What are some of the things I can do when OneDrive is not syncing?

Tags sync onedrive

This guide will walk you through a few things you can try when your OneDrive is not syncing.

Method 1: Restart the OneDrive App on your PC

Step 1:

Click Show hidden icons on the bottom right of your screen, then the OneDrive icon

An image w=of the bottom right corner of the task bar, a red circle around the Up arrow, a second circle around the OneDrive icon

Step 2:

When the OneDrive menu pops up, click the Settings Icon, then Quit OneDrive to exit

An image of the OneDrive popup with an arrow pointing to the Settings Gear, and a second arrow pointing to Quite OneDrive

Step 3:

To start OneDrive again, click on the Search Icon, type OneDrive in the search box, and select OneDrive to launch the app

An image of the Start menu with an arrow pointing to the Windows Search with "OneDrive" listed, a second arrow points to the OneDrive App in the list of what Windows found

Step 4:

Give it a few moments, and then check to see if it is syncing now.

 

Method 2: Check if the file path is too long

According to Microsoft, the file path, including the file name, should not exceed 255 characters. So if the path of your file is too long, it can cause OneDrive to not sync.

An example of a long file path:
C:\Users\shight\OneDrive\Documents\OfficeWork\2018\September\Deadline\ThisWeek\Wednesday\This_is_an_example_of_long_file_path.txt 

You can try renaming the file with fewer characters, and also avoid having too many sub folders, inside of sub folders, to make the file path shorter.

Method 3: Check if there is any ~$ files in the directories

Your OneDrive not syncing issue might also be due to cache files (beginning with ~$ ), and the icon is faded in the OneDrive folder (see an example below).

An image of an example of a file with the ~$A

If there is any, delete it, and OneDrive should sync normally. 

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