I got a new Win11 laptop a few weeks ago. I have the free 5G OneDrive plan, it is 80% full, that is OK, I don't use it that much. I used a thumb drive to copy several gigabytes of pictures from my old computer to my new laptop (I put them on the laptop desktop).
I didn't realize that OneDrive default settings would try to put all my files on the Cloud. Now, I can't stop OneDrive from attempting to put these files on the Cloud. I went into OneDrive Settings and disabled the "backup" option. Then I deleted all the new pictures from the new laptop. I emptied the recycle bin multiple times.
Although the pictures are gone, they seem to be hiding somewhere and OneDrive keeps attempting to Sync them. I want OneDrive to behave like it did previously, more like a Server. I want one there to be one place where I put the files that I want to share between computers (the OneDrive folder). How do I stop the invasive behavior?
I used to consider myself an experienced computer user, but as time goes by, I am feeling more like a beginner.
Edit:
After deleting the files on OneDrive a third time, it finally gave up and stopped attempting to sync.
Of all my annoying Microsoft experiences, this ranks near the top. I don't know if all Win11 PCs are delivered with OneDrive Backup enabled, but, on my Dell it was, and I really wish it had been a setup option.
So, problem solved. A good answer could still describe a more graceful way out of the issue. One that didn't require you to go back multiple times to cleanup.
