Forum Discussion
Copilot+ laptop cannot access my local files or folders. No permission dialog to approve access.
Based on your description, this does not sound like a hardware issue. The first thing to check is which Copilot experience you are using.
Not all Copilot experiences have direct access to local files on a Windows PC. Even on a Copilot+ PC, access to local files depends on the specific Copilot application, the Windows version, file permissions, and whether the feature has been enabled for your account.
A few simple checks:
- Verify that the files are visible and accessible from Windows File Explorer.
- Try moving a small test file to your Documents folder and ask Copilot about that file specifically.
- Ensure you are signed in with the same Microsoft account in Windows and Copilot.
- Check Settings > Privacy & Security and review any file system or app permissions that might be blocking access.
- If your files were downloaded from iCloud, confirm that they are actually stored locally and not only available as cloud placeholders.
Thank you very much for your time and guidance AurelienAtibard. Files are visible, moving test files into documents didnt work. I am signed into same account in Windows and Copilot. On spending more time investigating within Copilot today, seems that although I have the Copilot icon on my Windows toolbar, I do not have CoPilot for Windows software installed on the machine, therefore the the Windows-integrated Copilot hasn’t been delivered to my device yet and its not available in any Windows update that were available. I have set my machine to get the latest updates when they are available. But is seems very poor that on buying a copilot+ machine, the software is not available.
