Top 5 Ways to Fix File Cannot Be Opened on OneDrive Error on Windows

People use OneDrive to store and save files in all formats. Microsoft offers OneDrive integration to save your suite of Word, Excel and other Office application files as well. That’s why it’s important to work with OneDrive if you want to access these files from wherever possible. However, some users discovered that they were unable to open files saved in OneDrive and wanted to know what went wrong. We’ll smash it for you.

A lot will vary depending on where you use the OneDrive app, as it supports all popular desktop and mobile platforms. You should first troubleshoot your internet connection to make sure the network is OK. Let’s start.

1. Optional Files

OneDrive’s Files On Demand feature helps you save storage space on your desktop or mobile device. The files will be displayed on your computer or mobile phone, but will only be downloaded when you open them. The problem with this approach is that it needs an active internet connection, which you may or may not have when you need to open the file to work. The solution is to always make important files/folders available offline.

How can you tell the difference? If you see a green checkmark on a white background next to the file and you don’t see a cloud icon next to it, the file is ‘available locally’ on your hard drive.

Right click on the file you want to make available offline or download and select ‘Always keep on this device’. You will now see the green circle with a white checkmark on the file.

You can remove the file from your hard drive by selecting ‘Free up space’ in the right-click menu.

The time required to download the file will depend on your internet connection and the size of the file.

2. Storage Perception

This is a Windows feature. But the purpose remains the same. Microsoft wants to save storage space on your computer using a feature called Windows Storage Sense. This is where things get a little confusing for some people. Here’s how Microsoft put it:

So, there are two checkmarks. One is green, the other is white. You want the white one because Storage Sense will automatically delete files with green checkmarks after a while to save you space. Again, right click on the file and select ‘Always keep on this device’ to save it offline.

Confused? Turn off Storage Sense and manage the space yourself. You can do this under Settings > System > Storage.

Storage Sense runs periodically and when your computer is running low on storage. More importantly, OneDrive will set up an online-only view for files you haven’t accessed in the last 30 days, and set to online-only until you have enough space.

3. Clear Cache and Data

Users of Windows and Android platforms should be familiar with all the problems that cache and old data files can cause. Same goes for Chrome/Chromium or other browsers. We previously covered how to clear cache and data in GT for Chrome, Windows and Android. Usually, we don’t talk about clearing cache files in iOS because there is no way to do it and Apple devices are efficient thanks to their application management systems. But OneDrive has decided to offer a clear cache inside the app, which is pretty cool.

It won’t take more than a few minutes, but it will get you signed out of your OneDrive account. Make sure you have login information before proceeding.

4. Permission Revoked

Do you have access to the file? The creator may have revoked access to the file, but it’s still showing up in your OneDrive folders causing this issue. Send a message to the owner to confirm. See the point above to clear the cache and other data responsible for continuing to show the canceled file in your folder.

5. Reset OneDrive on Windows

This will not delete any files saved or shared on your OneDrive. Fixes some common OneDrive errors, including the inability to open files stored in it.

Stage 1: Press Windows key+R to open Run command and type the following command.

%localappdata%\Microsoft\OneDrive\onedrive.exe /reset

This will take a few minutes, but be aware that you will need to sign in to your OneDrive account again after the reset. The OneDrive cloud icon will momentarily disappear from the System Tray, but will reappear after the command has finished running.

If the icon does not reappear, you can run OneDrive manually from the Start menu. A simple reboot should fix this.

One Life, One Love, One Drive

Microsoft really wants Windows users to go to OneDrive; this is one reason why uninstalling the app is so difficult, if not impossible. Long-time Office users will feel right at home, and I really like the Personal Vault feature.

Some of the most important things I care about are stored in both OneDrive and Google Drive. Similarly, you can split or backup your files to multiple cloud storage services.

Next: OneDrive still bothering you? Do you think this is a sync issue? Click on the link below to find all the ways to fix all OneDrive sync related errors.