Microsoft OneDrive (formerly SkyDrive)

2024: Automatic backup of user data

Microsoft has decided to make it mandatory to automatically back up user data hosted on your computer to OneDrive cloud storage. At the same time, the corporation did not make any official announcements about this. In addition, the company does not ask for user consent to the processing of data - files are copied by default. This was announced on June 26, 2024 by the press service of the State Duma deputy RFAnton Nemkin.

OneDrive is the default cloud file storage for Windows 10 and Windows 11 operating systems. The amount of data downloaded to the cloud can be in gigabytes - depending on how long the copy worked.

At the same time, the purpose of the change is not entirely clear. There are a number of risks associated with automatically copying information to the cloud. First, computers can store sensitive user data, including passport information. No one is immune from data leaks, including cloud services. For example, not so long ago, hackers hacked into one of the Dropbox storage services. Secondly, automatic copying is an additional burden on the operation of the PC as a whole, as well as on the charge of the device when it comes to laptops. The user should be warned about this, - said the deputy.

Allegations of illegal data collection harass Microsoft throughout the company's work and are not groundless. Back in 2023, information appeared about the collection of the entire user Internet history in the background, which Microsoft itself was also ignored, - said the parliamentarian.

This should not apply to the corporate sector, to which Microsoft closed official access to cloud services back in March 2024. In order not to become a victim of unauthorized data copying, you must change the backup settings. But it is best to uninstall the application and switch to domestic cloud storage. We cannot be sure that the company, which is collecting data bypassing privacy policy and violating user agreements, will not transfer it to a third party. At the same time, it will be difficult to track the very fact of such a transfer. It is best to play it safe, "the deputy emphasized.

2019: Integration with Samsung Galaxy Note10

On August 8, 2019, the companies Microsoft Samsung and announced the development of a long-term strategic partnership in the field of innovation. Starting Samsung Galaxy Note10 with performance applications and services, Microsoft will are integrated be included in the products of the line, including the function of automatic synchronization with Link PERSONAL COMPUTER to, Windows OneDrive,, Outlook as well as, and. Word Excel PowerPoint More. here

2018: Implementation of ransomware virus protection

In early April 2018, Microsoft added a mechanism to OneDrive to protect against ransomware viruses that block the computer and demand a ransom. A similar function will appear in the mail service Outlook.com.

We are talking about a function called "Files Restore," which, as you might guess, provides a "rollback" of data to copies created earlier - before the computer is infected with malware. Files downloaded up to 30 days ago can be restored.

Screenshot showing the work of the Files Restore function

Previously, the Files Restore option was only available in the enterprise version of OneDrive, and now it can be used by all Office 365 subscribers, including home ones. 

In addition to data recovery, the updated OneDrive virus encryption protection includes an automatic threat detection system. She will report the start of the infection by sending a notification to her mobile phone.

Finally, Microsoft has added the ability to password protect links with which the user shares documents from OneDrive.

Additional protection against money-extorting viruses will also appear in the web version of the Outlook email application. There will also be implemented a mechanism for encrypting individual messages that can be read through Outlook.com, Outlook for iOS and Android, the Windows mail client, or just a special link. The sender of such messages will be able to prohibit the forwarding and copying of the message. In addition, Outlook users will be able to password protect links to folders or files.

The listed innovations began to be introduced on April 5, 2018. Within a few weeks, they must earn in full.

Meanwhile, Microsoft announced that Word, Excel and PowerPoint will have an automatic link checking feature later in 2018. If the link leads to a suspicious site, it will be marked accordingly. Something similar is already working in Outlook.com.^[1]

2017: OneDrive Update

On January 31, 2017, Microsoft announced an upgrade to OneDrive functionality.

Several extensions have been added to the commercial version of OneDrive. You can now use the latest version to sync with SharePoint Online command sites and OneDrive for Business shared folders, providing easy access to all shared documents^[2]

In the web version, the exchange method is simplified, helping to more accurately specify the amount and duration of rights to access documents. OneDrive for IT Administrators with Central Administration and Stand-Alone Mac Client has been simplified and managed.

