One Drive - upload all files within a folder automatically?

[androidandreas]

I have started uaing One Drive. I uploaded some folders and I see that all it did was upload the folder and subfolders but _not_ the files within them!

Is there a way of uploading all the files within each folder and subfolder auromtically ort do I have to do this manually??

 

[Ryujingt3]

OneDrive should upload the files and folders just fine. What happens if you have OneDrive in Windows Explorer and then just drag the folder containing the files you want to upload to your OneDrive folder? Also, what are the files that you are trying to upload? For example, are they movies, documents etc.?

 

[androidandreas]

Hi, thanks for your reply. I see what's going on now.

The folders get copied over first and the files are now steadily syncing over, although as I have added 37Gb of data to OneDrive, this will take some time.

How do I enable automatic syncing across devices, please?

 

[androidandreas]

Hi

Thanks for your reply.

I see what is happening now. The folders copied first and now their contens are steadily syncing over.


The files are mostly Office docs and PDFS - some MP3s and images also.

How do I ensure that files sync across all my devices and are available to view on any computer?

 

[worldspy99]

Hi

Thanks for your reply.

I see what is happening now. The folders copied first and now their contens are steadily syncing over.


The files are mostly Office docs and PDFS - some MP3s and images also.

How do I ensure that files sync across all my devices and are available to view on any computer?

Just let everything sync up first. Then make sure you have the OneDrive app or you can access through a web browser and you should be able to see all the files regardless of device. I use OneDrive on my Android phones, my Windows PCs and Surface Pro, my iPhone and my iPad and the Android tablet. No issues whatsoever. Pro tip, OneDrive actually works faster on mobile apps for some reason than the web browser even on a Windows PC.

 

[androidandreas]

Great. Apps installed on all available devices and syncing up micely.

Just one more question if I may.

Will new file and any subfolders that I add within alreday-synced folders/subfolders be automatically addeed or do I need to go into the settngs and do something?

For example, let;s call a folder "Work". Every month I add anew subfolder with the month. Themn in that suibfolders further sub-sub folders, etc, and obviusly add fils o all of them.

Will One Drive automatically take care of all that?

 

[Ryujingt3]

Just let everything sync up first. Then make sure you have the OneDrive app or you can access through a web browser and you should be able to see all the files regardless of device. I use OneDrive on my Android phones, my Windows PCs and Surface Pro, my iPhone and my iPad and the Android tablet. No issues whatsoever. Pro tip, OneDrive actually works faster on mobile apps for some reason than the web browser even on a Windows PC.

This. It sounds like the OP expects OneDrive to sync automatically across all devices immediately. This isn't the case, it all needs to sync up first in OneDrive itself before it is then synced across other signed in devices, as said above.

 

[androidandreas]

Thanks, OP gets the bit about letting it all sync up first.

As per my last post, I am interested to know, once it has all synced up, whether new subfolders - and files in them - within alreday sync-ed up folders will automatically sync up also.

 

[worldspy99]

Great. Apps installed on all available devices and syncing up micely.

Just one more question if I may.

Will new file and any subfolders that I add within alreday-synced folders/subfolders be automatically addeed or do I need to go into the settngs and do something?

For example, let;s call a folder "Work". Every month I add anew subfolder with the month. Themn in that suibfolders further sub-sub folders, etc, and obviusly add fils o all of them.

Will One Drive automatically take care of all that?

Yes this is how it will work. But you have to wait till the upload from your device to the cloud is complete before the files are available across all devices.

 

[Ryujingt3]

Yes this is how it will work. But you have to wait till the upload from your device to the cloud is complete before the files are available across all devices.

I think that is where a lot of people get confused over how syncing actually works with OneDrive.

 

[androidandreas]

Yes this is how it will work. But you have to wait till the upload from your device to the cloud is complete before the files are available across all devices.

Suire, and thaankyou for all the clarifications.

 

[Ryujingt3]

Suire, and thaankyou for all the clarifications.

Happy to help! Once the intitial upload it does (this is always a pain and time consuming) then syncing it again or across other devices is much easier.

