It's been a really, really long time since Microsoft did something that was actually good! Though it's a rather underwhelming amount of good, it's better than nothing. Microsoft is finally giving Windows 11 users a proper permanent way to opt out of OneDrive backups. The change lets anyone reject OneDrive Backups instead of repeatedly postponing the pop-up. While it's an opt-out, it's better than nothing, so follow along as we show you how to opt out of it.
Takeaways:
- Is there a way to disable OneDrive backup prompts on Windows 11?
- Learn how to permanently opt out of Microsoft OneDrive backup on Windows 11
Table of Contents
The Old Method Was Horrible...
Windows 11 setup has had a similar option for quite a while now. During a fresh installation of Windows 11, people would get a “Backup is recommended” screen with options such as “Continue” and “Skip for now.” The problem was that “Skip for now” didn't translate to “I don't want this.” It just pushed the request down the road, meaning the backup recommendation could and would appear again later.
How to Permanently Opt Out of Microsoft OneDrive Backup on Windows 11
The new option appears in the full-screen OneDrive backup prompt that Microsoft is rolling out to Windows 11 devices. Instead of choosing “Continue” or repeatedly selecting “Remind me in 3 days,” you can now choose “Opt out of backup.” Microsoft promotes OneDrive as part of the Windows Backup experience, letting users back up files, folders, settings, and credentials to the cloud.
While this sounds quite handy, the amount of storage offered for free on OneDrive isn't going to let you back up much of anything, so it's ultimately just a sneaky way of trying to get people to sign up for a subscription service. Also, people aren't really big fans of storing certain types of data in the cloud.
Better yet! Just uninstall OneDrive completely! You'll need to do it from Settings > Apps though, since it doesn't show up in Control Panel these days.
Microsoft Still Makes Their Preferred Option Way More Visible.
As always, they have made a big fuss about giving people the option to opt out of OneDrive backups, rather than flipping the option to opt in, which would have been far more boast worthy. The “Continue” option is a large blue button, while the “Opt out of backup” choice is a much smaller text option that you have to notice and hover over to discover that it is actually an option.
Maybe it's a Sign of Things to Come?
As we mentioned above, this isn't a groundbreaking new feature, but it could be a sign of some bigger changes that are planned. Microsoft has found out the hard way that everyone hates their operating system and their way of doing things. The only reasons people still primarily use Windows are because less stuff supports macOS and Linux is still too complicated for the average user.
With the huge push of AI and all the slop being added to Windows, Linux has seen some massive growth, especially within governments that are starting to replace Windows with Linux. So Microsoft doesn't really have much of a choice but to start listening to the feedback they are getting globally, otherwise, they are going to lose their dominance in the industry, which is really hard to get back once you lose it.
This change comes shortly after Microsoft rolled back a OneDrive Photos app that had been installed on some Windows devices after users complained.
