Why Always Keep on this Device Doesn’t

➡️ The "Always keep on this device" feature has misled people into deleting and losing important files. Here's why, and what to do instead.
Always keep on this device?
This feature applies only to files within OneDrive, and only turns off the Files On-Demand feature for individual files and folders. Files deleted from within your OneDrive folder anywhere will still be deleted from all machines synchronized with that OneDrive account, regardless of this setting.
Updates, related links, and more discussion: askleo.com/138874
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✅ Watch next ▶ What if My OneDrive is Too Big for My Hard Drive? ▶ • What if My OneDrive is...
Chapters
0:00 Always Keep on this Device
0:48 See on Windows 11 machine
1:00 Files on-demand
4:36 Always keep on this device
5:44 Free up space
7:00 Deleting is deleting
8:25 OneDrive recycle bin
8:45 Saving a file from deletion
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❤️ My Most Important Article: go.askleo.com/number1
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#askleo #onedrive #files

[@askleonotenboom]

It may not mean what you think it means.

[@gordondanson2826]

Might I add - a lot of people do NOT understand the file manager - basic file and folder "management" skills - (On the local computer). Thanks

[@1954evelyn]

Leo, I am so glad I found you I am 70 years old and trying to learn this computer since my son moved out I am trying not to bug him and do things myself. You explained this so well. I have looked at least 12 more channels and they have not made it clear to me and you have thanks you for helping this grandma

[@wonderwomen7673]

Leo I am so grateful for your teachings, I'm over 70 years of age and just bought windows 11 upgraded from windows 10. When I opened the box put the computer together I thought omg what have I done, it looks so different, I couldn't find anything. I felt quite sick. I want to thank you for teaching an old girl some new tricks. You have given me hope 😷😷 I subscribed today and can't wait to start watching your tutorials ❤

[@josettebelvedere6611]

The clearest voice on You Tube explanations regarding One Drive.

[@EhabA11]

Thank you so much Leo! I recently purchased a new laptop and have had trouble trying to locally download all my files from my old laptop into my new one, and at the same have them synced to OneDrive like my old one. I had all my files on the new device with the cloud icon, and every time I tried to save the files locally it will duplicate folders and create duplicates in OneDrive. I have tried contacting Microsoft support, but they don't know how to fix anything, and they are constantly switching me from department to department but they weren't able to help. Your video is very comprehensive and really helpful. I really appreciate people like you posting videos like this.

[@jefffloyd7319]

Leo you just made it work. There are tones of people out there that couldn't explain how this works. Thanks a bunch.

[@DavidM2002]

Onedrive can be great but these little quirks finally drove me away. I now use Syncthing to sync my desktop and my laptop to my NAS, with the NAS being the hub and is always on. Now, the problem that you illustrate here simply doesn't exist any more. A really well explained video Leo. Thanks.

[@Michael-rl5ki]

Thank you! This was a very good one, I had been wondering about just this exact topic. No one else has explained things like you do!! Thanks again. Keep up the great videos!

[@rounderone8437]

Great explanation!! Your "lesson" is explicit yet very direct and easy to follow, and I finally understand this. Thank you so much.

[@creativity.studio4967]

Can you pls make a video discussing managing file versions? For example, when you work on a file that you want to be synced across all your devices. Obviously, if you work on an online file, it will be available there online from any device, but I'm a little unclear how files should be worked on to ensure that it gets synced and we don't end up with version nightmare confusion. You make great videos, thanks!

[@thighdude7]

Excellent video. Many users do not understand what you explained here. Thanks for the great content

[@janetmaresh3908]

How great to have someone really explain clearly the ins and outs of how Onedrive functions.

[@Cpt.Smollet]

Thank you very much for the information, it has clarified some doubts I had about the process of file status in OneDrive.

[@Revenkin]

Well this makes things clearer. I installed a game recently that kept all its logs and DLL files on my documents folder. Unfortunately as an Australian anytime I play the game my laptop downloads and uploads thousands of files which destroys my internet and burns my CPU

[@pdavid6492]

I'm so glad I found you! Very easy to understand. Microsoft's "solution" is $$ storage, but not all files need OneDrive backup.

