As businesses increasingly adopt cloud solutions, effective file management becomes more important than ever. Microsoft’s OneDrive Known Folder Move (KFM) is a smart way to simplify file storage, improve data security, and make collaboration a breeze. When combined with Microsoft Intune, KFM turns file management across devices into an effortless process.
What is OneDrive Known Folder Move?
OneDrive KFM lets users automatically redirect Windows known folders—like Desktop, Documents, and Pictures—to OneDrive. This means critical files are always backed up to the cloud and can be accessed from any device. By moving away from local storage, KFM minimizes risks tied to hardware failure or loss.
Why Use KFM with Intune?
Pairing KFM with Intune—Microsoft’s endpoint management tool—makes life easier for both IT teams and employees. IT admins can set up and manage KFM policies from one central location, ensuring files are secure, accessible, and easy to manage. Employees get the benefit of seamless file access across devices without the hassle of manually moving data. It’s a win-win.
Configuring OneDrive KFM via Group Policy - The Official Setup
First, let’s make sure we have the updated OneDrive Administrative Templates, we can find them on any pc where the OneDrive client is installed in one of the following locations depending on the type of installation:
%localappdata%\Microsoft\OneDrive\<BuildNumber>\adm\
%programfiles%\Microsoft OneDrive\<BuildNumber>\adm\
The items we are interested in, along with the recommended setup, are these:
Prompt users to move known folders to OneDrive:
Enabled - Shows a window that prompts users to move their Documents, Pictures, and Desktop folders to OneDrive (If moving the known folders silently doesn’t succeed, users are prompted to correct the error and continue)
Silently move known folders to OneDrive:
Enabled - Redirect and move your users’ Documents, Pictures, and/or Desktop folders to OneDrive without any user interaction
Prevent users from redirecting their known folders to their PC:
Enabled - Forces users to keep their Documents, Pictures, and Desktop folders directed to OneDrive
Prevent users from moving their known folders to OneDrive:
Not configured - This setting doesn’t take effect if you’ve enabled Prompt users to move Windows known folders to OneDrive or Silently move Windows known folders to OneDrive.
Result:
The final user-side result will look like this in the picture where, surprisingly, OneDrive seems to support Video and Music folders redirection as well!
