OneDrive is a standard feature in Microsoft 365 licences. OneDrives:
- Provide a ‘personal’ space to store content, with up to 1 TB of storage, that cannot be accessed by anyone except the relevant admins (no different from their previous ability to access ‘personal’ or ‘home ‘ drives).
- Can be accessed by end-users directly from File Explorer (most common), MS Teams (via the Files tab in Chats), any browser (unless this is blocked), and also the mobile app.
- Can be used to share content with both internal and external people (if external sharing is not disallowed).
- Very likely contain the only copy of corporate records, out of context of other related records, and without any additional descriptive metadata.
- May be deleted completely in as few as 30 days after a Microsoft 365 account is deactivated.
What’s not to like about OneDrive? For end-users, it’s a great place to keep all your content, and looks and feels exactly the same as the personal OneDrive. Also, OneDrive can be accessed via File Explorer on Windows devices or Finder on a Mac, and via the mobile app. Even though all those options are also available for SharePoint, OneDrive seems more intuitive.
However, from an information and records management perspective, OneDrives (when used to store corporate records) are a problem – just like their ‘home’ or personal drive predecessors. The main problems are accessibility and management of corporate records stored there.
This post provides details of OneDrive, then discusses some of the common issues from a records and information perspective. It suggests options and methods to reduce the risks associated with their use for the storage of records.
OneDrive is a personal SharePoint site
OneDrive is a personal SharePoint site in the ‘my-sharepoint.com’ domain. It is not a SharePoint site. The connection with SharePoint can be seen in the URL addresses:
- SharePoint site: https://tenantname.sharepoint.com/sites/sitename
- OneDrive: https://tenantname-my.sharepoint.com/personal/username_tenantname_onmicrosoft_com/
As we will see below, the connection with SharePoint is not at all obvious when OneDrive is accessed via File Explorer. Even more confusingly, the OneDrive area on File Explorer may contain ‘folders’ that are actually SharePoint document libraries.
Accessing OneDrive Online via a browser
When accessed via a browser, OneDrive Online includes some of the same menu options, the same ‘Share’ functionality, and most of the same ellipsis (3 dot menu) document management options available in a standard SharePoint site.
In the screenshot above, the ‘Documents’ folder is actually a SharePoint document library. The small ‘link’ icon on the folder indicates that it is a ‘shortcut to OneDrive’ that has been added from that option in a SharePoint document library.
The end-user can also click on any of the ‘Quick access’ sites listed; this will open the default site Documents library directly in OneDrive AND display the full SharePoint document library menu options, including the option to ‘Add shortcut to My files’ (as shown in the example above).
The options to see shortcuts as folders and access sites directly via OneDrive could give end-users the impression that the content ‘belongs’ in the end-user’s OneDrive. While this might be seen as a way of helping end-users move content seamlessly between ‘personal’ working space (OneDrive) and ‘work’ working spaces (SharePoint), the opposite may be true – end-users simply leave everything ‘in’ OneDrive because the difference is not entirely obvious, especially via File Explorer.
Accessing OneDrive via Teams – Chat – Files
The ‘Files’ tab in Teams Chat provides few options and is focussed on the content that is shared with other participants in the Chat.
Accessing OneDrive via File Explorer
The File Explorer version (when synced) displays the same folders as the browser version. It also shows any SharePoint document libraries added as shortcuts to OneDrive (‘Documents’ folder with a link icon), potentially adding to confusion about whether this content ‘belongs’ to the end-user. (In some cases, end-users may delete this content not realising they are deleting the SharePoint library content). If the end-user chooses to Sync the document library, the synced library (showing as a folder) will appear under the ‘tenantname’ folder in File Explorer (not visible in the screenshots).
Note the ‘Status’ column:
- The cloud icon means the content hasn’t been opened via File Explorer
- The green circle/tick icon means it has been downloaded and is accessible offline
- No icon indicates a problem with the syncing that will need to be fixed as the content will not sync.
The additional features available via File Explorer are listed below:
- Share: Files may be shared directly internally or externally (if allowed). The dialog box that opens is the same as for OneDrive in the browser or SharePoint sites.
- Access the Recycle Bin: The blue OneDrive icon at the bottom right of Windows provides access to the Recycle Bin. The ‘Settings’ section also allows the end-user to see what is the status of their syncing, for both OneDrive and any SharePoint site libraries. They can disable syncing here as well.
How admins access OneDrives
Global Admins may access an end-user’s OneDrive account by opening the relevant user profile in the Microsoft 365 admin center, then clicking on the OneDrive tab. The option to ‘Create link to files’ is visible in the screenshot below. This access is only possible as long as the account is still active or during a set period after which the account is deactivated (30 days default).
Note that Admins may also, via this method, access the Preservation Hold library if a retention policy has been applied to the OneDrive. End-users cannot access this area directly; accordingly, if an end-users wishes to recover content that was deleted more than the Recycle Bin retention period (93 days), the admins can recover it via the Preservation Hold library provided the content is still covered by a retention policy.
How long can the content be accessed?
Access to the content once the account is deactivated is only available during the pre-set ‘retention’ period set in the Settings – OneDrive area of the SharePoint admin center, as can be seen below. This period may be extended to up to 10 years (3650 days).
How to access the content in a OneDrive?
As noted above, if the account has been deactivated and the ‘retention’ period has expired, access to the content is only possible if a retention policy or retention label has been applied to the OneDrives.
