One Drive has Suddenly Changed on iPadOS 18.3!!!

I use MS365/One Drive on my iPad.  The other day, I opened One Drive and must have hit “Photos” bc that is where it went. I never use that option. I didn’t know how to get back to my files!!!!! But, I found the answer - go to the top of the screen and choose “Files”.   Which I did, but now the “template” is totally changed, the controls are at the top of the screen, and they’re different.  


Also, I can no longer drag and drop files/photos from OneDrive to iCloud or vice versa using Split Screen (I used to be able to drag and drop photos or files easily, now I have to go to “Share” and it’s more steps).


And, when I rename a file that template has changed - it’s a small box that is hard to see the file name  or type in and there is no “x” to delete the entire name.


It feels like I accidentally went into OneDrive photos and suddenly everything changed, it did not change the day I updated 18.3. I want the old view/functionality back. How can I get that?  I am on iPadOS 18.3 and OneDrive 16.3.5 thank you!

iPad Pro, iPadOS 18

Posted on Feb 4, 2025 5:02 AM

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Posted on Mar 18, 2025 6:39 PM

The OneDrive app for me has stopped working completely under iPadOS 18.3.2. The app seems very unstable. I tried to access my OneDrive files and the app froze. I deleted and reinstalled the app and it opened to my photos which I was able to see. When I selected “Files” the app froze once again.


I have signed out multiple times, deleted and reinstalled multiple times and still the same issue. I had a programming professor in college that once said, “If engineers built bridges the way that software developers wrote programs, nobody would drive over them!” This is a great example of that.


Can I get my old OneDrive back? I used it every day for my work and now it is completely broken!

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Mar 18, 2025 6:39 PM in response to donnafromme

The OneDrive app for me has stopped working completely under iPadOS 18.3.2. The app seems very unstable. I tried to access my OneDrive files and the app froze. I deleted and reinstalled the app and it opened to my photos which I was able to see. When I selected “Files” the app froze once again.


I have signed out multiple times, deleted and reinstalled multiple times and still the same issue. I had a programming professor in college that once said, “If engineers built bridges the way that software developers wrote programs, nobody would drive over them!” This is a great example of that.


Can I get my old OneDrive back? I used it every day for my work and now it is completely broken!

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Mar 29, 2025 10:35 AM in response to donnafromme

Guys I found the solution (!). Go to settings, apps, Onedrive, and click Clear Account Settings.

Then open the Onedrive app and it will prompt you to sign in. Then, quit it and uninstall it. Then restart your ipad and install it again. Then it will work 100%.

(I haven’t posted on forums for over 5 years lol)

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Feb 10, 2025 5:04 PM in response to Err0xx


Err0xx, please post back here if you get a response from MS. I’d like to know what they say.  

I posted on the Microsoft community and the expert there said this:  I would like to explain that Apple may optimize the interface of apps during each iPadOS system update, especially regarding the system's overall design style and functionality layout. This is likely the result of iPadOS version updates enhancing app compatibility and visual optimization. While Microsoft regularly updates the OneDrive app and may introduce new features or improvements, based on our previous testing, we observed that the interface changed without any updates to the OneDrive version. Therefore, this change is more likely related to the optimizations and interface adjustments made by iPadOS, rather than a modification by Microsoft.


Did you uninstall and reinstall OneDrive?  What do you mean by the “old visual version”?  I don’t understand what you mean by “Something in the visual update”, What is the “visual update”?  


It is extremely frustrating to have something working perfectly fine, like OneDrive was and now have it totally messed up!  I have not seen anything about this online, so I’m encouraged to find I’m not the only one with this problem!  I do not understand why it changed! I hope they change it back. I don’t know if it is Apple or MS that made the change!!!! Donna

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Feb 10, 2025 5:24 PM in response to donnafromme

I am in that thread that you quoted from on Microsoft as WLDside. Feel free to follow along.


OneDrive had a visual update to the current version on iPad OS 18.3 - meaning the visuals changed, it’s UI design. Uninstall OneDrive and reinstall it from the App Store. It will briefly revert to the way it used to look before the visual update and when it looks the way it used to, drag-and-drop functionally works the way it used to. The second the OneDrive visuals update (when you close the app and re-open it after a OneDrive reinstall) the drag-and-drop functionality will cease working again.


Something that occurs from when OneDrive looks like it used to and when it looks like the up-to-date version of OneDrive on iPadOS 18.3 breaks drag-and-drop. So whoever is responsible for that visual change is likely breaking functionality and it should fall on the app developer to fix it.

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Mar 19, 2025 8:50 AM in response to bhcfp

There same thing just happened to me yesterday.

I reinstalled the OneDrive app, soft reset my iPad, even did a complete erase and reinstall on my iPad.

It still doesn't work. The screen just freezes when I try to access the files.


I am kind of glad that I am not the only one having this problem. 😅

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Feb 4, 2025 6:06 AM in response to donnafromme

Are dragging/dropping to the OneDrive App itself - or just using the Files App? Using just the Files App may be your easiest option.


If you haven't done so already, make OneDrive visible within the Files App. If necessary, expose the Files sidebar at top-left of the Files App window - then select the options menu (...) button - and enable OneDrive in the list of available locations.





Finally, tap the Done button.


Now that you have enabled OneDrive in the locations list, you can simply use the Files App - or should you choose to do so, open two Files App windows in Split View - to move files to and from OneDrive.

