has a separate email inbox, calendar, OneNote, and OneDrive storage. If you choose to share a folder with another member, they will be able to view those files.

---

Since you already said that all the desktop files are set to private and not shared, it is possible that your account may be signed in on the second laptop.

1. Open OneDrive on the Second Laptop. (Right-click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar and select Settings)
2. Then, go to the Accounts section.
3. If you see your account is signed in there, just click 'Unlink this PC'.

This should remove the sync on the second laptop.

Let me know if you still need more help.

Answer 2

This usually happens when both laptops are signed in to OneDrive or Office with the same Microsoft account. In a Microsoft 365 Family subscription, each person should use their own Microsoft account. The subscription is shared with up to five other people, but personal files remain private unless explicitly shared.

What to do:

1. Check who is signed in on each laptop
   • On the laptop showing the wrong Desktop files, check whether OneDrive is signed in with the other family member’s Microsoft account.
   • If both laptops use the same Microsoft account, OneDrive will show and sync that same account’s files on both devices.
2. Share the Microsoft 365 Family subscription correctly
   • The subscription owner should open the sharing page and confirm each family member has their own share.
   • Microsoft 365 Family can be shared with a maximum of five other people.
   • If someone is not yet shared with, use Start sharing.
3. Sign out of the wrong account in OneDrive and Office
   • On each laptop, sign out of OneDrive and Office if they are using the same account.
   • Then sign back in with the correct person’s own Microsoft account.
   • This keeps each person’s OneDrive storage separate.
4. Understand why “Private” still appears
   • If files show Private in OneDrive, that means they are not explicitly shared with another person.
   • The issue is likely not file sharing permissions. It is more likely that the same Microsoft account is being used on both devices, so both devices are syncing the same OneDrive.
5. Use separate Windows sign-ins if the same laptop is shared
   • If more than one person uses the same PC, separate sign-ins help keep files and settings separate.

Important details:

• Personal files, emails, appointments, contacts, photos, and notebooks remain private for each person sharing a Family subscription.
• Shared family locations such as the Family inbox, Family calendar, and Family Notebook are separate from personal files.
• In OneDrive on the web, the Shared view shows files shared with or by the signed-in account. If a file was shared, it appears there automatically.

To verify after fixing sign-in:

1. Go to OneDrive on the web.
2. Select Shared in the left navigation.
3. Confirm whether any files are actually listed as shared.
4. In My files, personal files should remain visible only to the signed-in account unless explicitly shared.

---

• Learn more about sharing your Microsoft 365 Family or Premium subscription
• Microsoft 365 subscription sharing FAQs
• Manage Microsoft 365 Family subscription sharing
• See files shared with you in OneDrive
• See files you shared in OneDrive