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Hi, Microsoft 365 Insiders! I’m Stephen Rice, a Product Manager on the OneDrive team. If you’re a OneDrive fan, you know that it offers a powerful blend of productivity, security, and seamless collaboration—all wrapped into a cloud storage solution that works wherever you do.

But OneDrive is far more than just a place to “hold your stuff.” If you’re only using it to save and store files, you’re missing a bunch of overlooked features that can help you work smarter and faster. Let’s fix that.

Collect information with Request Files

Need to gather files from your team, your PTA board, or a dozen workshop attendees? Don’t create a folder free-for-all. Instead, in OneDrive, select a folder, select Request Files, and then send the link to contributors so that they can upload their files without seeing anyone else’s content.

NOTE: Contributors don’t need OneDrive accounts to upload.

NOTE: Admin policies may restrict access to this feature: Enable File Requests in SharePoint or OneDrive – SharePoint in Microsoft 365 | Microsoft Learn

Availability: This feature is available to OneDrive on the web customers signed in with a work account.

Quick access to full editing capabilities

Want the best of both worlds when working with files in OneDrive? You can seamlessly launch a myriad of files in their full-featured, native desktop apps. This includes: 

• PDFs: Open in Adobe Acrobat or Microsoft Edge.


• Media files (MP4, MP3, MOV, WAV, etc.): Open in your system’s default media player.


• Image files (JPEG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, HEIC, and more): Open in Photos (default app for most image types on Windows), Paint / Paint 3D, Snipping Tool or third-party apps (e.g., Adobe Photoshop, IrfanView).


• Adobe formats (PSD, AI, and other Creative Cloud file types): Open in the corresponding desktop Creative Cloud application (e.g., Photoshop or Illustrator), if installed.


• Rich Text and Markup (RTF, HTML, XML, JSON, etc.): Open in Word desktop (Windows/Mac) or Word for the web for RTF, and Microsoft Edge or Notepad.


• Code files (.py, .js, .java, .cpp, .cs, and many more): Open in Visual Studio Code, Notepad++, or Visual Studio.


• 3D models (STL, OBJ, GLB, and others): Open in 3D Viewer, Paint 3D, or Blender.

NOTE: If a default app is configured on your system for a given file type, OneDrive will use it automatically. If not, you’ll be prompted to choose one.

Click … next to any file you want to edit in a desktop app, and select Open > Open in app. This gives you the power of advanced editing tools while keeping everything synced in the cloud.

Availability: This feature is available to OneDrive for Windows, Mac, and Web customers signed in with a work account.

Restore previous versions with one click

Ever found yourself going back to a brilliant paragraph you write couple hours, only to find out that someone else overwrote it? No need to panic! Simply right-click the file in OneDrive, select Version history, browse by timestamp, preview, and restore the one you want!

NOTE: This also works for shared files – perfect when collaboration gets a little too enthusiastic.

Availability: This feature is available to OneDrive for Windows, Mac, and Web users with a work or personal account.

Keep shared folders front and center

Information comes at us fast and furious so when someone shares a folder with you for a specific project, you know you’re going to forget where to find it again later. To avoid a frantic search down the line, select Add shortcut to My files in the shared folder or library— it now shows up like any other folder in your OneDrive, no matter where you access OneDrive.

NOTE: You can organize shared folders into your personal structure, whether you want to change their color, rename them, or move them into another folder Finally, order in the chaos!

Availability: This feature is available to OneDrive for Windows, Mac, and Web users.

Control your digital footprint by setting expiration dates on shared links

Shared a doc with a vendor or a supplier three months ago? It’s probably still live. To build in better control into your document sharing process, when creating a sharing link, go to Link settings and set an expiration date (e.g., 30 days).

NOTE: Use this for sensitive content, presentations, or anything you don’t want living online past its moment.

Availability: This feature is available to OneDrive for Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and Web users with a work or personal account.

Digitize paper clutter instantly and stay productive while on the go

Need to save whiteboard notes after or meeting or upload receipts before they become purse confetti? Scan them directly into OneDrive with your phone. No scanner, no problem. Open the OneDrive mobile app, tap the camera icon, and then capture, crop, name it, save it — done.

Whether you need to sign a tax document, a rental agreement, a contract, or any other important PDF document, we have got you covered. In the OneDrive app on the mobile platform of your choice, open the PDF, tap … (More) (three dots), select Sign PDF, and then tap where you want to sign on the screen.

You can also create a signature by tapping Create new, adding your signature to the Signature box, ensuring the Store Signature option is selected, and then tapping the checkmark to save it. Later, you’ll be able to insert a saved signature by tapping where you want to sign, selecting the stored signature, and insert it.

Download OneDrive for iOS

Download OneDrive for Android

Availability: This feature is available to OneDrive for iOS and Android users.

No connection, no problem

Need to stay productive even when you’re off the grid or on the plane? Whether you are in the OneDrive mobile app, OneDrive sync app on Windows and macOS, or on OneDrive on the web, you can access your most important files anytime, anywhere—no internet required.

• In the OneDrive for iOS and OneDrive for Android app, tap … (More) next to any file or folder and select Make available offline.


• In OneDrive on your desktop (Windows or macOS), navigate to and right-click the file or folder you want to make available offline and select Always keep on this device.

• In OneDrive on the web, click … next to any file or folder, and select Make available offline.

Your content will be downloaded to your device, ready for you to view or edit on the go. Once you’re back online, any changes you made will sync automatically. It’s a simple way to keep working—whether you’re on a plane, in a tunnel, or just saving data.

Availability: This feature is available to OneDrive for Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and Web users.

Feedback

We want to hear from you about how these features and others can make working with OneDrive more effective. If you have any requests or suggestions, select Send feedback in the app.

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