Managing Content

Once you have completed the sync of your SharePoint Document library you will see the files displayed in your File Explorer. The SharePoint Document library will appear on the left with the under the University of South Australia icon as shown here:

The content of the SharePoint library are displayed as below. The default sync status is 'File on-demand' and appears s a blue cloud. This file is available when online and is not yet downloaded to your computer. When you open the file it will be downloaded and will display a different status icon.

The different file status categories are:

To make a file available for when you are offline right click on a file and choose 'always keep on this device' - you need to do this while online as a copy is downloaded to your workstation. You can reverse this setting by selecting 'Free up space' which sets the file back in 'Online only' mode.

To stop syncing your SharePoint library:

1. Right click on your OneDrive cloud icon in the taskbar
2. Click 'Help and settings'
3. Select Settings
4. Click on the Account tab
5. Select 'Stop sync' against the library you wish to stop syncing
6. Click OK
7. A warning will appear - check the details and click 'stop sync' (the online only files will be available online but you will no longer see them listed in the File Explorer view on your workstation)
8. Click OK to close the Settings menu.

For step-by-step instructions (including screenshots) see How do I stop syncing my files or folder?

To choose a particular set of folders from a SharePoint library to sync first follow the steps to sync the SharePoint library.

1. Right click on your OneDrive cloud icon in the taskbar
2. Click 'Help and settings'
3. Select Settings
4. Click on the Account tab
5. Select 'Choose folders'
6. Click OK
7. You will see a list of folders within the library. Choose the folder you wish to sync 
8. Click OK to close the Settings menu.

For step-by-step instructions (including screenshots) see How do I sync a folder within a library?

1. Open File Explorer from your desktop and locate the files you want to upload to your SharePoint site. Leave the window open to one side of your screen.
2. Open a browser and go to your SharePoint site -> open the Document Library that you want to upload the files to -> Move the browser window to the other side of your screen, resize it if necessary to see both windows.
3. In your File Explorer window select the file(s) to be uploaded.
4. Drag the selected files to the main area of the SharePoint site's Document Library. The (+) symbol should appear to show you the files are being copied. Drop the files inside the Document library.
5. The information bar will update you on the status of the upload and confirm when all documents have been uploaded.
6. Documents are now uploaded and available on the SharePoint site.

For step-by-step instructions (including screenshots) see Can I upload multiple files using Drag and Drop?

When you drag and drop files from one SharePoint library to another you will lose the metadata - that is the information attached to the file such as who created the file and when it was created. If you wish to maintain the metadata, you can copy or move files using the method below.

Note: You cannot copy or move the entire library - only the contents of the library.
You will need edit permission on both the source and destination libraries.

1. Open the source document library
2. Select the folder or items you wish to move or copy
3. With the folder or items selected click on the ellipse menu and select Move to or Copy to 
4. A menu will open on the right-hand side of the screen - select the destination site or click on ‘Show more’ if it is not displayed
5. Select the destination site or click on ‘Show more’ if it is not displayed
6. When you have navigated to the required destination click ‘Move here'

The Copy function copies Metadata but not the fields "Created", "Created by", "Modified", "Modified by" as the process creates a new file.

For step-by-step instructions (including screen shots) see How can I move or copy content in SharePoint and maintain metadata?

When you delete files from a document library or list in Microsoft Teams or SharePoint, they aren't instantly erased. Instead, deleted items are temporarily stored in the SharePoint site recycle bin for a certain duration. It's important to note that this recycle bin is different from the Windows recycle bin found on your desktop.

Go to the SharePoint site that the items were deleted from. (In Microsoft Teams, from the Files tab at the top of your channel, select More > Open in SharePoint to get to the site.)

1. Click on the Recycle bin link on the left hand side quick links or click on the cog and select Site Contents
2. When the page has loaded click on the Recycle icon on the top right corner of the page
3. The Recycle bin contains files that are in the first stage of deletion. You can select the files that you wish to recover by hovering to the left of the items or files and selecting the files from the selection field that will appear.
4. Once you have made your selection click on Restore

For step-by-step instructions (including screen shots) see How can I restore files that have been deleted?