Working Together: OneDrive & SharePoint

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In this Ask Sympraxis session, we dive into the collaboration power of OneDrive and SharePoint and how they work together to streamline file access and management. You’ll learn the key differences between Sync and Shortcuts, the benefits of using Shortcuts for easier navigation, how to migrate from Sync to Shortcut effectively, and much more. Whether you’re managing personal files or collaborating across teams, this session will help you optimize your Microsoft 365 experience.

We’re talking about OneDrive for Business

To clarify, this discussion focuses exclusively on OneDrive for Business - not the personal version. A simple way to distinguish the two is by their icons: gray clouds indicate personal accounts, while blue clouds represent business accounts.

How to think about OneDrive and SharePoint/Teams

When you first jot down ideas or work on rough drafts, you write them in your personal space - that’s your OneDrive. It’s your “me” space for capturing personal content. When you’re ready to collaborate, you might share it with a colleague or move it to a shared space, like a SharePoint Team Site or a Microsoft Teams channel. These shared spaces are the “we” areas where multiple people collaborate. If the content is polished and finalized, it might be published on the intranet - the “we and them” space - where it’s visible to everyone but editable by only a few.

Things to avoid with OneDrive

There are several pitfalls to avoid when using OneDrive. First, OneDrive is meant for individual use or small-scale collaboration - not for storing content that is vital to the organization. Saving critical business files in OneDrive is risky because if an employee leaves the company, their OneDrive files could be lost. It’s also important to avoid using OneDrive for non-work-related content. When setting up OneDrive on a PC, you might be prompted to sync known folders. While this may seem convenient, syncing large folders by default isn’t always ideal. Lastly, organizations should establish a clear governance policy that outlines where content should be stored to ensure consistency and prevent data loss.

Difference between sync and shortcut

Understanding the difference between sync and shortcut is essential for effective file management. The traditional sync option creates a Windows folder under the organization container, bringing the content locally to your machine. The newer shortcut feature creates a remote item in the root of your OneDrive, pointing to a location in SharePoint. You cannot use both sync and shortcut for the same content - doing so results in an error. While they both allow you to access files locally, shortcuts are more flexible and easier to manage.

Benefits of shortcuts

They provide more flexibility by allowing you to rearrange, rename, and organize them directly in Windows Explorer. You can even delete a shortcut without affecting the original content. Unlike sync, which is machine-specific, shortcuts are universal, meaning they appear consistently across all your devices. Additionally, shortcuts have no file limit, whereas sync has a limit of 300,000 files, making shortcuts the better option for large-scale collaboration. They also allow easier access to your Office documents.

Automating OneDrive shortcuts

One of the biggest advantages of shortcuts is their compatibility with automation. When provisioning new sites or projects, you can automate the creation of shortcuts rather than manually syncing each library. Since shortcuts are essentially just a reference (or drive item), they are easier to script and manage. For large-scale deployments, this can significantly reduce complexity and save time. Listen in as Julie dives into the technical details of how to set this up.

Conclusion

Mastering the relationship between OneDrive and SharePoint is key to effective collaboration in Microsoft 365. Using OneDrive as your personal workspace, SharePoint/Teams for group collaboration, and the intranet for publishing ensures that content flows through the right channels. Migrating from sync to shortcuts offers greater flexibility, easier access, and better scalability. By following best practices and establishing clear governance, you can prevent data loss, streamline collaboration, and make the most of these powerful tools.

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