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I installed OneDrive a few months ago but now I would like to get rid off it. It seems to be a challenge to get there..

My actual problem is the following:

The files on my desktop are saved in C:\Users\me\OneDrive\Desktop but I want to see the files on my desktop which are located at C:\Users\me\Desktop. When I create a new file on my desktop it does not appear in the C:\Users\me\Desktop folder which would be my goal.

However I dont like OneDrive at all and would like to get rid off the complete folder C:\Users\me\OneDrive which was an easy task but even there is no OneDrive folder showing up in the explorer, the files are again located in the OneDrive folder. Makes sense right?

What I did:

I clicked the OneDrive icon at the taskbar and went to the account setting where I disabled all selected folders to be synchronised. I then looged out from OneDrive and deleted the C:\Users\me\OneDrive folder. Then I restarted my machine. As a test I created a new file on my desktop and went to C:\Users\me\Desktop where the file didnt appeared .. again. When I look at the properties of the file it sais that it is actually located in the OneDrive Desktop folder (which I deleted).

I would appreciate your help. Thank you.

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  • OneDrive is actually built-into Windows 10. You would have to uninstall the OneDrive application and that is difficult since it's not actually something you can install/uninstall
    – Ramhound
    Aug 10, 2019 at 0:02
  • Turn off, disable, or uninstall OneDrive
    – JosefZ
    Aug 10, 2019 at 7:35
  • I did all that. That didnt changed a thing. All desktop files are still in a non-existing folder C:\users\me\onedrive\desktop
    – Arji
    Aug 10, 2019 at 9:13
  • Do you not see a OneDrive folder in C:\Users\me or do you see that folder but no folder named Desktop in your OneDrive folder?
    – Keith Miller
    Aug 10, 2019 at 14:45
  • No. There is no such folder. You can step into C:\users\me\OneDrive by entering this path in the windows run (WIN+R) tool. But when I access C:\users\me in the explorer there is no such OneDrive folder. Even not when I display the hidden files.
    – Arji
    Aug 10, 2019 at 15:04

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
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I had this exact problem and I just solved it.

After removing/disabling OneDrive, navigate to the OneDrive desktop folder that is giving you problems using windows explorer (C:\Users\me\OneDrive\Desktop). Right click on that folder and click properties. Navigate to the folders location tab and press restore default. This worked for me. There is a chance you need to manually find the desired folder location via move and click on the existing folder (C:\Users\me\Desktop).

I was so relieved after finding this fix. Hope this helps.

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  • Great, it worked for "Desktop" folder. But when I tried to do the same thing to "Pictures" folder, the following error appeared: "Can't move the folder because there is a folder in the same location that can't be redirected. Access is denied." How to solve this?
    – Amir F
    Oct 11, 2020 at 7:05
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    @AmirF I did find the solution for anyone interested: First install OneDrive back. Go into OneDrive settings under Backup > Manage backup and click "Stop backup" for each of the three folders, Desktop, Documents, Pictures. Then Stop Backup and unlink OneDrive and remove it from your computer. Works like a charm.
    – Techie5879
    Oct 10, 2021 at 13:56
  • Thank you! It still works that way. It's immensely helpful in the context of having multiple Onedrive profiles to decide which one you want to see by default.
    – Alex. S.
    Jul 26, 2023 at 21:24

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