Why am I unable to add shortcut to OneDrive?

OneDrive shortcuts, introduced in 2020, serve as a convenient method for users to create links to folders that they frequently access within OneDrive for Business. By utilizing shortcuts, users can streamline their access to important content and simplify their file organization within OneDrive for Business.

You may encounter OneDrive not syncing issues when you use OneDrive shortcuts, like "OneDrive unable to sync shortcut because it conflicts". The reason may be the interaction between OneDrive shortcuts and SharePoint Online folders as the sync client tries to reconcile the changes. The solutions are simple, so keep reading!

5 ways to fix "OneDrive unable to sync shortcut because it conflicts"

If you're encountering the error message "OneDrive unable to sync shortcut because it conflicts," it means that OneDrive is having trouble syncing a shortcut file due to a conflict with another file or folder in your OneDrive storage. To resolve the issue, you can try the following ways:

Way 1. Unsync conflicting OneDrive folders

To fix error "unable to sync shortcut" on OneDrive, unsyncing conflicting folders can be an effective way. Here is what to do:

Step 1. Press Windows + R to open Run > input OneDrive and click OK.

Step 2. Click the OneDrive icon on the taskbar > open the error message > hit Unsync conflicting folder and then you can sync your OneDrive again.

You should notice that selecting the "Unsync conflicting folder" option can lead to unintended consequences. Specifically, it halts the sync process of the entire SharePoint Document Library, potentially resulting in data loss and disruptions to ongoing work. To avoid unintentional data loss and disruptions, it's advisable to carefully review the specific conflict details and choose alternative solutions below to address the conflict.

Way 2. Remove the shortcut in File Explorer

OneDrive unable to sync shortcuts typically occurs when you have shortcuts to two separate folders. One of these folders is subsequently moved into the other. To resolve the issue of unintended synchronization conflicts and maintain proper folder structure in OneDrive, you can follow these steps to remove the shortcut in File Explorer:

Step 1. Open File Explorer by searching it on the taskbar.

Step 2. Locate the subfolder that was moved into the parent folder within your OneDrive.

Step 3. Right-click on the subfolder, from the context menu that appears, choose the option labeled Remove shortcut. Please note that this action will remove the shortcut only and will not delete the folder or its contents.

Way 3. Recreate the shortcut via OneDrive website

You can create a new shortcut to fix OneDrive sync conflicts. Read the following guide:

Step 1. Open your web browser and go to the OneDrive website.

Step 2. Sign in with your account with your Microsoft account.

Step 3. Delete the shortcut by right-clicking it and choosing Delete from the context menu, and remove the deleted shortcut from the OneDrive Recycle Bin.

Step 4. Locate and open the folder where you want to create a shortcut > right-click on it > select Add shortcut to My files from the context menu that appears and then try to sync again.

Way 4. Clear OneDrive app cache

If you're using the OneDrive desktop app on your computer and your OneDrive can't sync shortcut, you can try to clean the OneDrive cache. To clean the cache on your desktop app, you need to reset OneDrive and then restart it. Here's how to do it:

Step 1. Close the OneDrive app.

Step 2. Press Win + R to open the Run.

Step 3. Type %localappdata%\Microsoft\OneDrive\onedrive.exe /reset and click OK > restart the OneDrive app.

Way 5. Check for special characters of file or folder name

Ensure that the file or folder names do not contain any special characters or symbols that might cause conflicts. You have to avoid characters like ", *, :, <, >, ?, / \, |.

A convenient way to avoid syncing issues within OneDrive

If you want to avoid syncing issues when you use OneDrive or you want to sync files to OneDrive without downloading the OneDrive desktop app, you can choose to use a third-party tool, like CBackup, a free cloud backup and sync service. You can take a look at its several advantages below before deciding to use the tool.

It allows you to sync or backup multiple files or folders, even the whole computer to OneDrive with one click. 

It supports you in syncing any folders to clouds for free, like OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, and so on.

It has no file name/size limitations. With its unique function file filter, you can sync or backup files that you need.

It can help you to get unlimited OneDrive storage space for free by combining cloud storage of multiple or unlimited OneDrive accounts.

If you need its help to sync your data to OneDrive, now read the following simple steps:

Step 1. Download and install the CBackup desktop app and then sign up.

Step 2. Sign in with your account > click Storage > choose OneDrive > tap Authorize Now. Then sign in to your OneDrive account to make CBackup access your cloud storage.

Step 3. Hit Sync on the left side > select Sync PC to Public Cloud.

Step 4. Choose files or folders you want to sync to OneDrive > select a OneDrive folder as the destination > press Start Sync to make CBackup to sync files to OneDrive.

▣ Tip: You can set OneDrive schedule sync with Scheduler of CBackup in different modes, like one-time only, daily, weekly, or monthly mode. You can hit Settings before starting the sync task and choose Scheduler > tick Set a Sync schedule for automated Sync and choose the time you need to get it.

Conclusion

This post provides 5 ways to solve "OneDrive unable to sync shortcut because it conflicts". Even if the OneDrive shortcut makes things faster, you may still encounter several sync errors that may cause data loss.

So why not choose CBackup, a safe and easy way, to avoid syncing issues within OneDrive? Besides that, CBackup can also help you to backup files to OneDrive as well as backup OneDrive to Google Drive and other clouds with ease. Hope the solutions above may work for you!