One way sync using OneDrive

Question

I would like use OneDrive to back up my important files, however I once used a cloud storage and lost some files due to a technical error.

Is there a way to prevent OneDrive from writing and use it only for one directional sync - from my PC to the cloud?

Perhaps some sort of a mount point that would allow only read access?

Answer 1

You could always use a real backup solution, like duplicity. It supports backing up to OneDrive. To accomplish this, it needs python-requests and python-requests-oauthlib.

Just call duplicity like this:

duplicity "/my/folder" "onedrive://path/to/backup"

You will then be prompted (in your browser) to grant duplicity access to all your stuff.

To use duplicity on Windows, you need Cygwin or a similar compatibility layer. It’ll probably work on WSL, too.

Answer 2

OneDrive desktop app is a client to synchronize files between Office 365 and your computer. There is no setting to configure one way sync.

If you don't want some end-users make changes to some documents, you can set file permission or folder permission (Edit or Read) in OneDrive or SharePoint to control it.

Answer 3

In OneDrive, you can restore previous versions of individual files; deleted files are kept in the Recycle bin for 30 days (if there is enough capacity). More details on OneDrive support page.

Also there are many online backup services, which can give you more safety for a few $ per month.