Summary: OneDrive is a useful home for an employee’s individual working files. SharePoint is generally the better home for documents a team needs to own and use together. A clear storage rule, sensible permissions and a tested backup plan help keep business information accessible when people or devices change.
Your team can find a document today. Could they still find and open it if the person who created it left tomorrow?
That question matters more than which app someone happens to have open. A shared client folder can become difficult to manage when its only home is one employee’s OneDrive, a laptop desktop or a collection of emailed attachments.
For businesses using Microsoft 365, OneDrive and SharePoint serve different purposes. Understanding the difference helps you organise files around the people who need them.
OneDrive: an individual workspace
OneDrive for work or school is linked to an individual’s account within your organisation. It is suitable for working drafts, preparation and documents that do not yet need a permanent team home.
Files are generally private to that user until they are shared, although authorised administrators can obtain access through administrative processes. “Private to the user” does not mean the employee personally owns the business’s information.
Sharing a OneDrive file with colleagues is useful for collaboration. The concern is making one person’s account the long-term home for documents the whole business depends on.
SharePoint: a shared business workspace
SharePoint document libraries provide a home for team, department and project files. Access can be managed through appropriate groups and permissions, rather than relying on a particular employee to share each document.
Examples include client working folders, approved templates, procedures and project documents. Sensitive information, such as HR or financial records, should have its own restricted access rather than being placed in a folder everyone can open.
A SharePoint location makes continuity easier when employees change. It still needs named people responsible for its structure, permissions and ongoing maintenance.
Teams uses both, depending on where you upload
- Files uploaded to a Teams channel are stored in SharePoint.
- Files uploaded to a one-to-one or group chat are stored in the sender’s OneDrive and shared with the conversation participants.
For ongoing team work, use an appropriate channel or SharePoint library. Sending a file through a chat does not automatically give it a permanent shared business home.
A simple rule for deciding where files belong
- My working draft: OneDrive can be appropriate.
- A document the team needs to maintain: SharePoint or the relevant Teams channel.
- Confidential records: a location with deliberately restricted permissions.
- The only copy of important work: check its storage and backup arrangements immediately.
For example, someone can prepare a proposal in OneDrive. When it becomes part of an active client project, move the agreed working version into the project’s shared library and confirm the team can access it.
Plan the file handover before deleting an account
An employee leaving does not automatically delete their OneDrive. What happens next depends on the offboarding actions and your Microsoft 365 settings.
When a user account is deleted, the default OneDrive retention period is 30 days. Administrators can configure a longer period, and retention policies or holds can affect the process. Removing a licence or blocking sign-in is a different action from deleting the account.
Do not build your handover process around the assumption that someone will recover everything later. Before deleting an account, identify business-critical files, arrange authorised access, move shared work into the correct library and check the links and permissions people rely on.
Cloud sync is not a complete backup strategy
OneDrive and SharePoint offer version history and recovery features that can help after mistakes or unwanted changes. These protections have limits; recovery depends on what happened, what remains available and your configuration.
Sync can also carry deletions or damaged files between devices and the cloud. For important information, decide what must be backed up, how long copies should be retained and how a restore will be tested.
A desktop folder may already be protected through OneDrive folder backup or a separate backup service. Check the actual setup instead of assuming every local file is unprotected, or that every cloud file is fully backed up.
Five checks for your business
- Pick a shared client or project folder. Confirm whether it lives in SharePoint, an individual’s OneDrive or only on a device.
- Test access. Ask another authorised team member to open it using their own account.
- Review permissions. Check who can view, edit and share the documents.
- Check offboarding. Make file handover part of the process before account deletion.
- Verify recovery. Confirm backup coverage and test restoring a representative file.
At NEX GEN IT Solutions, our recommendation is to agree on the file structure and access rules before moving documents. Start with one team or project, check that it works, then apply the same approach elsewhere.
Frequently asked questions
Can my business use both OneDrive and SharePoint?
Yes. Use OneDrive for individual working files and SharePoint for shared business documents. Clear rules help the two work together.
Does storing a file in Teams always mean it is in SharePoint?
No. Channel uploads are stored in SharePoint; chat uploads are stored in the sender’s OneDrive.
Will files disappear as soon as an employee leaves?
No. Account deletion, licence changes and retention settings affect what happens. Arrange a file handover as part of offboarding instead of waiting for a retention deadline.
Does SharePoint give everyone access to everything?
No. Access depends on the site, library, folder and sharing permissions. Sensitive information needs an appropriate restricted location.
Do we still need to review backup protection?
Yes. Storage, sync, retention and backup serve different purposes. Check that your recovery arrangements meet the business’s needs.
Need help organising your Microsoft 365 files?
NEX GEN IT Solutions can help your business review OneDrive and SharePoint storage, permissions, employee handovers and Microsoft 365 backup requirements.
Call 087 135 4350 or email help@nexgenit.co.za to discuss your setup.
Sources and further reading
- Microsoft: Set up OneDrive file storage and sharing
- Microsoft: File storage in Teams
- Microsoft: OneDrive retention and deletion
- Microsoft: Restore your OneDrive
Adapted from an article used with permission from The Technology Press.