Starting mid-March 2025, Microsoft will start prompting users of its Microsoft 365 apps for Windows to back up their files to OneDrive.
These prompts will be displayed in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, encouraging users to enroll in OneDrive Known Folder Move (KFM).
As the company explains in a new Microsoft 365 Message Center entry, they’ll first roll out in public preview until early April 2025 and will be made generally available worldwide by early May 2025.
“If your organization still has users who are not enrolled in KFM, the message (“BACK UP THIS DOCUMENT: Share and work with others in this and other files using OneDrive”) will encourage them to do it while using familiar desktop apps,” Microsoft said.
“After users select the Open OneDrive button, they can select the folders they want to back up in OneDrive.”
​Microsoft says these OneDrive backup prompts will not be displayed for users whose organizations have blocked OneDrive KFM.
The company added that the rollout will start automatically and advises admins to notify users of this change. Those who don’t want their users to see these alerts can block KFM to ensure the rollout doesn’t reach their endpoints.
This is part of a broader effort to increase the number of Microsoft customers using the company’s OneDrive personal cloud storage service.
For instance, last week, Microsoft also started testing ad-supported versions of its Office desktop apps that allow Windows users to create and edit documents.
However, these ad-supported Word, Excel, and PowerPoint apps also have limited features, including only allowing users to save their documents to OneDrive.
When asked to provide more details, a Microsoft spokesperson told BleepingComputer that the company “has been conducting some limited testing,” and, currently, has no plans to launch an ad-supported version of Microsoft Office.