Move your files off OneDrive without emptying your Desktop.

WORK THROUGH THE MOVE

Copy, check, delete, then cancel

1. 1

   Turn the placeholders into real files, or accept that the PC folder is not a copy. Microsoft says a blue cloud icon next to a OneDrive file or folder means the file is only available online, and that you cannot open online-only files when your device is not connected to the internet. Right-click and choose “Always keep on this device” — Microsoft says only files marked that way get the green circle with the white check mark — or use the app’s “Download all files” option, and wait for it to finish.

2. 2

   If you download from the website instead, mind Microsoft’s limits. Microsoft says downloads are subject to a 250GB file size limit, a total number of files limit of 10,000, and a folder size limit of 10000 files, and that for multiple compressed files such as .zip the limit is 10GB per .zip file and 20GB overall. Split a big library into several downloads rather than trying it in one.

3. 3

   Collect the things a bulk download will not bring. Microsoft says you cannot download OneNote notebooks, and that if you download a folder containing one the .zip file will contain an error message in the form of a .txt file; it also says you cannot download files directly from the Shared view. Export notebooks and take copies of shared files separately.

4. 4

   Copy Personal Vault by hand. It has to be unlocked, and Microsoft says it locks again after 20 minutes of inactivity on the web, so do it in one sitting rather than leaving it open.

5. 5

   Upload with the destination’s own app rather than a browser when the files are large. Google Drive stores files up to 5 TB, and Drive for desktop syncs folders from your computer. Apple documents iCloud Drive on each device and iCloud for Windows.

6. 6

   Fix the names the destination will refuse. Apple says file names and paths should be less than 256 characters to sync to iCloud Drive on Windows; in iCloud for Windows 10.8 or later the file that is too long will not sync while your other files continue to. Dropbox says certain special characters, like * (asterisk) or / (forward slash), are not compatible with all devices, and that it does not sync files ending desktop.ini, thumbs.db, .ds_store, icon\r, .dropbox, or .dropbox.attr, temporary files beginning ~$ or .~, or symlinks, shortcuts, junction points, resource forks, and networked folders.

7. 7

   Check the copy before you delete anything. Open real files from several folders, including one from Desktop and one from Documents. A folder tree that looks right is not proof: online-only placeholders make empty-looking folders look full and full-looking folders be empty.

8. 8

   Stop the folder backup deliberately, and read the choice it gives you. Microsoft says that when you stop backing up a folder the files that were already backed up stay in the OneDrive folder and will no longer appear in your device folder, and that in the folder you stopped backing up you will see an icon titled “Where are my files” that is a shortcut to your folders in OneDrive. The two options are keeping the files only in OneDrive, removing them from your computer, or keeping them only on your PC, removing them from OneDrive. Microsoft also says any new files you add to that folder after you stop the backup will not be backed up.

9. 9

   Delete from OneDrive only once the copy checks out, and delete on the website rather than in File Explorer. Microsoft says that when you delete an online-only file from your device you delete it from your OneDrive on all devices and online, which is easy to do by accident while tidying up a folder you think is only a placeholder.

10. 10

    Cancel or let the subscription lapse last, then unlink. Over the free 5 GB, Microsoft says you cannot upload, edit or sync new files, cannot send or receive email in Outlook.com even if you did not exceed your email storage quota, and cannot send or receive Teams messages that contain attachments; existing files are read-only, and you can download or delete files to get back under the limit, though it can take up to two hours for your changes to apply. Microsoft says that after three months over the limit your OneDrive account is frozen, and that after six months it might delete your OneDrive and all files within it, and that once deleted those files are non-recoverable. Unlinking is the safe part: Microsoft says you will not lose files or data by unlinking OneDrive from your computer, and that you can always access your files by signing in to OneDrive.com.