Set Up OneDrive Folder Protection

By Microsoft

Sync your Documents, Pictures, and Desktop folders with OneDrive

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When you save your files to OneDrive, you can get to them from anywhere and your files are safe in OneDrive if anything happens to your device. Now, you can set up protection for your important folders in Windows (your Desktop, Documents, and Pictures folders) when using either your personal OneDrive account, or your work or school account. Here's how to set up folder protection.

Set up folder protection

If you're eligible to protect important Windows folders (such as Desktop, Documents, or Pictures) you'll see a prompt to set up folder protection.

1. Click the prompt to protect your important folders.

   Or, if you already closed the prompt, select the white or blue cloud icon in the Windows notification area, and then in the activity center, select More > Settings > Auto Save > Update folders.

   Important: If you don't see the Update folders button in OneDrive Settings, you aren't eligible for folder protection and the rest of this article doesn't apply to you. But you can begin saving your files to OneDrive by changing the selections next to each folder name from This PC only to OneDrive. You'll be prompted to protect important folders only if you're eligible.

2. In the Set up protection of important folders dialog box, make sure the folders that you want to protect are selected.

   

3. Select Start protection.

4. You can close the dialog box while your files sync to OneDrive. Or, to watch your files sync, select View upload progress. If you already closed the dialog box, select the white or blue cloud in the notification area to open the OneDrive activity center.

When the files finish syncing to OneDrive, they're protected and you can access them from anywhere in Documents, Desktop, or Pictures. When you protect your Desktop folder, the items on your desktop roam with you to your other PC desktops where you're running OneDrive.

Change folder protection settings

If want to stop protecting or start protecting an important folder in OneDrive, you can update your folders in OneDrive Settings.

Important: When you stop protecting a folder, the files that were already protected by OneDrive stay in OneDrive. If you no longer want those files in OneDrive, you'll need to move them to a local folder on your PC yourself. Any new files you add to that folder on your PC won't be protected by OneDrive.

1. Open OneDrive Settings (select the white or blue cloud icon in your notification area, and then select More > Settings.)

   

2. In Settings, select Auto Save > Update folders.

3. To stop protecting a folder, select Stop protecting and then confirm that you want to stop protection in the Turn off protection dialog box.

   

4. To start protecting a folder, select any folder that doesn't say Files protected, and then select Start protection.