Access in this case would be either (a) by admins accessing the Preservation Hold library, or (b) by admins searching via a Content Search (or eDiscovery search) in the Compliance admin center as shown in the screenshot below.
Note that Content Searches are not ‘Google-like’ one-off searches , but are created as ‘search cases’; every time a search case is created or run, all Global Admins are alerted immediately by email.
How much storage should be provided?
As noted already, end-users are allocated 1 TB of personal storage space. This may be over-generous in most cases. Organisations might consider reducing the default maximum to a much smaller amount, perhaps 200 GB, and then monitoring storage. Individual OneDrive account storage may be increased per user, as required, via the same end-user profile details pane mentioned above. Total OneDrive storage may be increased to 5 TB but this would be unusual.
Two things may have a direct impact on the volume of storage that is used:
- Recordings of Teams meetings via the Teams Chat area. Microsoft’s telemetry indicates that recordings are rarely viewed beyond 60 days. Accordingly, an ‘expiration period’ of 60 days was introduced to auto-delete these recordings. This has now been set at 120 days. However. this setting will be ignored if a retention policy has been applied.
- The application of a retention policy.
The ability to (a) set a lower storage size to discourage use of OneDrive for corporate records, and (b) add a retention policy (which will add to the storage used), plus (c) the capture of Teams recordings, creates a potential dilemma. The options to address this dilemma might include:
- Leaving the default storage at 1 TB, which may encourage the storage of content.
- Not setting a retention policy on OneDrives, which could result in the loss of corporate records if they are deleted.
- Encouraging the scheduling of meetings from Teams rather than the Chat area, so the recordings are stored in the linked SharePoint site instead.
How to monitor OneDrive storage globally?
There are several ways to monitor OneDrive storage.
The easiest (for admins as well as records and information managers) is to access the Reports – Usage section of the Microsoft 365 admin center as can be seen in the screenshot below. Records and information managers should seek to be assigned either the Reports Reader or Global Reader roles as both provide this access. As can be seen, this access also provides access to SharePoint usage information (and other useful information about the environment).
Clicking on ‘View more’ provides access to an exportable list of all OneDrives showing the name, number of files and active files. This information will not be visible if the account has been deactivated.
If ‘anonymised’ information is displayed, this is because the following setting in the Microsoft 365 admin center, under Settings – Org Settings – Services (Tab) – Reports has been checked.
How to review storage usage in a specific OneDrive?
As noted already, access to OneDrives is restricted to admins and the account holder. Both have the option to see more details about the storage usage.
Note that ‘right clicking’ the OneDrive option in File Explorer then reviewing Properties will only show the size of the OneDrive content stored on the local machine. This is NOT the same as the actual storage used in the OneDrive account.
To view details of actual OneDrive storage, open the OneDrive in the browser then click on the gear icon – OneDrive Settings – More Settings. The ‘More Settings’ section includes ‘Storage metrics’ under ‘Features and storage’.
The Storage Metrics section displays the details of all the content in the OneDrive.
For most OneDrives, the main storage used will be in the following folders:
- Documents (the default library for the OneDrive that includes any files shared in Teams Chats, as well as any Whiteboard and Forms content.
- Recordings (if any have been made)
- Lists. This is an odd sort of folder; most of the used storage will be seen in the ‘SharePointHomeCacheList’ folder, however this contains mostly cached information that may not count towards overall storage.
- Preservation Hold library, if a retention policy has been applied.
Note that NO action is possible via anything visible in the Storage Metrics, it is ‘view only’ information.
What are the primary issues and options to consider with OneDrives?
The primary issues, and option to resolve them, relating to OneDrive accounts are described below.
End-users are storing corporate content in OneDrives
Options to resolve this issue include the following:
- Monitor use and storage, as described above.
- Communicate with end-users, recommending that end-users move corporate records to or store them in SharePoint.
- Reduce the default size of OneDrive accounts from 1 TB to a smaller size.
- Schedule and then record Teams meetings from a Team, not from the Chat area.
End-users are sharing corporate content from their OneDrives
The primary option is to remove the ability to share externally. Preventing internal sharing is counter-productive as end-users will inevitably revert to attaching them to emails.
Removing the ability to share externally is done from the SharePoint admin center.
End-users are deleting potential corporate records from their OneDrives
The options to address this issue include the following:
- Extend the default 30-day ‘retention’ period (SharePoint Admin – Settings – OneDrive – Retention)
- Create then apply a retention policy from the Compliance admin center. Anything deleted will be retained for the period of the retention. Keep in mind this will also retain Teams recordings. Understand how both the triggers (date created or date modified) and actions (do nothing or delete automatically) will operate over a period of time. A retention policy on its own may not retain everything for the period indicated, especially if end-users delete content before they leave the organisation.
- Back up the OneDrives. Backups are a business continuity and disaster recovery option, they are not intended to be used as a recordkeeping solution.
The content stored in OneDrives is ‘lost’ after a person leaves
The options to address this issue include the following:
- If a retention policy has been applied and the content still exists, search for the content via the ‘Content Search’ (or eDiscovery) functionality.
- Copy the content from departed end-user OneDrives to a SharePoint site. This may be suitable in some cases, but it not necessarily a good idea globally.
- Restore then access the content from a back-up.
Feature image: Pexels
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