Only want to store files online

[Chris M.]

I'm sure this has been answered already and I did search for it online but in all cases it wasn't exactly the same as my question so I didn't know if it would help me. On my PC I have four accounts without password protection so anyone can sit down and use my account without switching to theirs if they are in a hurry. I don't care about this but when I first started using OneDrive some years ago, it was to save some thumb drives with personal files so in case the thumb drive went bad I still had them backed up. Now with the latest generation of Windows, and I think I have 365, it started syncing everything and made available or mapped to my file manager the private files and folders so that anyone can now just open it up. I tried to disable this and ended up losing just about all of the icons on my desktop so I reversed it. How do I keep OD separate from my desktop and local drive to just store my personal files and be able to access when I need to by logging in to either read or edit?

Thanks for your help, Chris

[Steve K.]

Hi Chris,

Your concern is very valid. It's important to maintain privacy and security for your personal files while also benefiting from the convenience of cloud storage. Here's how you can stop OneDrive from automatically syncing files and just use it as an online backup for your personal files:

Unlink OneDrive from your PC:

• Right-click on the OneDrive icon on the taskbar (it might be hidden, click on the upward arrow (^) to show hidden icons).
• Click on "More" and then select "Settings."
• Under the "Account" tab, click on "Unlink this PC" and confirm your decision.
• Please note that this step will stop OneDrive from syncing with your PC. Any changes you make to files in the OneDrive folder on your PC won't be reflected online, and vice versa.

Move your personal files out of the OneDrive folder on your PC:

• Now that OneDrive is not syncing with your PC, you can move your personal files from the OneDrive folder to another location to ensure they aren't accessible to anyone using your PC.
• Please be careful not to delete any files before ensuring they are backed up online.

Access your files online:

• You can access your personal files by logging into your Microsoft account on the OneDrive website (onedrive.live.com). Here, you can upload, download, view, and edit your personal files securely.

Remember, after unlinking OneDrive, the local OneDrive folder on your PC will no longer sync to your online OneDrive. It's crucial to ensure your files are backed up online before moving or deleting anything from the local OneDrive folder.