[@renoholland7090]

Great tutorial. I have used OneDrive for a few years now but not on my local machine. I am the only user of my files and I only have to be able to access them from two machines. I use a backup program (Backup4All) to mirror my files and folders online and it works like a champ. And I do a restore from within Backup4All if necessary. In other words, I use OneDrive as a backup storage space, that's it.

[@megapangolin1093]

Very sensible advice, Leo, it is the W11 version of the Mac system. Thank you for this information. Beautifully explained.

[@elizabethbaker2902]

Thank you! I just purchased a laptop with Windows 11 which I had never used before. Wow! Couldn't figure out where my files were being saved or HOW to save them to my laptop! Your video is great!

[@cmanho8879]

Very useful. Thank you very much, Leo!

[@MikeSharpeWriter]

I treat "Always Keep on this Device" as let this file be used if there is no internet access. I keep a few "Work" files on my OneDrive, so I'd like to have quick access to them, even if I can't go online with my laptop.

[@LaserGuy62]

Thank you Leo. I just purchased a new computer with windows 11 and started to transfer files from my old one but when I came back after a break everything was gone. I scratched my head, then a window popped up saying my onedrive was full. I thought what the heck, I hadn't even gotten far enough to where I set it up. This video will help me transfer some of the very important files back onto my system. but I'd like to get ride of one drive to prevent future issues, do you recommend removing it or just turning it off.

[@AmareProfunde]

Thanks so much for this video. It was very clear.

[@gauravrajora534]

Leo thanks for your help, i have some doubts related to one drive

[@xkuzu2]

Leo, outstanding and thank you!!

[@user-zx6ck3sg7u]

You are Awesome! Thank you Leo🙂!

[@sokchong9263]

thank Leon😇 very well explain crystal clear instruction

[@sandeepnallala48]

Thanks a lot sir for clarifying this feature.

[@hastalavista8625]

The Files On-Demand feature of OneDrive on Windows 11 seems that it is not available anymore. My OneDrive settings menu look different to the one on your video

[@tupapirafa]

One Drive really needs to improve its user experience. I really hate that you can't place bookmarks on the web version just like in Google Drive.

[@LanguageTeacher]

This was very helpful.

[@abdullahmansour6491]

Thanks a lot for your information

[@orkunyoutube]

hello.. thx for the great video.. but i couldnt find exacy answer of my question :) what does "it will be OPTIONALLY removed." means exactly? (i am talikng about the light green checkmark) thx in advance.

[@nigelogilvie9450]

Helpful, thanks

[@geekbaritone]

This helps a lot to understand how file synching works the key is if the file is in one drive and still resides on your PC every change made to the file will be reflected in one drive. What I can't do and I have not been able to find any instructions is how I save files from PC A and PC B in separate folders within one drive so the files sync independently for each computer. One drive only gives you a choice of which folders you want to back up to Onedrive but there is no setting to select the specific folder in Onedrive you want those files saved.

[@askleonotenboom]

You would create two folders within OneDrive with different names, Put files you want on one machine in one folder, and files you want on another machine in the other folder.

[@eddielegs344]

Finally someone who explains it well shampoo ;) thx

[@Detached_AZ]

You're my "go to" for tough technical questions. I have 5 file folders in One Drive (i.e. Pictures, Videos, Clips) etc etc. They've always shown up on my explorer; however, now one of the folders in the One Drive (clips) is no longer on my explorer. Can't figure out why. It's in my One Drive online!!!! Any suggestions

[@harun3Ddigitalartist]

thank you Leo

[@0711RC]

Thanks Leo

[@l.janescroggins2555]

Thanks that helps but I still don’t understand why my downloaded photo file disappeared off of my hard drive. I panicked until I found them on OneDrive. I’m new to Win 11

[@JimE6243]

Good stuff. How do you keep a file on both so when you delete one it does not delete the other either from OneDrive or the PC? JimE

[@askleonotenboom]

You don't. That's not how OneDrive works. If you want to keep a file on your computer but not in OneDrive, then move the file out from underneath the OneDrive folder on your PC.

