Synchronizing OneDrive folder forces download of files

Posts: 1 · penske1 3 Jun 2018, 14:51

I just upgraded to FFS version 10.1 on Windows 10 Pro. When FFS is synchronizing my local OneDrive folder OneDrive is re-downloading the content and synchronizing that instead of using the local copy. Is there a reason for this, or a way to disable it?

For now I have blocked FFS from "automatic file downloads" in OneDrive, which does force FFS to sync the local copy.

Is this a change in the new FFS or is it a OneDrive "feature"?

Posts: 7212 · Zenju 4 Jun 2018, 11:37

This sounds like a OneDrive "feature". FreeFileSync doesn't have logic that would treat a OneDrive folder differently from any other.

Posts: 2 · kb1 6 Oct 2018, 02:53

How do you block FFS from "automatic file downloads"? Is this done through FFS or through OneDrive?

Posts: 5 · Quiffster 17 Dec 2018, 08:34

This a feature of OneDrive - if you access a file - it gets downloaded and kept in Sync (see the settings I attached) - you can switch this on or off. I presume as FFS accesses the file - it will get downloaded. Suggested you filter out any OneDrive folders that you don't want downloaded.

: onedrivesettings.png (16.08 KiB) Viewed 2065 times

Posts: 1 · acaruson 27 Mar 2020, 21:46

This is correct. I was pinched by this as well until I remembered this feature (which is pretty good when dealing with large numbers of files you don't really need all the time.

So when you're trying to sync a local drive which has a mirror on OneDrive...with another local file location...then Frof files teeFileSync will need to pause at times to download a hard copy of files existing only on OneDrive...in order to put a copy of the file in the sync location.