Anyone else using OneDrive to store client projects?

[BrianMSmith]

We recently started using OneDrive to store and share client files. Since then, we have been experiencing Chief "locking up" with the spinning blue circle of death while working on these plans/layouts. We weren't having this issue prior. If we only work on local projects it does not happen. Working in the cloud it happens every hour or so, and if we are idle for too long (like going to lunch) we return to the program locked up. The only way we can close the program is to End Task. Not awesome.

Does anyone use OneDrive and have a solution or workaround to this? Chief tech support says that they do not support using files on a network or the cloud... there has to be a way.

All drivers up to date.

 

[MoeGia]

Make sure your OneDrive CA files are all set to 'Keep on this device' so you have a physical copy on your computer. 

 

That said, I found it frustrating to work on OneDrive and moved my client files back to my C drive.  I do keep my Chief Data folder on OneDrive with all files on my local computer.  I'm sure that not what you want to hear but I agree with your findings.  OneDrive is a slug.

 

[ericepv]

I'm not a fan of OneDrive. I keep project files on my D drive with backups on both an external drive and  IDrive .

[JiAngelo]

All my files are on onedrive and active projects are synced local.  No problems thus far.  Every new computer I connect onedrive, give it time for active folders to sync, and I'm up and running.

 

Only downside I've experienced is

1) explorer won't search folders not stored locally.  Using a browser I can search, find an old file location and then sync that folder. 

 

2) We hit the 2T limit and had to add dummy users to get their 25 Terabyte storage plan.

[Renerabbitt]

In case it isn't clear, you cannot work on the same project file at the same time.
Also, having your Chief architect data in onedrive will cause a redundancy over time as onedrive tries to cache files while you are working in chief which locks those files, causing onedrive to say create a duplicate of your user library with a suffix which will not be read by Chief.
Furthermore, as someone else said, you would need to set your onedrive to offline all files for Chief.
I would not use onedrive for projects, its terribly slow and has terrible caching and redundancy algo's when compared to dropbox.
I still use onedrive for backups as well as google drive for some email storage but dropbox is my main cloud backup service as well as a local NAS and secondary drives for redundant backups.
In terms of using chief within an office environment, chief looks for missing files in two locations, within its data files and within the folder that the plan and layout are stored in. If those files are not there, missing file errors will populate. So either export plan material libraries from one machine to import into another or backup your plan file to the cloud and then extract contents on the second machine. (if you want to get fancy, just drop the extracted image and pdf files from the backup to the second machines data directory
 

[BrianMSmith]

Thank you all! This is the info I need to research a solution away from OneDrive but still cloud-based.

[Renerabbitt]

26 minutes ago, BrianMSmith said:

Thank you all! This is the info I need to research a solution away from OneDrive but still cloud-based.

What is your end goal?

[BrianMSmith]

For multiple users to be able to work on files in the cloud (not at the same time) without significant delays or lock-up issues.

We have users in multiple locations.

It appears DropBox might be a better solution for us than OneDrive. I will have to investigate those.

Thanks again for all the help.

[Renerabbitt]

2 minutes ago, BrianMSmith said:

It appears DropBox

Use dropbox for plan and layout
Data files require manual work for multiple users. Advice you to store your chief data directory off of the cloud and when needed, export or transfer the data files to another machine.
If multiple users are adding symbols or textures, make sure they save them to their library then export them as a group, then take the export to your cloud server and have other users import.
In this way, chiefs core data remains off cloud and independent for each machine, causing no redundant issues, and you are simply transferring assets as needed.
For sharing files, make sure to create backups which will export materials and pdfs as a zip archive for another machine that does not have that asset
 

[Doug_N]

23 hours ago, Renerabbitt said:

In case it isn't clear, you cannot work on the same project file at the same time.
Also, having your Chief architect data in onedrive will cause a redundancy over time as onedrive tries to cache files while you are working in chief which locks those files, causing onedrive to say create a duplicate of your user library with a suffix which will not be read by Chief.
Furthermore, as someone else said, you would need to set your onedrive to offline all files for Chief.
I would not use onedrive for projects, its terribly slow and has terrible caching and redundancy algo's when compared to dropbox.
I still use onedrive for backups as well as google drive for some email storage but dropbox is my main cloud backup service as well as a local NAS and secondary drives for redundant backups.
In terms of using chief within an office environment, chief looks for missing files in two locations, within its data files and within the folder that the plan and layout are stored in. If those files are not there, missing file errors will populate. So either export plan material libraries from one machine to import into another or backup your plan file to the cloud and then extract contents on the second machine. (if you want to get fancy, just drop the extracted image and pdf files from the backup to the second machines data directory
 

Hi Rene,

 

What if you only keep the plan and layout files on OneDrive?  That is my practice, and so far, I have had no problems.

[jtcapa1]

Thanks for this topic and discussion. There are so many folders and projects associated with CA I can understand why CA does not want to support "networks" and cloud storage. The potential slow downs are user dependent. OneDrive only seems to conflict with CA, plus things are ending up in the cloud that shouldn't end up in the cloud. Microsoft embedded OneDrive into their operating system to make the concept super simple. Implementation, exposure, and avoiding OneDrive? Not simple at all.

