How to move Documents folder to a different drive?

[DMKAlex]

My current Documents folder (and Music, Videos and Pictures) is in C:\Users\Alex1\OneDrive\Douments, When tried changing the location to D:\Alex\Documents, it would not let me do it?

Can't move the folder because there is a folder in the same location that can't be redirected. Access is denied.

I don't want to put it in OneDrive cloud. I think I did not select OneDrive when I set it up. Why would the folders be in something call OneDrive?

Please help.

 

[Sean Nelson]

My current Documents folder (and Music, Videos and Pictures) is in C:\Users\Alex1\OneDrive\Douments, When tried changing the location to D:\Alex\Documents, it would not let me do it?

Can't move the folder because there is a folder in the same location that can't be redirected. Access is denied.

I don't want to put it in OneDrive cloud. I think I did not select OneDrive when I set it up. Why would the folders be in something call OneDrive?

Please help.

This doesn't really answer your question, but my way of dealing with "Documents" is to simply ignore it. I have enough data files that I need a folder tree to manage them anyway, so even if a program defaults to "Documents" I would still need to navigate to the correct subfolder.

So instead, I keep everything in own folder tree on my "D:" drive. And I put shortcuts to the top of that folder tree into "Documents" and into the "Quick Access" folder which is easily reachable from all of the standard file open / file save dialogue boxes. This makes it easy to access my files when I need to.

I've configured the important programs that store information in "Documents" to store them in my folder tree instead. So, for example, programs like emClient (my email client), DaVinci Resolve, etc. all store their files in my own data folder tree.

 

[mclewis]

My current Documents folder (and Music, Videos and Pictures) is in C:\Users\Alex1\OneDrive\Douments, When tried changing the location to D:\Alex\Documents, it would not let me do it?

Can't move the folder because there is a folder in the same location that can't be redirected. Access is denied.

I don't want to put it in OneDrive cloud. I think I did not select OneDrive when I set it up. Why would the folders be in something call OneDrive?

Please help.

It is far easier not moving the Documents folder. Just don't use it. Create a suitable folder wherever you want and stick your documents in there instead.

 

[New Wrycuda]

My current Documents folder (and Music, Videos and Pictures) is in C:\Users\Alex1\OneDrive\Douments, When tried changing the location to D:\Alex\Documents, it would not let me do it?

Can't move the folder because there is a folder in the same location that can't be redirected. Access is denied.

I don't want to put it in OneDrive cloud. I think I did not select OneDrive when I set it up. Why would the folders be in something call OneDrive?

In the old days, Windows didn’t provide default folders such as Documents etc. and most users set up their own folder system, usually on another drive. When the default folders were provided (in various stages, if I recall) they were mostly ignored.

I have the following folder system, including many sub-folders…

D:\Shared\Wrycuda

____________\MrsWrycuda

____________\WryFellow

(Shared implies that this is shared across the network)

It’s an easy matter to redirect applications to these folders.

 

[David Lal]

Please help.

Onedrive in my opinion is another MS solution in search of a problem I never had. As all other respondents so far have said, I just create my own directories wherever I want e.g. x:\docs; x:\video; x:\xls then configure the various applications to default to storing data files in the respective directory.

I keep data as far as possible off the main system drive.

Create you directories. Use Windows explorer to cut and paste out of Onedrive and into the targets. Check that everythiing has happened successfully; expunge onedrive content and then uninstall onedrive. See:

Loading…

support.microsoft.com

 

[gscotten]

If you right-click on the Documents link in File Explorer, click Properties>Location, you can change the location to whatever folder you want, even across the network.

--
George

 

[SecondTimeAround]

In the old days, Windows didn’t provide default folders such as Documents etc. and most users set up their own folder system, usually on another drive. When the default folders were provided (in various stages, if I recall) they were mostly ignored.

"My Documents" wasn't always there, but it has been around since Windows 95.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Documents

"Microsoft first introduced the "My Documents" folder in Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2, as a standard location for storing user-created files. The folder, located under the root directory of the boot volume. A shortcut to it is displayed directly on the user's desktop."

 

[DMKAlex]

That’s what I did.

For the error message in the original post.

 

[Mike B USA]

It seems you're using OneDrive whether you intended to or not. I use and like OneDrive, so I can't test this on one of my machines, but this procedure appears to contain all of the steps I would have guessed necessary to stop using it and have your documents stored only on your PC.

How to move documents folder out of OneDrive to hard drive? - Microsoft Community

Specifically, look at the first reply to the question from EmilyS726.

 

[Scott_Eaton]

Like the others I find OneDrive more annoying than it's worth. Tends to always be enabled where you don't need it, but, if you don't do system backups having OneDrive is better a drive failure with no backup.

 

[gscotten]

That’s what I did.

For the error message in the original post.

