Transfer Ownership of a File/Folder in OneDrive

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OneDrive has advanced options available to give other users specific permissions and control over files and folders, but there are occasions when files/folders need to be fully transferred to another user. To fully transfer a file into another user's OneDrive account (e.g. you are leaving the university), you must either move the file/folder into a folder owned by that individual, or move the files into a Team site.

If your OneDrive account is deleted (e.g. you leave the university), files that you originally owned will be permanently deleted, even if you shared the file with other users in OneDrive. The files/folders must be manually moved to the new owner's OneDrive account.

It is suggested that Microsoft Teams or the H Drive be used to store collections of files that are critical for a department/committee/group to retain business continuity in the event a team member leaves the university. Once an individual's OneDrive account has been deleted the files are not recoverable.

Note that any files containing sensitive data must be encrypted. Please review this article for more information about managing sensitive data.

To Fully Transfer Ownership of a File/Folder to an Individual

  1. The new owner will need to create and share a new OneDrive folder-
    1. Log in to OneDrive, click New and then click Folder.
    2. Enter a folder name and then click Create.
    3. Share the folder with the original owner.
  2. The original owner must then move the files/folders they would like to transfer ownership of into that new shared folder.
  3. Ask the new owner to remove the original owner's access to the new folder and verify that the files are still stored in their OneDrive as expected. The new owner will need to send out new sharing permissions to anyone else that needs access to the file/folder.

Alternatively, the new owner can download all of the files that were originally shared with them from the original owner to their computer, and then re-upload the files into their OneDrive account. This will eliminate the steps to ask the former owner to move the files.

To Fully Transfer Ownership of a File/Folder to a Microsoft Team

Using the Microsoft Teams application

  1. In Microsoft Teams, navigate to the Team files area that you would like to move the files/folders to.
  2. Drag the files from the OneDrive folder on your computer to the Team folder, or use the Upload button to locate and upload the files.

Using OneDrive on the Web

  1. In OneDrive on the Web, right-click the file/folder and click Move to.
  2. In the Move window, click on the More Places link on the bottom left, and then click on the name of the Team/Shared Library you would like to transfer the files to.
  3. Navigate to the folder you would like to save it to, and click Move Here.
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