OneDrive recommendations

Start using OneDrive, Microsoft cloud service to store and protect files, share them with others, and access them from anywhere on all their devices. OneDrive comes with Microsoft 365 Personal and Microsoft 365 Family subscription. In these subscriptions, you can share documents and photos with friends and family, and collaborate in real time in Microsoft 365. OneDrive can help you quickly organize and find the things that matter. OneDrive integrates with Microsoft 365 so users can access Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents from OneDrive.

Cloud Storage and backup files

Save files directly to a central location by saving from within a Microsoft 365 program (such as Excel, Word, or PowerPoint). For more information, see Save documents online.

Store files in a central location

1. Open the Microsoft 365 document you want to save.

2. Select File > Save As > OneDrive.

3. Enter a file name and then select Save to save your document to OneDrive.

   Note

   If prompted, select Sign In.

4. To find your files later, open the Microsoft 365 app that you created the file in and check the Recent list.

You can also use your web browser to upload and save files to a central location. To learn more, see Upload and save files and folders to OneDrive.

1. Sign in to Microsoft 365.
2. Go to the app launcher and select OneDrive.
3. Select the Upload button.
4. Once a window pops up, select the location of the file or folder you want to save.

Easily back up your files

Back up important folders on your PC (such as your Desktop, Documents, and Pictures folders) with OneDrive, so they’re protected and available on other devices. For more information, see Turn on OneDrive Backup.

1. Open OneDrive settings (select the OneDrive cloud icon in your notification area, and then select the OneDrive Help and Settings icon, then Settings.)
2. Go to the Sync and back up tab.
3. Select Manage Back up and select the files and folder you want to back up.
4. Select Start backup.

Install across all devices

Download and install OneDrive Desktop App for Windows for each specified Windows version. For more information, see OneDrive desktop app for Windows.

OneDrive Desktop app

1. Windows 7 and older.
2. Windows 8/8.1
3. Windows 10. If your computer uses Windows 10, OneDrive is built in. (Download link to reinstall.)

OneDrive Mobile app

Download and install OneDrive mobile app for your mobile device. For more information, see OneDrive desktop app for Windows.

To download via Google Play

1. Open Google Play on your mobile device.

2. Search for OneDrive.

3. Select the Microsoft OneDrive

To download via App Store

1. Open the App Store on your iOS device.

2. Search for OneDrive.

3. Select the Microsoft OneDrive result.

Scan documents

Use your mobile device to scan documents, whiteboards, and business cards in the OneDrive app. For more information, see Scan, sign, and share documents.

1. In the OneDrive app, select Scan.
2. Select Document and then select the circle icon to scan the item.
3. To sign or draw on the image, select the Pen icon and choose a color.
4. Once you’re done editing your item, select Done.
5. Enter a file name, then select Save.

To learn more about its usage and functionalities, see the following articles:

• Overview of OneDrive for Business.

• OneDrive for Business video training.

Secure sharing and file management

Share access to folders or files with specific people for easier collaboration with them. For more information, see Share OneDrive files and folders.

Securely share files

1. Select the circle icon for the files or folders you want to share.
2. Select Share, located at the top of the page.
3. Go to Send Link and select Anyone with the link can edit to open the link settings.
4. Change the link permissions to Specific people.
5. Enter the email address of the person you want to share the file with.
6. Select Send.

Use Copy link to share a file with users inside or outside your organization. For more information, see Share OneDrive files and folders.

1. Select the circle icon for the files or folders you want to share.

2. Select Share, located at the top of the page.

3. Go to Copy Link and select Anyone with the link can edit to open the link settings.

4. Select the option for who you want to give access to with the link:

   • Anyone
   • People with the link
   • People with existing access
   • Specific people

5. Once you have set all your link settings and permissions, select Apply.

6. Go to Copy link and select Copy.

7. Paste the link into an email, message, or post, and send it to the recipients.

Real time co-authoring

Work together, in real time, on shared documents instead of sending back and forth file attachments. This prevents you from having to reconcile multiple versions of the same document. For more information, see Work together on Office documents.

1. Upload your documents to OneDrive.

2. Go to the top of the Microsoft 365 app window and select Share to generate a shareable link.

3. Send the link to people you want to access the document.

4. When recipients open the link, the document opens in their browser.

5. To edit, select the command for editing in the Microsoft 365 for the web app. You can edit the document in the browser or the application.

   Note

   If others are also editing the document, Microsoft 365 alerts you to their presence, and shows you where in the file they’re working.

Protect shared files by adding a password and expiration

With a Microsoft 365 subscription, you can add expiration dates and passwords to files you share in OneDrive to make them more secure. For more information, see Use expiration dates and passwords.

1. In your browser, select a file or folder.

2. Select Share and then select Link settings.

3. Set an expiration date.

   Note

   The link works until the expiration date.

4. Set a strong password.

5. Select Apply

6. Enter names, email addresses, and a message, and then select Send.

7. Send the password in a separate message so recipients can open the file.

Classify and protect company data

Use the Microsoft Purview compliance portal to enable support for sensitivity labels. For more information, see Enable sensitivity labels for files in SharePoint and OneDrive.

1. Sign in to the Microsoft Purview compliance portal as a global administrator.

2. Select Solutions and then Information protection.

   Note

   If you don’t immediately see this option, first select Show all.

3. If you see a message to turn on the ability to process content in Office online files, select Turn on now. The command runs immediately and when the page is next refreshed, you no longer see the message or button.

Information protection notification

Use Sensitivity labels, from Microsoft Purview Information Protection, to classify and protect your organization’s data. To learn more, see Learn about sensitivity labels.

Sensitivity labels in Excel

To apply sensitivity labels, users must be signed in with their Microsoft 365 work or school account.

Additional resources

See the following resources to learn more about OneDrive.

Online training

• OneDrive for Business video training

Microsoft help articles

• Setup OneDrive file storage and sharing - One of the best ways to set up file storage and sharing for your business is to use OneDrive and a team site together.
• What is AutoSave? – a feature that saves your file automatically, every few seconds
• Manage your OneDrive storage - see how much space you’re using and free up space if you’re getting close to your storage limit
• Restore deleted files or folders in OneDrive – in the event of accidental file or folder deletion in OneDrive, you might be able to recover it later from the OneDrive recycle bin
• Restore your OneDrive - you can restore your entire OneDrive to a previous time if many of your OneDrive files were deleted, overwritten, corrupted, or infected by malware
• Restore a previous version of a file stored in OneDrive - you can see and restore older versions of your files stored in OneDrive
• Control notifications on shared files or folders – enable users to receive notifications about file activity in OneDrive.
• Create a file request - you can choose a folder where others can upload files using a link that you send them.
• Mark up a PDF in OneDrive for Android - use the Markup tool in OneDrive for Android to add notes, text, pictures, or freehand markup to PDF files.
• Add shortcuts to shared folders in OneDrive for work or school - add a shortcut to the shared folder in your OneDrive to easily find and work with the files.