Preserve Shared OneDrive Files Created by Someone Who Has Left the College

Questions

• How do I preserve OneDrive files created by someone who has left the college?
• A colleague left Bowdoin. How do I keep the OneDrive files they shared with our team?
• Will files shared with me be deleted when the owner's account is removed?
• How do I save files that were shared with me in OneDrive before they are lost?
• How do I take over ownership of shared OneDrive files from a departed employee?
• How do I find, download, and re-share files that were shared with me in OneDrive?

Environment

This article applies to Bowdoin faculty and staff who have had OneDrive files shared with them by a person who has since left the college. When someone leaves, their Microsoft 365 account is disabled and later deleted. Any files they created and stored in OneDrive are deleted as part of this process, even if those documents were shared with others. To preserve institutional knowledge, it is important that these shared files be retained. The process involves one of the people the documents were shared with downloading the shared files, then re-uploading them to their own OneDrive and sharing them back out to the team.

Resolution

Follow these steps to see which files have been shared with you in OneDrive and preserve them in your own account.

1. Log in to login.bowdoin.edu.
2. Select the Microsoft 365 portal tile.
3. In the new window, select the OneDrive icon.
4. In the window that opens, select Shared.
5. The default view should be Shared with you, meaning documents that others have created and then shared with you via OneDrive. The owner of each document is shown to the right of the file name.
6. To download a file, select it so it is highlighted, then right-click and choose Download. If you do not have the option to download a folder, open the folder and download its contents instead.
7. Once the file has been downloaded, select My files in OneDrive to return to your OneDrive home, then drag the downloaded file into the web browser where you have OneDrive > My files open. The file will be added to the list of files, and you will see a notification of the upload.
8. Once the files have been uploaded to your OneDrive, select one to highlight it, then select the Share button above. Enter the email address of the people or group you want to share with and select Send. They will receive an email letting them know the file has been shared. Once they accept the share, the file will appear in the Shared section of their OneDrive.

Additional Help

If you need further assistance, you have several options:

• Bowdoin Bot: Chat with Bowdoin Bot directly from any KB page for instant answers.
• Phone: Call the Bowdoin College Service Desk at (207) 725-3030.
• In person: Visit the Tech Hub in Smith Union during business hours.
• Submit a ticket: Request assistance through the Service Catalog.