Move Windows known folders to OneDrive without creating an empty desktop

Source fact: what Microsoft documents

OneDrive Known Folder Move redirects supported Windows folders such as Desktop, Documents, Pictures, Screenshots, and Camera Roll into the user’s OneDrive. Users continue working in familiar locations while the OneDrive sync app uploads the content and makes it available from other devices. Administrators can prompt users to move folders or silently redirect supported folders through Group Policy, Intune administrative templates, or documented registry policy.

Microsoft recommends upgrading to the latest OneDrive build and rolling out slowly to control upload demand. For existing devices, Microsoft currently recommends limiting silent Known Folder Move deployment to 1,000 devices per day and 4,000 per week across Windows and macOS. For the prompt policy, Microsoft recommends no more than 5,000 devices per day and 20,000 per week.

Existing Folder Redirection requires a transition process. Known Folder Move does not work when the user is syncing OneDrive files in SharePoint Server. If folders are already redirected to another organization’s OneDrive, redirecting immediately to the new tenant creates new folders and can leave the user viewing an empty desktop until data is migrated. Microsoft documents separate steps for local paths, file shares, and previous OneDrive redirection.

Licensing and applicability

The user needs an eligible OneDrive for work or school service, supported sync application, sufficient cloud storage, and supported Windows configuration. File names, paths, open files, policies, network proxies, tenant restrictions, unsupported content, and previous folder ownership can block migration. Syncing content to OneDrive improves service availability but is not a complete independent backup, legal retention, or offline recovery strategy.

DSE recommendation: production-safe operational steps

1. Inventory each user’s current Desktop, Documents, and Pictures paths, prior Folder Redirection, tenant association, file count and size, storage quota, unsupported files, permissions, and sync errors.
2. Define the supported transition for local folders, network shares, or another OneDrive tenant. Preserve authoritative source data until destination validation is complete.
3. Update the OneDrive sync app and verify required Microsoft 365 network endpoints, disk capacity, user identity, and Files On-Demand behavior.
4. Pilot representative users with large data sets, laptops, remote connections, specialized applications, multiple devices, and redirected folders.
5. Validate folder contents, timestamps where important, application save paths, desktop appearance, synchronization, conflict handling, web access, new-device recovery, and user support.
6. Throttle or schedule upload where required and expand within Microsoft’s current daily and weekly rollout guidance.
7. Monitor sync health and storage continuously. Remove the source only after documented acceptance and the applicable retention period.

DSE recommends communicating the visual changes and error-resolution path before policy assignment. If a user sees an empty folder, stop further moves for that cohort, preserve both source locations, identify tenant and redirection state, and reconcile files before continuing.

Official reference

Redirect and move Windows known folders to OneDrive — supported folders, policies, rollout rates, prior redirection, bandwidth, and migration behavior.