Should a 60-person engineering firm use Add shortcut to OneDrive or Sync for SharePoint project folders?
Default to Add shortcut to OneDrive for SharePoint project document folders. Microsoft recommends shortcuts as the more versatile option because they follow the user to every device, while Sync is tied to one computer. Never use both on the same library: Microsoft states you can't, and the conflict is by design. Where staff already mix the two, pick one method per library and reconcile it in a small pilot before rolling it out.
How to choose between shortcuts, Sync and the browser
- OneDrive shortcuts fit when engineers open project folders from more than one device and you want one consistent method; avoid when the same library is already synced on that user's machine, because the shortcut and the sync will collide.
- Library Sync fits when a setup is deliberately tied to one workstation, or when an existing synced deployment works and you aren't ready to pilot a change yet; avoid when anyone also adds a shortcut to the same library.
- Browser access to the SharePoint library fits as the safe fallback while an admin untangles a broken local setup; avoid when it tempts staff to download and keep their own replacement copies outside SharePoint.
Our recommendation for a firm of 20 to 100 people: standardize new project libraries on shortcuts, and leave working synced libraries alone until a controlled pilot is ready. Keeping a functioning Sync deployment in place is our operational judgment, not a Microsoft mandate. The one condition that changes the answer is whether a given library already uses the other method and whether the people using it actually need cross-device access. A library synced on a single drafting workstation, used by one person on one machine, can reasonably stay on Sync.
Scope matters here. The guidance covers ordinary project documents such as specs, reports, submittals and correspondence. Nothing in Microsoft's two articles establishes compatibility for CAD or BIM applications or their file-locking behavior, so test those workloads separately before moving them.
What a mixed setup costs while nobody fixes it
Leaving shortcuts and Sync mixed across the same libraries means engineers hit errors on the folders they need at the exact moment of a handoff, and Microsoft confirms a library already set as a shortcut cannot be synced. Because changes and deletions on a synced folder flow back to the SharePoint site, a confused user who deletes a stuck local copy to start over can remove files from the shared project for everyone. Every workaround copy saved to a desktop is one more version that can miss a deadline review.
What Microsoft's documentation actually says
Microsoft's SharePoint sync article, last updated 2025-05-29, states: "We recommend using OneDrive shortcuts as the more versatile option." The same article explains that shortcuts allow content to be accessed on all devices, whereas sync is related to a specific device, and that adds, changes or deletions on the site apply to the user's computer and vice versa.
Microsoft's troubleshooting article, last updated 2025-07-14, adds the rule that drives the whole decision: for a SharePoint document library, you can't use both the Sync and Add shortcut to My files features. The article calls the behavior by design and says you can't sync a document library that's already set as a shortcut in OneDrive. Neither article announces a new feature or effective date; the guidance is evergreen.
A safe pilot for reconciling an existing mixed setup
- Prerequisites: current OneDrive sync app on each test device, a signed-in Microsoft 365 account with access to the project site, and confirmation that the files you will touch live in SharePoint, not only on the local disk.
- Inventory the method in use: for each active project library, record whether each user syncs it, has a shortcut in My files, or uses only the browser.
- Pick one representative project folder and one willing user who currently has the competing connection.
- Confirm the canonical files are present in the SharePoint library in the browser before changing anything locally.
- Remove the competing connection on that user's device (stop syncing or remove the shortcut, whichever is not the chosen standard) without deleting any source content from the site.
- Connect the library using the chosen method only, then open the folder from each device the user actually works on.
- Create, edit and then remove a harmless test file from each device and verify each change appears correctly in the browser.
- Write down the outcome and the exact steps, then repeat library by library; there is no need to remove the Sync button tenant-wide to fix the problem.
Chrysis can run the inventory and pilot above for a practice's project libraries, so engineers keep working from the browser while each library is moved to one consistent method.
Frequently asked
Can staff use both Sync and Add shortcut on the same SharePoint library?
No. Microsoft states you can't use both features for one document library, and the conflict is by design.
Which option does Microsoft recommend for project folders?
Microsoft recommends OneDrive shortcuts as the more versatile option, since shortcut content is reachable on all devices while Sync is tied to one computer.
Does deleting a synced file only affect my laptop?
No. Microsoft documents that adds, changes and deletions on a synced folder apply to the SharePoint site too, and the reverse.
Do we have to switch every existing synced library right away?
No. A working synced library can stay in place until you have piloted the change on one folder and one user.
Does this guidance cover CAD and BIM files?
Not on its own. The Microsoft articles address document libraries generally, so test CAD and BIM locking behavior separately.