OneDrive for Business
Sync Client for Mac
User Guide
Contents
OneDrive for Mac OS X ....................................................2
Set up your OneDrive Sync Client account .................2
Installation .............................................................................. 2
Usage ....................................................................................5
Finder Integration ................................................................ 5
Troubleshooting sync problems on a Mac .................6
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OneDrive for Mac OS X
You can access and work with your OneDrive document library from a local folder on your computer, even
when you are offline. Before you can do this, you'll need to download, install, and configure the OneDrive
client software using the following instructions.
Set up your OneDrive Sync Client account
You will need:
 OS X 10.9 (Maverick) or later
 Your Apple ID, to log in to the App Store

If you already have OneDrive installed, ensure it is v17.3.6378.0329 or later (find the version listed in
the OneDrive Preferences> About). Use the App Store to update if necessary.
Installation
1.
Navigate to OneDrive in the Mac App Store and down load the OneDrive app (ensure you do not
download the app “OneDrive for Business”, which is an old version).
2. Install the OneDrive app and then open it from the Applications folder.
3. In the Set-up window, enter your full email address. Click the Sign In button.
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4. You will be presented first with the O365 Sign In page; when you click into the password field you
will be redirected to the login for OneDrive for the University of St Andrews.
5. Enter your password and click Sign In.
6. Select Choose OneDrive Folder Location and choose the location for your OneDrive file folder.
The default is at the top level of your home directory, but you can change it a preferred location.
Click Choose this location.
This shows the location set to
“Desktop”
7. Click Next to proceed
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8. Choose which folder(s) to sync.
Think carefully before checking the All files and folders on my OneDrive option: how much
free space have you got on your local hard drive (you could end up needing 1TB)? Trying to sync
from the Cloud without enough space on your local drive has been known to cause problems.
9. After selecting the required option, click Next.
10. Tick the box to Open OneDrive at login.
11. Installation and configuration is now complete.
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Usage
When running, the OneDrive client is displayed in the status
menu bar at the top right corner of the screen.
Clicking the cloud icon allows easy access to the following:

Summary of the syncing status



Opening the OneDrive folder on your machine
OneDrive Preferences, where you can Manage Storage or Unlink your account from syncing
Manage which folders to sync

Quit OneDrive
The OneDrive folder has a special icon in Finder.
You can access files, drag and drop and otherwise use this folder as you would any
other folder on your Mac. Any changes will then sync to your Cloud storage for access
from any other internet enabled device.
Finder Integration
OneDrive has the ability in Finder to show the sync status of the files in your sync folder denoted by a
range of icons.
To enable this:
1. Open System Preferences and choose Extensions.
2. Choose Finder in the list on the left and tick to enable OneDrive Finder Integration.
When Finder integration is enabled, the sync status is shown in the One Drive folder in the Finder:



A green tick on a file or folder means it is successfully synced
A blue circular arrow means it is currently being synced
A red cross indicates a folder or file that is out of sync
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In this example, the sync icons seen at the bottom corner of the files/folders indicate all have synchronised
successfully into the cloud except the folder Catch-up which shows as currently in the process of syncing.
Troubleshooting sync problems on a Mac
If the sync issue is with a particular file or folder, the first thing to check is if there are any invalid characters
used in the naming. See the following link:
Restrictions and limitations when you sync
For more general issues with syncing, see the following link:
Fix OneDrive sync problems
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