2.24.22 UPDATE: We've been listening to your feedback, and we've made some design changes. We're releasing a new version that addresses the most common themes and makes it easier to achieve the previ...
Updated Feb 24, 2022
Version 12.0
Blog Post
Hi @Trevor_Pott,
> Streaming files should under no circumstances be the default, and we should NOT
> have to jump through hoops in order to regain a pathetic semblance of the functionality
> you removed.
Marking the root folder as "Always Keep on This Device" should provide the same experience you had before. All of your files will be kept locally on the device, and if you add new files, they will also be kept locally on the device. This is the right approach if you are bandwidth-constrained, either permanently or temporarily.
We know that not everyone has fast internet at home or at work, and for these scenarios, marking files as "always available" gives such users a choice. You can choose which files you want to keep locally, or choose to keep them all locally. Before, if you disabled Files On-Demand, OneDrive was forced to keep all files locally, which can wind up wasting bandwidth downloading files you don't use.
As I noted in the update to the blog, the "down cloud" icon appearing next to pinned files is an issue we are actively working on, but if you see the checkmark, the files are on your device, regardless of what that icon shows.
this is a remarkably tone-deaf response. First of all "always keep on this device" requires the re-downloading of files OneDrive chose, without allowing for informed consent, to delete. MS is not paying for that bandwidth, the customer is. In many cases, this is not one or two files, for me, it was a 26+GB download. Even on Google Fiber, that was a very non-zero amount of time. You didn't give the users a choice in deleting files from their local drive, but now, they have a "choice" to redownload data that, and I cannot stress this enough, is only missing because of your actions, not theirs.
It is almost bizarre to me that MS is engaging in what can only be called "victim-blaming" as if it's our fault any of this happens. Are y'all the scorpion in "the scorpion and the frog", we knew what you were when we gave you a ride across the river, it's our fault you stung us?
Is that really your story, that the OneDrive team bears zero responsibility here?