[@JimE6243]

@@askleonotenboom Thank you!

[@akshaymathur444]

Hi Leo…….. nice video just a quick question …………if we choose keep on device option,will it make the laptop retrieve the files faster.I am facing lot of syncing issues in windows laptop.Thanks in advance.

[@askleonotenboom]

It doesn't make retrieval faster, but it does make opening the file faster.

[@akshaymathur444]

@@askleonotenboom thank you very much

[@Umang06]

thank you leo for helping me love from india

[@jpzehner]

And yet, there still exists the Documents, Pictures and Desktop aliases in the One Drive folder. If these are opted in the One Drive sync set-up, then another layer of confusion awaits.

[@stanlenci5133]

Leo, 9min 23 seconds into your video, you say to delete the "where's my file" link. Can you lead me to a video that tells me what that link is all about and what the impact is of keeping it or deleting it. Thanks

[@markthomas8563]

mother in law super confused about OneDrive on Win 11 Pc. What is the safest way to save it hatively on her PC and not OneDrive. She is confused at 74 and never had OneDrive on her old win10 machine. Is it moving it all to directory not associated with Onedrive and then stop syning? Or Disable - I want her to open file explorer and see native Desktop, Documents etc. I have to remotely help her. Thanks!

[@timjohnson8871]

Very useful information. Thanks!

[@9ijnht5rdx]

Nice to find out what is on my computer. Does deleting file on a computer delete it also from one drive?

[@askleonotenboom]

Yes, if the file is within your OneDrive folder on your PC.

[@mstemm3575]

If I have the original on My computer and have the Auto Save on for a document and then "save" the copy on my computer will the changes happen to both the document on my computer (not one drive) and update to One drive?

[@askleonotenboom]

As long as the document on your computer is within your OneDrive folder, then yes. If it's not, then no. OneDrive does not manage files outside of the OneDrive folder.

[@graytonw5238]

I have avoided using OneDrive for a long time because of how confusing it seemed to me, but I'm trying to get a handle on it now and start using it. Question: I have a hefty desktop machine and a hefty laptop, but I just got a laptop that has less storage space. For the desktop and heftier laptop, I want to keep OneDrive files locally, but not on my lighter-weight laptop. If I uncheck the Files On Demand option on both machines, all OneDrive files will also be downloaded to the local machines, and if I check that box for the lightweight laptop, all OneDrive files will be available on demand (except for any files I have selected to Always Keep on This Device), and OneDrive keeps everything synced across all devices, correct?

[@askleonotenboom]

Yup.

[@214ThirdCoast]

Hi there. I currently have some pictures that show up on OneDrive folder and My PC pictures. It’s the same pictures and they both have a dark highlighted checkmark. My question is, since I see the pics on My PC with dark green checkmark, does that mean the pics are saved on My PC too? This whole check mark thing throws me off

[@askleonotenboom]

I believe so.

[@CyberMedics]

Thank you for the explanation Leo. When one drive is first activated on the machine it takes all of the information from the documents pictures videos and uploads them to onedrive. At that point they are no longer on the computer but on the cloud system. Is there any way to stop this from automatically happening so that the data stays on the local machine. We've had many subscribers write in saying how it deleted the files and they lost data. Do you have any experience with this where people have lost data with onedrive? Thank you for the video well presented. Like And subscribed

[@askleonotenboom]

They remain on the computer. They're *copied* to the cloud. The issue you're facing sounds like it might be the backup "feature", which will move thigns around on your computer, but won't delete anything. More on that here: askleo.com/the-problem-with-onedrive-backup/

[@CyberMedics]

Fantastic explanation. I will share that with our subscribers! Many thanks

[@CyberMedics]

@@askleonotenboom Is there any way to use the native File History capability with One Drive if your folders have been moved under the OneDrive management?

[@askleonotenboom]

@@CyberMedics You can use File History and OneDrive at the same time, yes. (If I understand what you're asking.)

