Forum Discussion
How to add additional folders
How can I add additional folders for One drive to backup other than just Documents, Pictures, Desktop ? Say I have a folder in my C drive I want backed up all so?
Actually you can. Just create a symbolic link to OneDrive folder.
mklink /D "C:\Users\Fatih\OneDrive\MyFolder" "C:\Users\Fatih\Downloads\MyFolder"
mklink is used for making links (like shortcuts)
/D is to specify that the target is a directory (you can ignore it if you just want to add a single file).
command syntax is MKLINK [/D] Link Target
Note: I did not test it thoroughly but it added the folder to sync.
mklink /D "C:\Users\Fatih\OneDrive\MyFolder" "C:\Users\Fatih\Downloads\MyFolder"
mklink is used for making links (like shortcuts)
/D is to specify that the target is a directory (you can ignore it if you just want to add a single file).
command syntax is MKLINK [/D] Link Target
Note: I did not test it thoroughly but it added the folder to sync.
So, there is no way to add random folders. I am very surprised at MS for not providing this very basic functionality.
This is so useful, thank you!! OneDrive is following my symlink directory exactly as intended.
I will add that you can also combine this with addressing an external drive as a volume ID for reliability. Use `mountvol` in the command prompt to get the ID of the volume you want to access.
mklink /D SymFolderName \\?\Volume{1b3b1146-4076-11e1-84aa-806e6f6e6963}\ExternalFolderName- I just purchased Microsoft 365 Personal plus additional 1 TB of storage today, thinking it would be the answer to my disgust with Google Drive and especially Drive for Desktop. *Then* I discover you can only sync Personal Folders, not folders from other drives. It will not even sync Documents or other personal folders if you have a symbolic directory link in that folder!
Very disappointed. I mostly use my system for photography and have multiple drives. Quite rude to find out I can't even backup my Photos, which is a symbolic link under Pictures to another drive.- OneDrive and other cloud sync services are useful for mitigating accidental deletions, malwarecattacks and making files broadly accessible. They are not full backup solutions. That should be done separately.
What a waste. "We will give you some protection, but not enough if you are more than a novice". You will need multiple applications to make your life more complicated instead of simpler"
- Do not assume that these workarounds will continue to be supported in OneDrive client updates. You run the risk of file loss or corruption.
- I love it fantastic! thx!
