OneDrive for Business Known Folder Move creates duplicate folders for Windows 11 rollouts: Fix Guide

When you roll out Windows 11 devices in your organization and enable OneDrive Known Folder Move, users may see duplicate Desktop, Documents, or Pictures folders appear in File Explorer. This happens because the Known Folder Move feature sometimes creates a new redirected folder while leaving the original local folder intact, instead of properly moving its contents. This guide explains why the duplication occurs and provides the exact steps to resolve it for affected users.

Why Known Folder Move Creates Duplicate Folders on Windows 11

The Known Folder Move feature redirects the Desktop, Documents, and Pictures folders from the local user profile to OneDrive. On Windows 11, the feature uses a folder naming convention that includes a GUID, for example “Documents – {GUID}”. When the migration runs during a new device rollout, the feature may create the OneDrive-backed folder but fail to properly remove the original local folder. The local folder remains empty or contains a junction point that points back to the OneDrive folder, causing File Explorer to display two entries with similar names.

The root cause is a timing issue during the initial sync. If the OneDrive client starts syncing before the Known Folder Move policy fully applies, the local folder is created by the Windows default folder creation process. When the policy later redirects the folder, OneDrive creates a second folder with the GUID suffix instead of renaming the existing one. This leaves the user with a local folder named “Documents” and a OneDrive folder named “Documents – {GUID}”.

Another contributing factor is the use of Group Policy or Intune policies that set the Known Folder Move setting to “Silently move Windows known folders to OneDrive” but do not include the parameter to hide the original local folder. Without this parameter, OneDrive leaves the original folder visible and empty.

Steps to Remove Duplicate Folders Caused by Known Folder Move

Follow these steps to identify and remove the duplicate local folder without losing data. Perform these steps on each affected Windows 11 device.

1. Open OneDrive Settings
   Right-click the OneDrive cloud icon in the system tray and select Settings. Go to the Sync and backup tab and click Manage backup. Verify that Desktop, Documents, and Pictures show a backup status of “Backed up” with a green check mark. If any folder shows “Not backed up”, the Known Folder Move did not run completely.
2. Identify the Duplicate Folder
   Open File Explorer and navigate to C:\Users\[YourUsername]. Look for two folders with similar names. For example, you may see both “Documents” and “Documents – {GUID}”. The folder with the GUID suffix is the OneDrive-backed folder. The folder without the GUID is the empty local duplicate.
3. Enable Hidden Items in File Explorer
   In File Explorer, click the View tab on the ribbon, then select Show and check Hidden items. This reveals any hidden system folders or junction points that may be present inside the duplicate folder.
4. Check the Duplicate Folder Contents
   Open the local duplicate folder. If it contains a file named desktop.ini and no other files, it is safe to remove. If it contains user files, those files were not moved to OneDrive. In that case, copy the files to the OneDrive-backed folder manually before deleting the duplicate.
5. Delete the Duplicate Local Folder
   Right-click the duplicate folder and select Delete. Confirm the deletion in the dialog box. If the system does not allow deletion because the folder is in use, restart the computer and try again. Alternatively, open a Command Prompt as administrator and run: rmdir /s /q "C:\Users\[YourUsername]\Documents" — replace the path with the exact duplicate folder name.
6. Verify the OneDrive-Backed Folder
   Open the OneDrive-backed folder with the GUID suffix and confirm that all expected files are present. Right-click the folder, select Properties, and verify the Location tab shows the path under OneDrive, for example C:\Users\[YourUsername]\OneDrive - Contoso\Documents - {GUID}.
7. Ensure Future Rollouts Avoid Duplication
   In your Microsoft 365 admin center, go to OneDrive admin center > Sync > Known Folder Move. Enable the setting Show users a notification after folders have been moved and set Prevent users from redirecting their Windows known folders to their PC to Enabled. This forces the move to complete before the local folder is created.

If Duplicate Folders Persist After the Main Fix

The duplicate folder reappears after deletion

If the duplicate folder returns after you delete it, a Group Policy or Intune policy is recreating it. Check your device management policies. In Intune, navigate to Devices > Configuration profiles > Windows 10 and later > Administrative Templates > OneDrive. Set the policy Silently move Windows known folders to OneDrive to Enabled and ensure the option Hide the Windows known folder move notification is also enabled. This prevents the local folder from being recreated.

OneDrive shows a red X on the duplicate folder

A red X on a folder in OneDrive means the folder is not syncing. If the duplicate folder appears in OneDrive with a red X, the folder was incorrectly added to the sync scope. Right-click the OneDrive icon, select Settings > Account > Choose folders. Uncheck the duplicate folder and click OK. Then delete the duplicate folder from File Explorer as described in the steps above.

Known Folder Move did not run on a new Windows 11 device

If Known Folder Move did not run at all, the OneDrive client may not have applied the policy. Sign out of OneDrive and sign back in. Go to OneDrive Settings > Sync and backup > Manage backup. If the folders show “Not backed up”, click Start backup for each folder. This triggers the move manually. After the move completes, check for duplicate folders and apply the deletion steps if needed.

Known Folder Move Behavior: Local Folder vs OneDrive-Backed Folder

Item	Local Folder (Duplicate)	OneDrive-Backed Folder (GUID suffix)
Description	Original folder created by Windows during user profile setup	Folder redirected to OneDrive with a GUID appended to the name
Location	C:\Users\[Username]\Documents	C:\Users\[Username]\OneDrive – Tenant\Documents – {GUID}
Contents	Empty or contains only desktop.ini	All user files that were moved to OneDrive
Sync status	Not synced	Synced with OneDrive cloud
Action needed	Delete after verifying contents are moved	Keep as the active working folder

The Known Folder Move feature on Windows 11 creates a OneDrive-backed folder with a GUID suffix to avoid naming conflicts. The original local folder remains empty and should be removed manually if the automatic cleanup fails. Use the steps in this guide to safely remove the duplicate and ensure future rollouts apply the policy correctly.