2014

15GB free

Free data storage: From June 23, 2014, OneDrive can store up to 15GB of data for free instead of 7GB, which was available without payment earlier.

The cloud storage available in OneDrive to Office 365 subscribers will increase to 1TB. The cost of using it will be:

• 199 rubles per month for Office 365 personal
• 249 rubles per month for Office 365 for home (up to 5 users, total 5 terabytes of storage)
• 2,299 rubles for 4 years for Office 365 for students

The cost of paid storage will decrease worldwide and will be: 72 rubles. per month per 100GB (previously 50 GB cost $25 per year, and 200 GB - $100 per year).

OneDrive users who invite friends to use the service can still get up to 5GB of free space (500MB per invitation). In addition, OneDrive provides an additional 3GB after activating the function of automatically uploading photos to the cloud on any device.

Microsoft SkyDrive, which has a Windows 8-style interface, offers one of the largest free disk spaces among major cloud service providers. However, it limits the maximum file size to 300MB via a browser and 2GB via desktop systems that can run Windows and OS X. It also supports iOS, Android and Windows-based phone apps. It includes a "forgot something" feature that allows users to remotely access files on their PC that you forgot to upload to the cloud.

June update

On June 3, 2014, Microsoft announced the release of updated versions of the OneDrive cloud storage service and the business version - OneDrive for Business.

Microsoft has added the ability to automatically archive high-resolution photos to OneDrive for Windows Phone 8.1. According to the company, they will be available on "any devices."

However, Micorsoft announced a deal that could see customers in the US print photos of OneDrive.com directly from local Walgreens stores. The company has added a new photo viewing option to OneDrive for Xbox One. OneDrive for Xbox requires an Xbox Live Gold subscription.

In OneDrive for Business, "discussion in the document" has become available. This opportunity was announced in early 2014.

Discussion in the document - built-in social and network functionality of Yammer in Office applications, makes it easier to work with documents. A user can create new content, such as a Word document, or a PowerPoint presentation using Office Online and save that document to SharePoint Online or OneDrive for Business, along with a discussion of those documents.

Since October 2014, Microsoft cloud storage has not limited the volume of downloaded files, however, only Office 365 subscribers. At first, the new functionality is available to corporate customers - the limit of 1 TB for file storage and backup will be removed for them.

OneDrive for Business: Increased space per user from 25GB to 1TB

Microsoft OneDrive for Business: On April 28, 2014, Microsoft's blog reported:

• Increased storage space in OneDrive for Business from 25GB to 1TB per user;
• OneDrive for Business 1TB storage space per user is enabled as part of your Office 365 ProPlus subscription;
• Added a new migration assistant to Microsoft's OneDrive for Business (The blog post does not specify what Microsoft specifically offers on this front. However, a spokesperson said who is interested should contact their Microsoft managers or partners for details).

SkyDrive changed its name - OneDrive

On February 19, 2014, Microsoft introduced the OneDrive cloud storage service to users.

Known as SkyDrive, Microsoft's revamped cloud service offers a range of new features and optimized apps for Windows Phone, iOS, Android and Xbox.

OneDrive has expanded its functionality: among the new features - automatic saving of photos taken in the "cloud" (for users of the Android platform), video transcoding.

All OneDrive users are provided with 7GB free of charge. If more storage is needed, users can increase it to 50, 100, and 200 GB.

2013

The court requires Microsoft to rename the SkyDrive service

Microsoft lost the trial of the British Sky Broadcasting Group in the summer of 2013, according to The Verge. It was initiated by the latter in order to deprive Microsoft of the rights to the Sky trademark, which, according to the British telecommunications giant, misled subscribers to its video services Sky One, Sky Sports and Sky Movies. As a result, the companies came to a mutual agreement, the condition of which is Microsoft's refusal to appeal the decision made by the High Court of England and Wales, followed by the renaming of the SkyDrive cloud storage, for which the software manufacturer was given additional time.^[3]

Although British Sky disputed the right to use the Sky trademark in Europe, Microsoft decided to rename the cloud service on a global scale. The agreement between the companies also includes financial terms, but neither British Sky nor Microsoft intend to disclose details, since the agreement is confidential.

