Microsoft has announced that it will stop pushing updates for OneDrive’s desktop app on older Windows versions from January 1, 2022. While the app will remain usable for some time, users on Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 have until March 1, 2022, before their personal files stop syncing to the cloud.
The consumer/personal version of Microsoft’s OneDrive cloud service is reaching end of support for Windows 7, 8 and 8.1 on January 1, 2022. It could become yet another reason for users to upgrade to Microsoft’s latest OS, or Windows 10 for that matter, if they want all the capabilities and convenience of OneDrive’s desktop app.
Microsoft revealed the development in a blog post, saying that this decision will allow the company to focus on new technologies and operating systems while giving users an up-to-date and secure OneDrive experience. As a result, updates for the desktop app will no longer be pushed to older Windows versions.
Microsoft advises affected users to upgrade to Windows 10 or Windows 11; however, if their systems aren’t supported, or they’re unwilling to make the jump, they’ll need to manually upload and access files on OneDrive for web. The latter will also become their sole destination for file uploading and collaboration once syncing on the desktop app stops on March 1, 2022.
It’s important to note that the aforementioned changes and deadlines are for personal OneDrive users only. For OneDrive business users on older Windows versions, Microsoft notes that app support will be aligned with their OS support lifecycle, starting January 1, 2022. This means the app will continue to be supported until January 2023 for Windows 7 and 8.1 users, while clients on Windows 8 are out of luck as Microsoft ended support for the OS in January 2016.
News Source: TechSpot