[@CyberMedics]

@@askleonotenboom For example: OneDrive has moved my Video folder so it is no longer located under the local machine. If I select that the data always stays local for the OneDrive Video folder, can File History read and store versions of the files as they change inside the OneDrive Video folder? Thank you

[@karimbennett5651]

OneDrive is a nightmare. Why would somebody build something so non-intuitive?

[@askleonotenboom]

The deeper I go, the more I question many of the decisions. It's a mess.

[@GrahamSEdwards]

@askleonotenboom, I have multiple computers that share a OneDrive account. I want all my computers to have all the files resident on their respective hard drives (so they can access the information quicker than downloading it from the web on-demand). But, I'm having trouble making this happen. When I click on "Always Keep on this Device", it removes the "Always Keep on this Device" choice from the mirrored files & folders from the other devices. So, is there a way to have OneDrive files remain resident on all computers, and remain in sync? (FYI - I've cross posted this with your website article)

[@askleonotenboom]

What you’re doing sounds correct: on each device ensure “always keep on this device” is selected. Setting that on one machine should not affect any others. If it does, something’s broken.

[@GrahamSEdwards]

​@@askleonotenboom Thanks for your quick feedback! I'll attempt this again and let you know if I figure anything out.

[@Sam-kl6gg]

I am not seeing the files on-demand under settings or under any other headings. I'm using Windows 7 & would that be why?

[@askleonotenboom]

Make sure you're looking at files and folders within OneDrive.

[@Cpt.Smollet]

Thx

[@wesleytaylor-rendal5648]

Calling it a feature is generous. Onedrive is terrible

[@khensley]

This is where I am now. All my files are gone! Yesterday, after watching video about how useful One Drive is for backup and making space on my SDD. So, I went around and opened One Drive on this desktop, and on a Win10 laptop. Today, I have my entire desktop filled with "copy" of all my files? Some of my Excel files from 2009 to this weak are gone? I immediately went to System Restore. It has been overwritten by a download. Maybe Win 11. It seems I have lost everything ===damn M$. I which I could get rid of it forever and use something that just works. There is a new System Resore screen that says a new Win d/l was done earlier today?

[@martyxray5171]

Why when you right click on a folder or file in onedrive folder - somee have the option to always keep on this device and some do not? Onedrive is the most confusing software I've encountered

[@askleonotenboom]

Think of it more as "do you want this file to take up space on the disk or not?". If you say no, then it takes up no space, until you actually try to use it, at which point the data within the file is downloaded todisk.

[@martyxray5171]

@@askleonotenboom But why do some files and directories present this option and some do not? Even if the file or directory shows the cloud icon - on my Win 11 machine I can't discern why the option is present on some files and directories and not on others - very confusing.

[@tonywise198]

It's a typical MSFT problem - they cannot communicate effectively in any instance!

[@gauravrajora534]

Hi leo

[@bzerkie3393]

so it's a shortcut to a file in the cloud

[@askleonotenboom]

Kinda, yeah, but when accessed it becomes the real file on your PC.

[@khensley]

Of course, I have my files copied over to USB sticks. I update them periodically. So, I still have all those special photos, and many spreadsheets about medical care and issues for my late husband. Lots of spreadsheets. No longer on this desktop.l

[@LeandroSilva-yo1qh]

one drive is a virus, I hate it. I am using yandex disk. And windows 11 is a frustrating.

[@askleonotenboom]

him? OneDrive is not a person. :-)

[@LeandroSilva-yo1qh]

@@askleonotenboom doesn't matter. Another tool to steal our data.

[@martyxray5171]

ANd why is it so much faster to copy from onedrive flder to another folder than it is to upload from onedrive to your pc using always keep on your device? Onedrive is a POS

[@askleonotenboom]

Copying is something that happens on your machine -- you're just copying a file from one locatoin to another on your hard disk. Uploading to OneDrive depends on the speed of your internet.

[@martyxray5171]

@@askleonotenboom But this was copying from OneDrive to another local drive. Like 100x faster than uploading via the OneDrive app

[@dewapurnama1228]

for your sake - never turn off the mydocument backup - lool - onedrive are suuuuuck and i aggree, but it still provide some files backup online, but never put important information on your document