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Feb 4, 2025 7:01 AM in response to LotusPilot

This is what I was doing: Open OneDrive files. Tap the 3 bars at the top of the iPad screen – Split View. One Drive moves to left side. Open iCloud files. OneDrive is on the left half of screen; iCloud files is on the right half of iPad screen. Touch and hold OneDrive file, slide over to iCould Files. I was also dragging and dropping photos from iCloud to OneDrive. Now, I cannot drag/drop either way, file just bounces back to source.


I had not exposed OneDrive in Files and I can drag/drop a file from OneDrive to iCloud that way, it’s a little more clunky, but it works! So thank you for that! iPadOS does not allow Split View for the same apps, so I cannot open two File Apps windows at the same time. I suppose with 18.3 drag/drop is no longer available using OneDrive to iCloud and vice versa - but I haven’t seen anything about it online when I search. 🤷‍♀️

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Mar 26, 2025 5:19 AM in response to donnafromme

I want to report a problem with using OneDrive in Files. I often create a PDF from an iCloud note to save to OneDrive. I did this the other day and saved using OneDrive in the Files app. That file is corrupted. Files shows it is on OneDrive but it is not there, I logged onto OneDrive on the web to delete from there - but it does not exist on OneDrive. When I long press on the file I get: Quicklook, Open in new Window, Get info, Compress, Open in OneDrive, Show… , Tags. But No Delete Option. I don’t know if this occurred due to the way I saved it (Files app to OneDrive) but I don’t want to try to recreate the problem and end up with multiple ‘orphaned’ files. Any ideas on how I can get rid of it??


AND!! I found another aggravating change with OneDrive. I had taken some photos off iCloud and put them in OneDrive in Folders (Family, Trees, Flowers, etc 😁). OneDrive saved photos with incorrect days/times, but I figured, I’ve got 1TB here, I’m offloading photos. Now all those folders are gone. There are Photos in relative date order and an option for Albums. I would have to put each photo back into an Album. And many, many photos are missing!! They are on OneDrive on the web, but not on my device. ; (


The final blow, I just found out MS365 price is increasing to $99/year!!!!!!!!!!!!! Due to CoPilot. Which I do not want and do not need. AI, no thanks! It’s time to find another provider. Problem is I’m a lifelong Outlook, Word, Excel user and I will have a hard time finding an alternative, but I have to try. Free MS365 will not work for me. $99 isn’t a fortune, but it’s getting to be too much for something that doesn’t work as well as it had in the past.

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Mar 29, 2025 11:54 AM in response to alezander8888

This solution does not work. It's temporary. The app will revert to not working after a few app open/close cycles.


Microsoft has acknowledged its an issue with 18.3+ ipadOS devices and they are working on a fix. There are no clever "solutions" as its an internal app issue.


All we can do currently is wait.

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Feb 10, 2025 4:38 PM in response to donnafromme

I also can no longer drag-and-drop between my “Files” window on the left and my “OneDrive” window on the right in iPadOS with this newest OneDrive update. I also can not drag-and-drop within OneDrive. I have to right click the file, select “move” then go through my WHOLE OneDrive file structure from the beginning. This is absurd. I’ve filed 2 tickets with Microsoft but have heard nothing back.


Linking OneDrive with my “Files” app and having two “Files” app windows open in split screen is NOT a valid workaround for me.


I have to constantly edit the files that I am moving back-and-forth. If 2 “Files” windows are open in split screen, I cannot right click a Word app and make it open in Office 360. I have to open it in OneDrive, then open the Word document in Office 360 and it’s a real pain. When I used to be able to have OneDrive open on the right and Files or PDF Expert open on the left, I could drag and drop documents or PDFs from the left (Files) to the right (OneDrive), then immediately open them for editing by right clicking and selecting “Open in App” (Office 360). I uninstalled OneDrive and it briefly reverted to the old visual version in which drag and drop worked perfectly. Something in the visual update to OneDrive either broke drag-and-drop or it was otherwise removed. I can not achieve that functionality with 2 “Files” instances opened in split screen.

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Mar 26, 2025 5:45 AM in response to bhcfp

This is exactly what I have experienced too. The app still works in my iPhone 16 pro. To add to this, I have M365 on this iPad and everything works when OneDrive is selected. I also had issues adding a Hotmail account to outlook.


I will monitor this thread with the hope that someone will solve this issue.

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Mar 26, 2025 11:11 AM in response to donnafromme

I had problems with One Drive after the IoS update.

I found the solution. You need to delete the One Drive app off the iPad following those steps

1- sign off your one drive account,

2- delete the app

3-reboot

4-download the app

5- sign in to One Drive

On my previous attempts, I deleted the app without signing off, then rebooted. After I downloaded the app, my account was already signed in and it exhibited the same problem I started with. 

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Mar 27, 2025 1:31 PM in response to donnafromme

I am replying to myself bc I made a mistake in the post about OneDrive photos. My photos that were in folders are not gone. They were in a different folder than in the Photos section of OneDrive. So that’s not a new issue, The original issue I reported (cannot drag n drop, sorting function changed, etc.) is still an issue; I doubt it will ever go back to the way it was……I really wish they would not make ‘upgrades’ and ‘improvements’ that take away functionality. It’s hardly ever better than it was before!!!!

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One Drive has Suddenly Changed on iPadOS 18.3!!!

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