I suspect that CA will figure out a way to make cloud storage work, since many larger firms need it, but in the mean time it seems best to avoid using it for CA.

[Michael_Gia]

On 1/8/2025 at 3:51 PM, BrianMSmith said:

For multiple users to be able to work on files in the cloud

Dropbox works for us. 
 

(Watch how you name stuff, though)
 

We are able to markup plans and documents and even add notes to documents that are shared with an “@person” which will notify them of a change. 
 

The only way you could do this sort of collaboration with Onedrive would be to setup a SharePoint site where all those sharing files are in the same organization. 
 

For current projects, I start the project folder name with an underscore “_” so they float to the top.  Once the project is complete I remove the underscore to throw it into alphabetical order. 

[payettedesigns]

Michael:

 

I am with you on the Drobbox we tried One Drive years ago and it was a mess. I have to be carefull sharing files with clients making sure they cannot edit ect. What do you do for Backup? I usually will Keep Three Years on my PC than Archive the Dropbox Folders to an External Hard Drive. I still have not figured out if I can delete some folders on our PC but leave them on the Web Drop Box. I believe you can I have to be cautious so have not tried The @ person I am  not familiar with the process because we usually only share PDFs with our Structual Engineer but I am brining more staff in house soon any help would be appreciated. I also have 2 Offices one in Downtown Raleigh near Planning and Zoning and on at home with duplicate sets up sometimes things get a liitle mixed up but not offten

 

David P

 

 

[payettedesigns]

On 1/8/2025 at 3:56 PM, Renerabbitt said:

Use dropbox for plan and layout
Data files require manual work for multiple users. Advice you to store your chief data directory off of the cloud and when needed, export or transfer the data files to another machine.
If multiple users are adding symbols or textures, make sure they save them to their library then export them as a group, then take the export to your cloud server and have other users import.
In this way, chiefs core data remains off cloud and independent for each machine, causing no redundant issues, and you are simply transferring assets as needed.
For sharing files, make sure to create backups which will export materials and pdfs as a zip archive for another machine that does not have that asset
 

I upvoted this because most of it  makes sense its the brilliant part of you that has my brain over here spinning 

[Michael_Gia]

22 hours ago, payettedesigns said:

What do you do for Backup?

I backup the important stuff by dragging it over to iCloud since I'm on a Mac.

 

I'm assuming the odds of both cloud services going down at the same time is probably rare?

 

I used to back up to an external drive every few months but I've gotten lazy.

 

 

[Renerabbitt]

For anyone finding this:

When setting up a new Windows 11 installation, users are prompted to back up files to OneDrive by default. This automatically redirects system folders like Documents to OneDrive, which causes problems with applications like Chief Architect that work with live data files.

OneDrive Sync Behavior with Locked Files:

When Chief Architect opens a file (e.g., user_library.calib), Windows enforces an exclusive write lock on the file. This prevents other processes (including OneDrive) from modifying it while in use.

OneDrive's sync process:
- Detects changes via USN Journal or file system watcher
- Attempts Delta Sync (uploading only modified blocks)
- When encountering a locked file:
  - Uses opportunistic locking (oplock) to check availability
  - If still locked after 5-10 minutes, creates conflict copy

OneDrive's problematic solution:
1. Creates temporary shadow copy (via VSS if enabled)
2. Fails to commit changes due to lock
3. Generates conflict copy with numeric suffix (user_library_1.calib)

Why this breaks Chief Architect:
- Only looks for exact filenames (user_library.calib)
- Cannot use numbered copies (user_library_1.calib)
- Binary files can't merge conflicts like text files

Dropbox handles this better by:
- Longer retry periods (up to 30 mins)
- Better VSS integration
- LAN sync prioritization

Recommended solution:

1. Remove OneDrive interference:
%windir%\System32\OneDriveSetup.exe /uninstall

2. Store live files locally:
C:\CA_Local\user_library.calib

3. Manual backups to Dropbox:
robocopy "C:\CA_Local" "D:\Dropbox\CA_Backups" /MIR /Z /W:5 /R:1

Folder Structure:

Dropbox cloud storage:
Dropbox
├── Assets
│   ├── Automation
│   ├── Catalogs
│   ├── Cover Art
│   ├── Downloads (with ScreenClippings)
│   ├── Hotkeys
│   ├── Images
│   ├── Materials
│   ├── Models
│   ├── My Documents
│   ├── My Pictures
│   ├── My Videos
│   └── Work and Website
└── Projects

Local-only folders:
C:
├── Chief Architect Libraries
│   ├── user_library.calib
│   └── other files
└── Users
    └── [YourProfile]
        ├── Documents
        └── Downloads

Additional setup:
- Redirected ScreenClippings via registry edit
- Pinned key folders to Quick Access
- Scheduled backups when files are closed