A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed for the publication information about the dispute settled with British Sky: 'We are pleased that this trademark dispute has been resolved and we will continue to provide hundreds of millions of users with an excellent service for storing files in the cloud'. He also said that the change in the name will not affect the operation of the service, and millions of users of the product should not feel any significant inconvenience.

This is not the first time Microsoft has faced trademark infringement. Last year, it was forced to rename the Metro interface, used operating system Windows in 8, due to claims by the German company Metro AG. One of the largest European retailers threatened to sue Microsoft if it did not abandon the name. Since the summer of 2012, the company has been using the term Modern UI for the name of the'tiled' interface design, and for the application created by it - software 'Windows 8-style applications'.

250 million users

In early May 2013, Microsoft reported 250 million SkyDrive users

2012: Switch to paid fares: only 7GB free

Microsoft first introduced in April 2012 paid tariffs for the SkyDrive cloud storage service, which until then offered 25 GB of free space to all new registered users for free.

Customers who managed to use SkyDrive with 25 GB of free space until April 22, 2012, inclusive, will be able to continue to use the specified volume on the same terms.

New users will only be offered 7 GB of free space for free. This, according to Microsoft estimates, should be enough for 99% of customers (based on statistics on the use of the service). The maximum size of the downloaded file is 2 GB.

Those who lack 7GB are offered three tariff plans:

• for 20 GB it is proposed to give $10 per year,
• for 50 GB - $25 each and
• for 100 GB - $50 each.

Microsoft also released the SkyDrive app for Windows 8, Windows 7 and Windows Vista, which allows you to drag files to cloud storage and to your computer using Windows Explorer. A similar app is released for Mac OS X, which works with Finder.

As a result, SkyDrive is a personal cloud storage with a free starting volume of 7 GB, which is enough for about 20 thousand documents or 7 thousand photos. Access to files is protected by a password and is open to the user himself via the Internet from any device, and to his friends and colleagues by a link leading strictly to certain documents or folders.

• SkyDrive allows you to organize remote collaboration on documents in the usual convenient Microsoft Office formats: thanks to Microsoft Office Web Apps, different users can simultaneously view and edit one document in real time.

• With SkyDrive, you can share not just individual photos, but entire photo archives. And here we are talking not only about viewing photos directly on SkyDrive, but also about posting them quickly and easily on social networks. At the same time, for each photo, the service displays a specific place on the map where it was taken.

• SkyDrive is also the base storage for the Hotmail mail service - which means that in one standard email, the user can send hundreds of photos and documents without "weighing down" the message itself or overloading the mailbox.

• SkyDrive provides a cloud-unique way to access files stored on your computer from the cloud. Now the home computer is always at hand.

• SkyDrive is available for all popular platforms: Windows Phone, Android and iOS, tablets, laptops and desktop computers running Windows and Mac OS.

2011

November Update

The main innovation of the SkyDrive service concerns the ability to share your documents with other users. Cloud storage document sharing features have become more application-specific as most people continue to think in application categories. Before, exchanging documents via SkyDrive was quite inconvenient, but now the situation has changed, and the emphasis is on integration with MS Office applications. For example, when working with a private document through a web browser or Office web applications, the user can easily send the document to colleagues right in the edit window. A whole system of rights and permissions to access individual files is also supported, regardless of their specific format.

Sending documents via SkyDrive further facilitates integration with email contacts and networks within Windows Live. In particular, the information panel in the SkyDrive service now offers a button for sending documents with such options as: Share via Email (send by email), Post to Your Networks (publish on my networks) and Get a Link (get a link to a file). Of course, document sharing tools are available only for those files that their owner has clearly chosen to send - otherwise, all files uploaded to SkyDrive remain closed to other users.

The overall improvement in the SkyDrive service deserves special attention. In particular, a number of popular file operations have been improved, including faster creation of new folders by entering a name, renaming a folder right in the overview window (or by pressing F2), transferring, deleting or uploading multiple files at once, performing right-click actions on documents and photos, and quickly creating Office documents (To do this, just select the icon of the desired Office application and enter the name of the document).