Interesting. It works for me. I just relocated it to a new location and it worked. I moved it back after testing, and that worked, too. Are you using an Admin account? (I am.)

Or perhaps it is because your Documents folder is on OneDrive. I have never enabled that, so my folder is located just below my UserName. I know next to nothing about OneDrive.

 

[Robert Zanatta]

If it's because on OneDrive:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us...e-folder-f386fb81-1461-40a7-be2c-712676b2c4ae

 

[New Wrycuda]

In the old days, Windows didn’t provide default folders such as Documents etc. and most users set up their own folder system, usually on another drive. When the default folders were provided (in various stages, if I recall) they were mostly ignored.

"My Documents" wasn't always there, but it has been around since Windows 95.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Documents

"Microsoft first introduced the "My Documents" folder in Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2, as a standard location for storing user-created files. The folder, located under the root directory of the boot volume. A shortcut to it is displayed directly on the user's desktop."

Thanks for the history lesson, but see this item further down in the Wiki article…

Users cannot delete, move or organize these files without causing unwanted behavior in their software. Their option is to either live with this chaos, or simply store their files elsewhere.

I always considered the emergence of those default locations little more than a nuisance that added clutter to File Explorer.

 

[AY Gross]

In the old days, Windows didn’t provide default folders such as Documents etc. and most users set up their own folder system, usually on another drive. When the default folders were provided (in various stages, if I recall) they were mostly ignored.

"My Documents" wasn't always there, but it has been around since Windows 95.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Documents

"Microsoft first introduced the "My Documents" folder in Windows 95 OEM Service Release 2, as a standard location for storing user-created files. The folder, located under the root directory of the boot volume. A shortcut to it is displayed directly on the user's desktop."

Thanks for the history lesson, but see this item further down in the Wiki article…

Users cannot delete, move or organize these files without causing unwanted behavior in their software. Their option is to either live with this chaos, or simply store their files elsewhere.

I always considered the emergence of those default locations little more than a nuisance that added clutter to File Explorer.

None of this is true.
The first result on google, directly from microsoft

"How to Change the My Documents Folder Storage Location

When the properties of the My Documents folder (the desktop icon) are displayed and a group policy has not been established to redirect the folder, you can change the path to the My Documents folder and you can move the contents from the old location to the new location:

1. Right-click My Documents (on the desktop), and then click Properties.
2. In the Target box, type the new path to the My Documents folder, or click Move to browse to the folder and if needed, create a new My Documents folder. If the path you type does not exist, you are prompted to confirm that you want to create a new folder.
3. Click Yes to move files from the old My Documents location to the new location, or click No if you do not want to move these files. Note that if you click No, the files in the old location are not deleted, but they are no longer visible from My Documents after the change.

Restoring the Default My Documents Path

If the current My Documents path is incorrect or is no longer available, you can use the Restore Default option to restore the default path:

NOTE: This option is not displayed when group policy folder redirection is in effect for this folder.

1. Right-click My Documents (on the desktop), and then click Properties.
2. Click Restore Default.
   
   "

 

[AY Gross]

That’s what I did.

For the error message in the original post.

Exit onedrive from the tray

 

[Vernon D Rainwater]

Like the others I find OneDrive more annoying than it's worth. Tends to always be enabled where you don't need it, but, if you don't do system backups having OneDrive is better a drive failure with no backup.

Anyone who uses a Computer should do System Backups --or-- quit using a Computer.

 

[New Wrycuda]

Like the others I find OneDrive more annoying than it's worth. Tends to always be enabled where you don't need it, but, if you don't do system backups having OneDrive is better a drive failure with no backup.

Anyone who uses a Computer should do System Backups --or-- quit using a Computer.

Data Backups yes, but System Backups are rarely necessary.

 

[SC489]

See https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/74952-move-location-documents-folder-windows-10-a.html

 

[SecondTimeAround]

Like the others I find OneDrive more annoying than it's worth. Tends to always be enabled where you don't need it, but, if you don't do system backups having OneDrive is better a drive failure with no backup.

Anyone who uses a Computer should do System Backups --or-- quit using a Computer.

Data Backups yes, but System Backups are rarely necessary.

I make system image backups regularly and my data is backed up every day.
I'd rather spend 20 minutes restoring an image than reinstalling Windows and all my programs along with their related settings.

 

[SC489]

Like the others I find OneDrive more annoying than it's worth. Tends to always be enabled where you don't need it, but, if you don't do system backups having OneDrive is better a drive failure with no backup.

Anyone who uses a Computer should do System Backups --or-- quit using a Computer.

Data Backups yes, but System Backups are rarely necessary.

Microsoft is quite capable of screwing up your PC with regular updates let alone user error. Fail to backup up your system drive (and the hidden partitions needed to boot at your peril unless you are fond on reinstalling all from scratch.