OneDrive for Business Known Folder Move troubleshooting for school PCs: fails before setup completes

When you try to redirect the Desktop, Documents, or Pictures folders to OneDrive using Known Folder Move on a school-managed PC, the setup can fail before it finishes. You might see a generic error message, or the wizard closes without moving any folders. This failure usually happens because of Group Policy restrictions, local folder permissions, or conflicts with existing folder redirection set by the school’s IT department. This article explains the specific causes of Known Folder Move failures on school PCs and provides step-by-step fixes to complete the setup.

Why Known Folder Move Fails Before Setup Completes on School PCs

School PCs are typically managed with strict Group Policies that limit user modifications to system folders. Known Folder Move requires OneDrive to take ownership of the user’s Desktop, Documents, and Pictures folders. If a Group Policy blocks folder redirection or prevents OneDrive from modifying these paths, the setup fails immediately.

Another common cause is that the school’s IT department has already applied a different folder redirection policy, such as redirecting Documents to a network share. OneDrive will refuse to move a folder that is already redirected by a Group Policy, because doing so would break the policy and cause sync conflicts.

Local folder permission corruption can also stop the move. If the folder’s security descriptor has been altered by a previous cleanup script or a user profile reset, OneDrive may not be able to read or modify the folder’s location property. The setup wizard checks these permissions early and aborts if they do not match expected values.

Steps to Complete Known Folder Move on a School PC

Follow these steps in order. Stop after each step and test the Known Folder Move wizard again.

Check and Override Group Policy Settings

1. Open the Local Group Policy Editor
   Press Windows + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter. If this tool opens, continue. If it does not open, the PC may be domain-joined and policies are applied from the server. In that case, skip to the registry method.
2. Navigate to the Known Folder Move policy
   Go to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > OneDrive. Look for the setting named Prevent Known Folder Move. Double-click it.
3. Disable the policy
   If the policy is set to Enabled, change it to Disabled or Not Configured. Click OK.
4. Open the Command Prompt as administrator
   Press Windows + X and select Terminal (Admin). Run the command gpupdate /force to apply the change immediately.
5. Restart OneDrive
   Right-click the OneDrive icon in the system tray and select Close OneDrive. Open OneDrive from the Start menu. Try Known Folder Move again from Settings > Sync and backup > Manage backup.

Use Registry Settings to Override Domain Group Policy

If the PC is domain-joined and you cannot change the local GPO, you can override the policy with a registry key. This requires local administrator rights.

1. Open Registry Editor
   Press Windows + R, type regedit, and press Enter.
2. Navigate to the OneDrive policies key
   Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\OneDrive. If the OneDrive key does not exist, right-click the Microsoft key, select New > Key, and name it OneDrive.
3. Create the KFMOptInWithWam DWORD
   Right-click in the right pane, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value, and name it KFMOptInWithWam. Set its value to 1. This bypasses the silent opt-in check that often fails on school PCs.
4. Create the DisableKFM DWORD
   Create another DWORD named DisableKFM and set its value to 0. This overrides the domain policy that blocks Known Folder Move.
5. Restart the PC
   Close Registry Editor and restart the computer. After reboot, open OneDrive and try Known Folder Move again.

Reset Local Folder Permissions

1. Open File Explorer
   Press Windows + E. Navigate to C:\Users\YourUsername.
2. Check the Documents folder
   Right-click the Documents folder and select Properties. Go to the Security tab. Click Advanced.
3. Reset permissions to defaults
   In the Advanced Security Settings window, click Disable inheritance. Choose Convert inherited permissions into explicit permissions. Then click Add, select a principal, type SYSTEM, and give it Full control. Do the same for YourUsername (the current user). Click OK.
4. Repeat for Desktop and Pictures
   Apply the same permission reset to the Desktop and Pictures folders.
5. Try Known Folder Move again
   Open OneDrive Settings > Sync and backup > Manage backup. Click Start backup.

If Known Folder Move Still Fails After the Main Fix

OneDrive Shows ‘Folder is already being redirected by Group Policy’

This error means the school’s Group Policy has redirected the folder to a network location. You cannot move it to OneDrive without changing the policy. Ask the IT department to remove the folder redirection policy for your user account. Alternatively, you can temporarily disable the policy by running rsop.msc to see which GPO is applying the redirection, then request an exception.

OneDrive Setup Wizard Closes Without Any Error Message

This silent failure often happens when the OneDrive client version is outdated on the school PC. Check the version by right-clicking the OneDrive icon in the system tray and selecting Settings > About. The version should be 22.022 or newer. If it is older, download the latest OneDrive sync client from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/onedrive/download. Install the update and restart the PC.

Known Folder Move Fails on a Shared or Lab PC

School lab PCs often have mandatory user profiles that reset after each logoff. Known Folder Move is not designed for mandatory profiles. The move will fail because the profile’s folder paths are not persistent. The only workaround is to use the OneDrive web interface to upload files manually, or ask the IT department to provision OneDrive sync for each user with a roaming profile.

Item	Local Group Policy Edit	Registry Override
Admin rights required	Yes	Yes
Works on domain-joined PCs	Only if local policy is not overwritten by domain policy	Yes, overrides domain policy
Permanent fix	Yes, until next policy refresh	Yes, until registry key is removed
Risk of breaking other policies	Low	Medium — may conflict with future updates
Requires IT department approval	Recommended	Recommended

You can now complete Known Folder Move on a school PC by checking Group Policies, adjusting registry keys, and resetting folder permissions. If the setup still fails, check the OneDrive client version and request IT help to remove folder redirection policies. For lab PCs with mandatory profiles, Known Folder Move will not work; use the OneDrive web interface instead as a reliable alternative.