Other innovations in the SkyDrive service include support for uploading files and photos to cloud storage by simply dragging and dropping in browsers with HTML5 File API support (implemented in Internet Explorer 10, Chrome, Firefox and Safari). Support for Internet Explorer 10, presented in the preview version of the Windows 8 Developer Preview operating system, has also been improved.

Among other things, a lot of improvements have been made to create slideshows from photos, as well as to navigate photos and folders, and element captions have become much more visible and easy to read. There is support for APIs for working with touch screens in Internet Explorer 10 and Mobile Safari browsers, which is expressed in more convenient work on devices with touch displays. Finally, the SkyDrive cloud service now supports several new document formats, including PDF and RAW, offers a number of accelerated operations in the file overview window (download, delete, copy, move, etc.), faster login, as well as increased speed of viewing and editing Office documents.

June update

On June 20, 2011, a new version of SkyDrive was launched, which took into account many of the wishes of users. This is only the first in a series of updates that will be implemented on the service over the next year. Current SkyDrive updates include:

• increased speed of execution of main tasks and scenarios;
• optimized interface - improved information panel and navigation system;
• added the ability to quickly access the main functions of SkyDrive from the Windows 7 taskbar (just pin the site to the Windows 7 taskbar using Internet Explorer 9);
• the possible maximum size of an individual file has been increased to 100 MB;
• the ad is disabled.

A number of changes to SkyDrive are worth noting.

First, the speed of various tasks and scripts has significantly increased, both through more active use of DOM and caching in the browser, and due to the ability to use hardware acceleration when playing video and displaying graphics. So, the new version of SkyDrive uses the capabilities of HTML5 to play video in.h264. Also, with Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 9, the SkyDrive icon can be pinned in the taskbar for quick access to personal cloud storage and popular tasks - creating Word, Excel and PowerPoint office documents.

Secondly, the interface and navigation system in SkyDrive have become much more convenient, and working with files and documents is more intuitive. The design and appearance of the storage now resemble the file system familiar to users in Windows and Mac OS, as well as the world's most popular mail service Hotmail. All items in the vault are grouped into certain categories: photos, documents, files of the Windows Live group service. Therefore, it will not be difficult to quickly find the desired document, photo or video file. In addition, the developers removed all advertising banners from the storage area, thereby freeing up space for useful information about user files, their properties, history, etc.

In conclusion, one cannot but say that SkyDrive has become even more beautiful, as befits a modern web space. Thanks to the new mechanism for viewing images in the updated storage, all photos are lined up in the order in which they were loaded, in the form of sketches, which allows you to immediately see and find the desired frame. In addition, when opening, the photo automatically adjusts to the size of the screen - thanks to this, the pictures are very convenient and pleasant to view regardless of the type of device from which the user entered the storage.

These are just the first changes to affect SkyDrive cloud storage. As the Internet evolves, user mobility increases, and the need for communication and collaboration through web channels increases, cloud technologies will improve and change, and SkyDrive will be no exception.

You can evaluate the capabilities of free online storage for sharing Microsoft Office documents and photos now. Just go to the www.skydrive.com, use your Windows Live ID (MSN, Hotmail, Xbox LIVE) account, or get a new ID for free that opens up access to the world of Microsoft online services.

2007: Launch of SkyDrive cloud service: 25GB for free to everyone

Windows Live SkyDrive (originally Windows Live Folders) is a cloud-based Internet file storage service with file sharing functions created in August 2007 and managed by Microsoft.

SkyDrive allows you to store up to 25 GB of information in an ordered form using standard folders. Images are previewed as thumbnails and can be viewed as slides. For all folders and files, you can determine the level of access - from exclusively personal to public. Using the service, you can exchange files up to 50 MB in size.

SkyDrive is integrated with Microsoft Office. You can save Excel, OneNote, PowerPoint, and Word files directly from the app to Windows Live SkyDrive. In addition, SkyDrive is integrated with Microsoft Office Web Apps, which allows you to create documents online.

Some observers suggest that in the future Microsoft may combine its related developments - Live SkyDrive, Live Mesh and Live Sync into one product that will allow you to synchronize files both in the cloud and through a peer-to-peer mechanism using one service.

Competitors

Notes