Microsoft sends OneDrive URL upload feature to the cloud graveyard

Microsoft has abruptly pulled a feature from OneDrive that allows users to upload files to the cloud storage service directly from a URL. The feature turned up as a preview in 2021 and was intended for scenarios "where the file contents aren't available, or are expensive to transfer," according to Microsoft. It was …

[Anonymous Coward]

Microsoft OneDrive URL upload feature

“Microsoft sends OneDrive URL upload feature to the cloud graveyard”

Possible because it could be used for URL spoofing or hacking your cloud storage service ?

[yetanotheraoc]

Re: Microsoft OneDrive URL upload feature

If it could be used for those things, MS would be about the last to know about it. More likely as hinted in the article, usage was so meager they didn't want to pay for the minimum one server and one warm body to keep the service going.

[AMBxx]

Re: Microsoft OneDrive URL upload feature

This is the first I've heard of this. Shame as I have a very slow upload from here and often download large installers that I need to then store in OneDrive. Currently, I use a cloud PC to do the work but this would have been much easier.

[sedregj]

Re: Microsoft OneDrive URL upload feature

"Shame as I have a very slow upload from here and often download large installers that I need to then store in OneDrive"

You have already described your upload speed as shite! Why not leave the large files where they are?

My idea of slow is 300 baud - enough to be faster than my typing.

[Phones Sheridan]

Re: Microsoft OneDrive URL upload feature

"Why not leave the large files where they are?"

Probably because they might not be there the next time you look? You can't rely on other people to keep their wares available for you to download.

[captain veg]

'warning for users to be wary of anything from Microsoft prefixed with the word "Preview."'

Or, it has to be said, anything whatsoever from Google.

-A.

[Mike007]

This .ru site has a solution

Cue third party services that let you sign in with your Microsoft account and supply a URL that they promise will be transferred unmodified without looking at any of your other data.

[Test Man]

Re: This .ru site has a solution

.ru site

"they promise"

No thanks.

[jimbot]

Re: This .ru site has a solution

I seem to recall OneDrive modifying Microsoft Office files that get uploaded to it, adding some extra metadata or something.

You can't rely on your files remaining unmodified.

[airbrush]

One drive locks up computers when you run out of storage, you can't easily opt out of it backing up pictures or whatever. I just uninstall it as soon as possible.

[Charlie Clark]

It's also very slow. I don't know what mechanism they use for synching but in my experience it's a lot slower than DropBox or Google Drive. Then I remember: Sharepoint is in there somewhere doing its evil shit.

[Rafael #872397]

Microsoft's "vision for OneDrive as a cloud storage service that syncs your files across devices."

I was a OneDrive victim for three years and I assure you that it doesn't work at all as a cloud storage service that syncs your files across devices.

[David 132]

Re: Microsoft's "vision for OneDrive….”

I had an experience with Onedrive a couple of years ago that put me off it for life.

I was doing dev work in Visual Studio. Hit F5 to build my project, and instead of building, it freaked out impressively, complaining that this, that, and the other sourcefile were missing.

Cutting to the root cause, and skipping the panicked detective work - my employer’s IT department had chosen that moment, during office hours, to enable OneDrive, and were merrily migrating all my documents from %userprofile%. Every single one of my sourcefiles had been uploaded to The Holy Cloud, and not even a local symlink remained.

So I pulled them back, nuked the OneDrive process and its startup keys with extreme prejudice (including the IT equivalent of “sowing the ground with salt”), and vowed to do my own backups from then on.

[Phones Sheridan]

Re: Microsoft's "vision for OneDrive….”

My problem with OneDrive is that it doesn't handle the same characters that the windows file structure does, so it refuses to back up files containing certain characters. At the very least include an option in windows to disable these characters, because no amount of user training will get Doris in admin to save her filenames differently.

[Anonymous Coward]

Resilio Sync

If you want your files synced across your devices, Resilio Sync is a better choice. It syncs your files across YOUR devices, no 'cloud' (somebody else's computer) needed.

At this point, anybody using 'cloud' garbage should probably be charged with gross negligence.

[Crypto Monad]

Re: Resilio Sync

Ot there's syncthing, which is FOSS

[Necrohamster]

Re: Resilio Sync

Another yes for syncthing here

[Julian 8]

Re: Resilio Sync

I like that it is torrent based, so where I have some files scatted across multiple machines, they all pull from each other.

I dont like that it is torrent based as if I go to a client, I can often get a visit from IT asking why I am torrenting on their network

Not checked for a while, but there was not a client for IOS or Android and is why I use OneDrive for backing those devices up (mainly pictures)

[Mark #255]

Re: Resilio Sync

Resilio sync has an Android client (for a couple of years)

[Sir Adelaide]

Re: Resilio Sync

Only for small file volumes. Resilio reads the contents of every file to make its index, which takes days if you want to keep a terrabyte in sync, and resets when files in use change.

Allway sync was decent, before it was killed off.

Currently, I'd rather live with Dropbox' shortfalls than the pitfalls of the roll-your-own alternatives.

[Bebu]

Led Zeppelin...

《... she's buying a stairway to Heaven

There's a sign on the wall, but she wants to be sure

'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings》

Ain't that the truth in this game?

[PeterM42]

Ah - OneDrive

The Devil's cloud storage.

When you have lost your desktop, etc. once, you are more likely to do the RIGHT THING - retrieve your files, then delete OneDrive.