How to Change the iCloud Drive Folder Location on Windows 10

In Windows 10, iCloud Drive doesn't let you tell where to download and sync your files. It uses the primary partition of your PC by default. So unless you have a lot of free disk space to play, this is an obvious problem. Exploring the different iCloud settings won't help you either. Well, I tried.

But do not worry. You can make iCloud Drive use another location in Windows 10. And it's pretty easy to do, as long as you don't mind having to reload your iCloud Drive files on your computer.

Let me start by explaining how the process works, and then take you through the whole process step by step.

Symbolic links to the rescue

A while ago, I wrote about changing the default iTunes backup location in Windows 10. For this, I used symbolic links. Otherwise known as symbolic links, this native Windows feature allows you to create a dummy folder and link it to a folder in another location. The dummy folder works just like a real folder, but all of the files that are copied to it are actually saved to the folder to which it is linked. Sounds fascinating, doesn't it?

And this is what we will use to change the location that iCloud Drive also uses to download and synchronize your data. You create a symbolic link for the default location of the iCloud drive and point it to a folder on another partition or drive. This helps you free up space otherwise used by iCloud Drive on the primary partition. The downloads and downloads will work as usual, and you won't even notice a difference.

Point: You can also point the symbolic link to a location on an external hard drive or SSD. However, you must remember to keep the player connected to your PC each time it is started for the symbolic link to work without problems.

However, there is a slight catch. Before creating the symbolic link, you must deactivate iCloud Drive. This will delete all iCloud files from your computer, but they will be downloaded later after reactivating iCloud Drive. You only need to do this once, and the whole process of shifting the default iCloud Drive storage location and reclaiming space on the primary partition is worth it. sentence.

Changing iCloud Drive storage location

The following method works for both versions of iCloud for Windows – the traditional desktop app and the Microsoft Store app. You will not have to make any adjustments in the steps below for either version.

Step 1: Click the iCloud icon in the system tray, then click Open iCloud Settings to display the iCloud app.

2nd step: Uncheck the box next to iCloud Drive, then click Apply.

Step 3: Click Remove from PC in the confirmation box. This will delete all downloaded iCloud Drive files and folders from your computer. Then exit the iCloud app.

Note: Don't worry. Your files are only deleted from local storage and will not be deleted from your iCloud account. They will be downloaded again after reactivating iCloud Drive later. But if you are concerned, create a backup copy of your files and folders before clicking Delete from PC.

Step 4: Create a new folder in the partition or external drive where you want to change the iCloud Drive storage location. You can insert any name, but I prefer to name it "iCloud Drive" to avoid confusion.

Note: I do not recommend using the root of a drive or partition for the new iCloud Drive storage location. Create it as a subfolder, if possible.

Step 5: Right-click the Start icon, and then click Windows PowerShell on the shortcut menu.

Step 6: Make the necessary adjustments to the command below, then enter it in the Windows PowerShell console:

 mklink /J “C:UsersusernameiCloudDrive” “D:iCloudiCloud Drive” 

• Replace Username with your real Windows username
• Replace D: iCloud iCloud Drive with the actual file path of the new iCloud Drive storage location.

Step 7: Press Enter to execute the command. You should see a message "Junction created for …" as confirmation.

Step 8: Relaunch the iCloud application via the system tray, then reactivate iCloud Drive (check the box next to iCloud Drive, then click Apply).

Your iCloud Drive files will then start to download again. You can access it as usual by clicking the iCloud Drive icon in the system tray, then clicking Open iCloud Drive.

But although the iCloud Drive files and folders look as if they were still present in the same iCloud Drive storage location as before, they are in the new folder you created in the above steps.

You can confirm this by visiting the default storage location (located in "C: Users username"). Right-click the iCloudDrive folder icon (which looks like a shortcut because of its symbolically linked nature), then click Properties. It will not be related to the fact that a space is used.

Now go to the folder to which the symbolic link points and you should see all of your files there. ICloud Drive's default storage location only mirrors the items in it.

If you want to revert to using the default iCloud Drive location to store your files and folders, deactivate iCloud Drive using the iCloud app, then reactivate -the. This should get rid of the symbolically linked folder and things should go back to normal.

Readers swapped

If you were about to run out of storage on your primary storage partition, moving the iCloud Drive storage location elsewhere will help you save valuable disk space. Yeah – this is not the most convenient way, because you have to download all of your files again. But it's definitely worth spending time trying to save free space using other means when you can just get rid of several gigabytes of storage at least quickly.

So, did you manage to move the iCloud Drive storage without any hitch? Let me know in the comments.

Then: Are you harassed by iCloud notifications? Here's how to turn them off in Windows 10.