Microsoft OneDrive cloud storage users will no longer have access to a little-known feature that allowed users to upload content directly from a URL.
Despite being in preview since September 2021, Microsoft Principal Product Manager Patrick Rodgers confirmed: “We are discontinuing support for the preview feature that allows you to upload files to OneDrive from a URL.”
The OneDrive feature was initially designed for specific applications, mobile clients and browser add-ins, rather than use by general consumers who have unrestricted access to the full versions of OneDrive.
OneDrive ends support for URL uploading
The announcement confirmed that Microsoft would end support for the URL upload feature on March 29, 2024, meaning that the feature would be retired before ever making it to general availability.
Rodgers shared some of the reasoning behind the company’s decision to first introduce the feature: “This feature was introduced as an experimental option for users who wanted to save files from the web directly to their OneDrive without downloading them first and was only ever supported for Consumer OneDrive.”
Blaming high maintenance costs compared with the low usage rate, Microsoft has now decided to pull the plug on the URL uploading functionality. The company also stated that it no longer aligns with its broader vision for OneDrive.
Apart from the removal of the tool, Rodgers confirmed no further consequences: “Any existing files that you have uploaded from a URL will remain in your OneDrive and will not be affected by this change.”
Users relying on this feature are being told that it will end on or after March 29 without additional warning, thus they are being urged to find a suitable alternative urgently.
Via WindowsCentral
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