Fix: OneDrive for Android not uploading photos

Since you get Google Drive by default with a Google account, there’s a little necessity for casual users to use Microsoft OneDrive on their Android handset. That doesn’t mean that there are no advantages. Especially if you’re using a Windows PC too and want to sync files and photos between the two in a seamless manner. But there seems to be a problem with the Camera Roll photos. Apparently, OneDrive for Android is not uploading photos for some users.

We made sure to shed some light on this problem and help you resolve it. The solutions we provided are below.

Table of contents:

1. Clear local data
2. Check the permissions for OneDrive
3. Disable Galery Sync
4. Rename the Camera Roll folder
5. Reinstall the app

Why is my upload failing on OneDrive?

Solution 1 – Clear local data

Let’s start with the simplest solution. As you’re already well aware, all apps store some portions of data on the local storage. Some of them take it to another level and store hundreds of megabytes. Others, like OneDrive, will take up to 200 MB, to speed up the loading. But, a pilled-up cache can be a reason for numerous issues. After a while, it does just a contrary. It slows down the app execution and can affect the overall performance.

So, the first step should be clearing the locally-stored data and moving from there. Here’s how to clear the cached data from OneDrive:

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Apps & notifications.
3. Choose All apps.
4. Open OneDrive.
5. Select Storage.
6. Clear all data.
7. Restart your device, sign in when prompted, and check for improvements.

If OneDrive for Android is still not uploading photos, try the next step.

Solution 2 – Check the permissions for OneDrive

Like any other app, OneDrive requires a certain level of access to your device. After Android Marshmallow, these permissions prompts are appearing as you’re using the app. Only when permission is strictly required for a certain operation, the pop-up will appear and you can choose to accept it or not. And there’s a chance you’ve skipped on the Storage or Camera permissions.

Here’s how to check them out and enable both, respectively:

1. Open Settings.
2. Choose Apps & notifications.
3. Select All apps.
4. Locate and open OneDrive.
5. Tap Permissions.
6. Allow OneDrive to access Camera and Storage.

Solution 3 – Disable Galery Sync

Samsung’s and Microsoft’s cooperation positioned OneDrive as the first-choice Gallery backup cloud service. It comes with two options. The first one is a traditional backup available on all other Android devices and the second one is Gallery Sync that automatically syncs your photos to OneDrive but with a caveat. If you delete photos from internal storage, they’ll be deleted from OneDrive, as well.

To use OneDrive in a regular way, you’ll need to unlink your Samsung Account and Microsoft Account (OneDrive account). Some Samsung users who had a hard time uploading photos to OneDrive addressed the problem by disabling Galery Sync and removing the link between the aforementioned accounts. It seems that this kickstart the backup process.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap on your Profile at the top.
3. Open Linked accounts.
4. Unlink the Microsoft Account.
5. On your Samsung, open Gallery.
6. Tap on the hamburger menu and open Settings.
7. Toggle Off the Sync with OneDrive.
8. Clear Data from OneDrive again (check the first solution) and sign in.
9. Allow Photo Backup and check for improvements.

Solution 4 – Rename the Camera Roll folder

Another viable solution is to start from scratch. Re-configure the app completely and change the Camera Roll folder. We don’t want to delete it, of course. But, if you’ve collected a lot of photos from your camera, chances are that caching these photos with every new sync invokes a halt. That’s why the best way to deal with it is to simply change the folder and start syncing your camera-taken photos to a new Camera Roll folder.

Here’s what you need to do, step-by-step:

1. Open OneDrive.
2. Select the Camera Roll folder and rename it.
3. This will force OneDrive to create another Camera Roll folder.

If this doesn’t help and the OneDrive for Android is still not uploading photos, check the final solution below.

Solution 5 – Reinstall the app

Finally, if none of the aforementioned steps get you going and the photos still won’t sync, you can always try and reinstall the app. In addition, you should remove the OneDrive-assigned account and set everything up again. After that, you should be able to sync photos to OneDrive without any further issues.

This should be a simple task to follow through, so check the steps below:

1. Uninstall OneDrive or uninstall its updates. Navigate to Settings > Apps > All apps > OneDrive and tap on the 3-dots icon. Select Uninstall Updates.
2. After that, open Settings.
3. Choose User & accounts.
4. Remove the OneDrive account.
5. Re-install OneDrive from Play Store and sign in again.

With that, we can conclude this article. If, by chance, you know any alternative solution we overlooked or have additional issues, feel free to share your two cents in the comments section below or reach us on Facebook and Twitter.

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in September 2018. We made sure to revamp it for freshness and accuracy.