 

[androidandreas]

All files, across all folders, are now synced up and appear to be available across alll devices.

What I do not get is why some important filees within a subfolder in my work folder that were added after I set up the original backup, about a week ago, ahve not synced.

I am kepeig my eye on this as a kind of test. I havd the impression from this discussion that any additinal files or subfolers added after I setup the backup to One druve would automatically be synced across after all the folders/files were fully synced up, but this sems not to tbe the case.

What doI need to do to ensure this happens? Or do I have to add them manually?

 

[Ryujingt3]

Have you added the files from your work sub-folder to your OneDrive that is now fully synced? If OneDrive doesn't know of the existence of your work subfolder then how can it sync it? Just make a new folder on OneDrive and copy all your work subfolders to it.

Then, wherever you point to the original work sub-folder (e.g. when opening a Word document or saving work), instead, start using the work sub-folder that is on OneDrive instead.

I hope that makes sense!

 

[androidandreas]

I have not added the subfolders within a folder that I have already added to OneDrive, no, nor sub-subfolders subsequently added within sub-folders, etc.

I was hoping that OneDrive woudl have detected these additonal folders, but if I understand you correctly, I have to add them mnaually?

How about files within folddes and sub-folders that were added when I originally set up the folders to back up?

Looking at the sub-folder I mentioned in my previous post, the file that was alreday present when I set up the one Drive backup (on 27 March) is present, but two further files added since that date are not.

I got the impression earlier in this disucssion that once all the files wrere synced up all these additonal dfiles would sync over automtically.

Do I have to manually add revery single new folder and subfolder and file? That sounds totally unweieldy and a load of hassle.

The P2P backup that I was using previously did all that effortlessly, so I cannot believe that OneDrive can't manage it?!

 

[Ryujingt3]

Yes, you have to manually add them. OneDrive can't sync what it doesn't know about. If the folder you want to sync on OneDrive doesn't exist inside of the OneDrive folder then you have to put that folder (or folders) inside the OneDrive folder itself first and then point to the OneDrive version of that folder every time you use those folders in any apps or anything.

For example, I used to store all my music on OneDrive. I had to first upload all my music and then update it manually in OneDrive whenever I wanted to add new songs by copying the new files to OneDrive. That would then sync and those new songs would appear inside iTunes which I was using with OneDrive as my media folder.

 

[androidandreas]

tbh that's really disappointing. I had hoped it would do what the P2P software does. I don't know how it detects the new subfolers and files withn already uploaded folders, but it does.

 

[Ryujingt3]

tbh that's really disappointing. I had hoped it would do what the P2P software does. I don't know how it detects the new subfolers and files withn already uploaded folders, but it does.

It could be you are telling the P2P software where to look to start with as a base folder, and then any subfolders you put inside there are picked up automatically. OneDrive works the same way. You have to put all the stuff you want to sync first in the OneDrive base folder. Anything outside of the base folder won't be seen by OneDrive.

 

[androidandreas]

But you said above it won't sync files and folders added after the original backup has been set up - right? That all files and folders must be added to OneDrive manually.

So what is the case - manual or automatic?

UI must say I am v v diappointed that it does not even seem cpaable of syncing new files I have added in a folder that was part of the original backup. I just expected better.

 

[Ryujingt3]

But you said above it won't sync files and folders added after the original backup has been set up - right? That all files and folders must be added to OneDrive manually.

So what is the case - manual or automatic?

UI must say I am v v diappointed that it does not even seem cpaable of syncing new files I have added in a folder that was part of the original backup. I just expected better.

So basically OneDrive needs a base folder location (i.e. C:\OneDrive).

In that base folder you put all the folders (and also the files that are in them) that you want to store on OneDrive and sync across all other devices signed in to OneDrive using the same account.

If you then add more files/folders or remove files/folders from that base OneDrive location then the changes will sync across all your OneDrive devices - does that make it clearer?

This may help explain it better:

https://www.pcmag.com/feature/362307/how-to-manage-sync-and-share-files-in-microsoft-onedrive/9