What

OneDrive for Business is an online storage space where you can store files. The files are accessible from different devices, such as PCs, tablets or smartphones, and from any location. These files can be synchronized with a local folder. It is also possible to share documents with others and work with colleagues or fellow students on the same document. Every UGent employee and student has their own OneDrive for Business with 1 TB (terabyte), or 3000 GB, of storage space. OneDrive for Business is a part of Office 365.

Access via the browser

There are different ways to access the files in your OneDrive for Business. The simplest way is through a web browser. To do so, open onedrive.ugent.be in a browser window. You can upload, download and share files with others through the browser. Office documents can be edited in the browser, using the online versions of Office applications such as Word, Excel or OneNote. No local installation of Office is therefore required.

Access via the OneDrive for Business client

For most devices, there is also a 'OneDrive for Business client' that allows you to synchronize the files in your OneDrive for Business with a local folder. This has the advantage that you can open the files via the Explorer and that they are also available when you don't have an internet connection. For example, there is a OneDrive client for Windows and Mac , but also for mobile devices on Android and for the iPhone .
The OneDrive for Business client is standard installed on Windows 10 and is also part of Office 2019. So if you have Windows 10 or Office 2019, you don't have to install anything and you can open the client using the start menu.

OneDrive for Business in Office 2019
If the OneDrive for Business client is not yet installed, we recommend installing Office 2019.
How? See:Install Office 2019.
Make sure you are logged in with your UGent account by clicking the' Sign in' button in one of the Office applications.
Then open the start menu, open the OneDrive for Business client in the 'Office 2019' folder and click on 'Sync Now'.
After the installation, a new folder "OneDrive - UGent" appears in your profile containing your synchronized OneDrive for Business files.

Files you add to this folder using the Explorer will automatically sync to your OneDrive for Business storage space.

OneDrive for Business client without Office 2019
It is also possible to only install the OneDrive for Business client without Office 2019. This can be done by opening onedrive.ugent.be and clicking on "Get the OneDrive apps" or "Download the OneDrive apps". Follow the instructions to install the OneDrive app on your device. After installation, the following login window appears:

Enter your UGent e-mail address and click on "Sign in".
Then log in with your UGent email address and UGent password.
Choose the folders you want to synchronize between OneDrive for Business and a local folder.

Click on' Next' to start synchronization.
After the installation, a new folder "OneDrive - UGent" appears in your profile containing your synchronized OneDrive for Business files.

Files you add to this folder using the Explorer will automatically sync to your OneDrive for Business storage space.

Share files on OneDrive for Business

You can share files on OneDrive with other students and employees of Ghent University, but also with external contacts:

Open onedrive.ugent.be and sign in with your UGent account.

Right-click on the document you want to share and choose 'Share' and then 'Email' or 'Copy link'.

If you want to share the document internally, enter the name of your UGent contact in the window that appears and choose 'Send'.

In the same window you can also copy a link to the document that you can share in other apps (eg Teams).

If you want to share the document with an external contact, click on "People in UGent with the link" and in the window that appears choose "Specific people" and click on 'Apply':

In the next window, enter the email address of the external contact and click on 'Send'.

In the same window you can also copy a link to the document that you can share in other apps (eg Teams).

What happens to my OneDrive files when I leave UGent?

Your UGent account will also be closed when you leave the UGent. As a result, you no longer have access to the UGent Office 365 applications, including OneDrive for Business. Plan in advance: it is important to save the OneDrive files you want to keep in advance in an alternative location. There are various options for this:

• Web access allows you to download and save all files and folders, for example on a USB drive.
  
  

• You can use' OneDrive for Business client' to sync the files in your OneDrive for Business to a local folder on your device. Once your UGent account is closed, the synchronization will no longer work. You do retain access to the files in your local folder.

More info about OneDrive for Business