OneDrive for Business always loosing connection to location on local drive

Question

OneDrive for Business always loosing connection to location on local drive

gernophil 10

This is a follow up of this issue. I'm starting from resetting OneDrive and deleting the credentials, because that's easier to tell the story:

Since this is normally how I solve sync issues as a last resort I ran /Applications/OneDrive.app/Contents/Resources/ResetOneDriveAppStandalone.command and /Applications/OneDrive.app/Contents/Resources/RemoveOneDriveCreds.command after quitting OneDrive (Personal and Business). After that I manually deleted ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.OneDriveStandaloneSuite , since the script is always failing to delete this (permission denied) and ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.OfficeOneDriveSyncIntegration. Then I restart my Mac and reconnect first to my personal OneDrive (I don't have to enter the credentials, even though the script should have deleted them). Second, I reconnect to my OneDrive for Business. Till that point everything seems fine and OneDrive is working, but that's just till I restart my Mac.

As soon as I restart my Mac some weird OneDrive update is triggered: This is shown in the Finder when navigating to the OneDrive folder:

Bildschirmfoto 2026-11-07 um 00.34.02 Kopie

(It says: OneDrive is running an update right now and will be available again soon)

My OneDrive daemon states this:

Bildschirmfoto 2026-11-07 um 00.34.15 Kopie

(It says: OneDrive is setting up/is prepared)

After the "update" is done, The OneDrive for Business folder looses it's cloud icon and the link in the sidebar, but is still working:

Bildschirmfoto 2026-11-07 um 00.36.22 Kopie

After a second restart, OneDrive creates a second folder with a (2) suffix and it creates a second shortcut in the finder sidebar. The old the Finder link reappears and the old folder gets its cloud icon back, but the folder is disconnected:

Bildschirmfoto 2026-11-07 um 00.39.40 Kopie

(The next screenshot is shown in the original OneDrive for Business folder (without the (2) suffix)).

Bildschirmfoto 2026-11-07 um 00.39.53

(It says: Please restart OneDrive to continue synchronizing this location)

I've reset OneDrive multiple times, but this always happens. However, it never happens, if I only set up OneDrive personal, so it seems to be connected with OneDrive for Business. I can also set up OneDrive personal, restart the Mac multiple times without the "update" being triggered. As soon as I add the Business account the "update" is triggered and the described issue starts. All these issues started last week (Tuesday or Thursday).

How can I fix that OneDrive always creates a duplicate folder. And sub question: Why are my credentials not deleted by RemoveOneDriveCreds.command, even though the scripts state they are?

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2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Hi gernophil,

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A forum.

Based on your description, I understand that OneDrive for Business loses its connection to the local sync folder every time you restart your Mac and then automatically creates an additional folder with the suffix (2).

In addition, it is possible that your credentials or authentication state are still stored in the macOS Keychain or other Microsoft authentication components. As a result, your sign-in information may still be retained even after you run the script.

In this case, please try the following steps:

From Spotlight search, type "keychain" and select Keychain Access. If it's not visible in Spotlight, go to the Utilities folder and open Keychain Access from there.
Search for "OneDrive."
Delete OneDrive Cached Credential.

The steps to delete Keychains may vary. As an alternative, choose Window > Keychain Access, then choose File > Delete Keychain [OneDrive/Office/MS] and click Delete References.

You can refer to the following documentation:

Fix OneDrive sync problems on Mac | Microsoft Support

After clearing the saved OneDrive credentials on your Mac, please sign in to OneDrive again and check whether the issue still occurs.

If the issue persists after completing these steps, please feel free to share the results with me. I will continue to assist you.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Yes" and kindly upvote it.

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Answer 2

The duplicate folder behavior matches the documented OneDrive behavior when sync is stopped and then started again: OneDrive creates a new local folder, and if the same name already exists, it adds a number such as 1, 2, and so on.

For macOS, the supported recovery path is:

In the menu bar, select the OneDrive cloud icon.
Select Help & Settings > Preferences.
Open the Account tab.
Select Unlink this Mac.
Clear sign-in credentials in Keychain Access:
- Open Keychain Access.
- If keychains are not visible, select Window > Keychain Access.
- Select a keychain in the Keychains list.
- Select File > Delete Keychain [OneDrive/Office/MS].
- Select Delete References.
Sign in again.
When prompted that a OneDrive folder already exists, select Use this folder if the existing folder is the correct one. If a new location is preferred, select Choose new folder.
Let OneDrive resync.

Important points for the scenario described:

Unlinking and re-linking does not delete data. The local folders are temporarily disconnected and changes sync again after re-linking completes.
If OneDrive starts syncing the library again after being disconnected, a duplicate folder with a suffix like (2) is expected behavior when the original folder name already exists.
If the issue continues after unlink/re-link, the next documented step on Mac is to reset OneDrive.

On the credentials question: the supported Mac guidance is to clear OneDrive sign-in credentials through Keychain Access by deleting the relevant OneDrive/Office/MS keychain references. The provided context does not document the behavior of RemoveOneDriveCreds.command, so only the Keychain Access method is supported here.