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How to Back Up Files and Settings to OneDrive in Windows 8.1

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Microsoft made Windows 8.1 easier to use. When the company launched the original Windows 8 operating system users reeled from all the changes Microsoft introduced. Now whether everything is easier with the Windows 8.1 update is unclear; however it did succeed in making it easier for users to back up their important data to its OneDrive, (formerly named SkyDrive) cloud storage utility.

Here’s how to back up files and settings to OneDrive in Windows 8.1 and protect your files from any misfortune that might happen to your home or office.

Before beginning, you’ll want to make sure that you have the Windows 8.1 update installed on your Windows 8 device. It’s free and if you don’t have it you can install it from the Windows Store. You’ll need it before using this tutorial. Typically that install take around a half-hour or so.

Go to the Start Screen by pressing the Windows key on your device’s keyboard or by pressing the Windows button underneath your device’s display.

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Open the Charms Bar by placing your mouse cursor in the top-right corner of your device’s display. Users who have a Windows 8.1 device with a touch screen should place their finger on the right edge of their device’s display and slide their finger to the left. Tap or click on the Settings Charm.

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Tap or click on the Change PC Settings button.

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Tap or click on the SkyDrive option. It’s the third menu item from the top.

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Tap or click on Sync Settings.

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If you’re signed in with a Microsoft Account, Windows will automatically sync your Personalization Settings. That means your Start Screen layout, Desktop background and color choices will automatically sync. You can sync your language settings, Wi-Fi networks, passwords and favorites by tapping and clicking on those options too.

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To sync a file to your OneDrive storage, go back to the Start Screen.

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Now open a folder and click on the SkyDrive button in the right side of the window.

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Dragging or dropping any files into this folder will automatically make them available on other devices and upload them automatically to OneDrive. They are also available through the OneDrive website. You can right-click on each file to choose which files are stored on your device and which are saved only in One Drive.

4 Comments

4 Comments

  1. Peter Reisdorf

    06/23/2014 at 5:04 am

    From reading this description and others of backing up to the OneDrive I’m still unclear whether it is a true backup or simply storing files in different place. If it was true backup the up to date copies of the files would be available even if you were offline as they would still be on your laptop or pc. If it is simply about storing the files in the cloud then if you couldn’t access the OneDrive (or if there was a problem with Microsoft’s servers) then you wouldn’t be able to use your files.

  2. Matt

    07/11/2014 at 1:30 pm

    Yeah, I want windows backup t automatically back up my files and store the backup session onto the one drive cloud.

  3. Eliya

    07/22/2014 at 3:14 am

    When you are ready for backup of your work. CloudaAlly will grow your backups of all users like Google Apps domain, Sales-force and other online services.
    Just see this site for online backups.

    Office 365 backup

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