Microsoft: Apple Silicon Macs get native OneDrive in 2022

Lots of new sync features are on the way

Microsoft continues to slowly inch its way toward making OneDrive available as a fully native client for M-series Macs, telling us a preview of the client will be available by the end of the year. ARM based Windows devices get previews of some of these features later this year.

OneDrive gets a lot more integrated

When it comes to running natively on Apple Silicon, the company has published a not especially informative chart, which shows instances of OneDrive working on a Mac sucking a little CPU time, as first noted by OnMsft. The rest of the Office suite is already there.

The Office 365 developer announced a bunch of other OneDrive updates earlier on this year, including things iCloud users probably take for granted, such as files on demand and known folder moves, and now says these too will make their official debut in 2022.

Known Folder Move (KFM) is an important improvement. Available next year it will let Mac users keep Desktop, Documents, and Pictures folders protected by syncing them to the cloud with OneDrive.

“This means that people using OneDrive with macOS Monterey can continue using folders they’re familiar with to do their daily work and be assured that their data is backed up and secure,” the company said. I say this will be of great use to those who use a PC at work (there are some left who do) and a Mac or other Apple device at home. Content is automatically synced.

Where did I save this?

Files on demand and better sharing tools

Files On-Demand is another feature that’s currently available to insiders. This works with Monterey and is based on Apple’s new File Provider platform. It lets you add OneDrive to your Locations in the sidebar, and boasts a series of small icons depicting the status of a file?

• Online only – not on your device – these items get a little cloud icon.
• Locally available files show an always available icon.

[Also read: How to open Pages documents on Windows in Word and Office]

That’s much more akin to the iCloud experience, I feel, and will be made available to all users “next year”, said Microsoft.

Quick access is another feature the company plans to being to Mac. This will give you a list of your most visited locations, which should make It easier to find stuff when working on multiple projects.

Beyond the Mac, Microsoft is making it easier to share and control access to shared files and much improved integration with Microsoft Teams, the company said. You can read more about what’s coming to OneDrive here.

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