Help Please!! "OneDrive" 2 computers/2emails/1business,1 personal

Question

Help Please!! "OneDrive" 2 computers/2emails/1business,1 personal

Bernard Schwartz 0

I ran out of space on my personal computer. Bought more space to increase space on my OneDrive. everything is fine till the next day when my Mgr. calls me and says she can't download any files to send me because the #2 computer is now saying were out of space. Do I have to purchase more space on my OneDrive on the #2 computer? or can I share the space that I have on the #1computer?

(I have plenty of space on #1 computer now)

PS: I do want to keep certain information on my personal computer not to be transferred to the work computer

Thank You In advance

0 comments

2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Kai-L 12,310 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Dear @Bernard Schwartz,

Good day, and I appreciate the clear explanation of your concern. From my research, you do not need to purchase more space on the #2 (work) computer. OneDrive storage is tied to the account/email, not to the individual computer or device.

From your description, the extra storage you purchased applies only to your personal account that you upgraded on computer #1. The work computer (#2) is signed in with your business email/account, which has its own separate storage quota, typically around 1 TB if it is part of a Microsoft 365 Business plan, although this can fill up independently over time.

This is why upgrading your personal OneDrive did not increase the available storage on your work computer; they are two completely separate cloud storage environments. What you can do right now:

1.Check current storage on both accounts

On computer #1 (personal): Go to onedrive.live.com > Settings (gear icon) > Options > Storage
On computer #2 (work/business): Go to yourcompany.sharepoint.com or onedrive for business and go to Settings > More settings > Storage metrics.
This will show exactly how much space is being used in each account.

2.Free up space on the business OneDrive (quickest fix)

Delete or move large/unneeded files from the work OneDrive (check Downloads, large videos, old backups, etc.).
Empty the Recycle Bin in OneDrive (very important: deleted files still count toward quota until emptied).
Ask your manager (or IT admin if you have one) to help identify company files that can be archived or moved to a SharePoint team site instead of individual OneDrive. If you don't know who your IT administrator is, please refer to this article: How do I find my Microsoft 365 admin? - Microsoft Support

3.Keep personal information private (as you want)

Keep using your personal OneDrive for anything you don't want on the work computer.
Do not move personal files into the business OneDrive.
You can safely have both OneDrive accounts running on the same computer (one personal, one business), they appear as two separate folders in File Explorer (e.g., "OneDrive - Personal" and "OneDrive - Company Name").

Long-term options

If your business OneDrive keeps filling up often, talk to your manager/IT about:

Increasing storage for the business account (some Microsoft 365 Business plans allow this).
Moving shared work files to a SharePoint team site (this doesn't count against individual OneDrive quotas as heavily).

You can share specific folders from your personal OneDrive to your business account (or vice versa) if needed, but the storage still stays in the original account.

Quick note:

On each computer, only sync the folders you actually need locally. Right-click the OneDrive cloud icon in the taskbar > Settings > Account > Choose folders > uncheck large folders you don't need on that specific PC.

I hope this information is helpful. Please follow these steps and let me know if it works for you. If not, we can work together to resolve this. Thank you for your patience and understanding. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please feel free to share them in the comments so I can continue to support you. I'm looking forward to your reply.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it.

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

Bernard Schwartz 0 Reputation points

2026-04-13T21:30:32.7133333+00:00

Hi Kai-L

First, thank you for your quick response. You’re obviously very well educated in this field. Unfortunately, I’m not and struggle whenever there is a hiccup. So, at this time I would like to make some clarifications so you can better understand and possibly make some other suggestions.

first is both computers were on the free Basic Microsoft 365 plan and were doing just fine till my personal computer ran out of memory. So this past week I purchased the $19.99 a year plan which gave me 100gb and I only have 16gb used as of now.

now my computer @ my store is the problem now.

so as I have learned from you, my computer @ my store does have a different email address. But as my personal computer I do “not” have a business account on that computer either. It’s just a regular account that has a free account that has run out of memory on the Microsoft 365 Basic/onedrive. So that’s probably why I don’t understand your instructions on my computer at my store because I don’t have the business version.

how does that change your instructions to me to correct my issue? My mgr. Tried to send me an application she received and the computer won’t even let her save it so she can scan it to me. Also, don’t know if you need to know this information but I also use a program called Splashtop to remotely sign into my store computer.

Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to help me understand what to do to correct my issue

Respectfully
Kai-L 12,310 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-04-13T21:56:13.3533333+00:00
Dear @Bernard Schwartz,

Thank you for the clear clarification, this helps a lot.

From what you've described:

Your personal computer (#1) uses your personal Microsoft account (the one you upgraded). You bought the Microsoft 365 Basic plan ($19.99/year), which gives that account 100 GB of OneDrive storage. You said you're only using 16 GB now, so there's plenty of room there.

Your store computer (#2) uses a different email address, this is not a business OneDrive. It's also a personal/free Microsoft account that was on the old free 5 GB limit. That account has its own completely separate OneDrive storage, the 100 GB you just bought on your personal account does not apply to it.

This is why the store computer suddenly says it's out of space and your manager can't save or download files there. The two accounts are like two separate cloud drives belonging to the same person, they don't share storage space.

You have two options. I recommend starting with Option 1 (free and quick):

Option 1: Free up space on the store computer's OneDrive (no extra purchase needed right now)

On the store computer, open a web browser and go to onedrive.live.com.

Sign in with the store email address (the one used on computer #2).

Once inside, look at the bottom-left corner, it should show something like “X GB of 5 GB used” (or whatever the current limit is).

Click on that storage bar or the number to see your largest files.

Delete or move out anything you don't need right now (old photos, videos, documents, downloads folder, etc.). Especially check and empty the Recycle Bin in OneDrive, deleted files still count toward the limit until you empty it.

After cleaning, the manager should be able to save the application file again.

Option 2: Upgrade the store account too (if you want more space there long-term)

You can buy the same Microsoft 365 Basic plan ($19.99/year) for the store email address. That would give the store OneDrive its own 100 GB. Do this only if cleaning up isn't enough and you want more room on the store side.

Notes:

You can keep personal files only on your personal OneDrive (computer #1), nothing forces you to move them to the store computer.

Both OneDrives can run on the same computer if needed, but they will show as two separate folders.

Using Splashtop to remote into the store computer is fine, it doesn't affect the storage issue.

I hope this information helps clarify the situation and provides you with workable solutions. Should you have any further questions or need additional assistance, please don't hesitate to reach out. I'm always here to help. Have a wonderful day!
Bernard Schwartz 0 Reputation points

2026-04-13T23:59:29.1233333+00:00

Hi Kai-L

You made a perceived difficult problem very simple to manage. Thank you for that. I will follow your instructions. Unless I manage to gain a substantial amount of space I will probably go ahead and purchase the $19.99 per year package. Its reasonably enough priced, so I don't have to run into this issue a few months later.

One last lingering issue if you don't mind addressing, that I noticed happened when this storage issue creeped up, I noticed on the store computer when I sign on (I don't know if its there when I'm not signed in. I'm afraid to ask) I think It's called "Tab groups" on our web page. That I have on my home computer are showing up on the store computer. Like a list of my banks, credit cards, insurance comp. etc. It just lists the sites they can't get in unless they know the codes. I'm just not comfortable with it being up there.

Again,

Thanks a bunch!
Kai-L 12,310 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-04-14T15:25:04.08+00:00
Dear @Bernard Schwartz,

Thank you for your update. I’m glad to hear that the OneDrive explanation was helpful and that you’re comfortable with the $19.99/year upgrade if needed for the store computer.

About the "Tab groups" showing on the store computer

From my research, this is happening because Microsoft Edge is syncing your browsing data (including open tabs and tab groups) through your personal Microsoft account. Even though the two computers use different email addresses for OneDrive, you are likely signed into Edge on the store computer using the same personal Microsoft account you use on your home computer.

That's why your list of banks, credit cards, insurance sites, etc. (as saved tab groups) is appearing on the store PC. It's a privacy concern, especially on a shared work computer.

The good news is that you can stop this quickly without affecting your OneDrive or other account settings.

Do this while signed into the store computer:

Open Microsoft Edge.

Click the three dots (...) in the top-right corner > Settings.

In the left menu, click Profiles (or Your profile).

Click Sync

You will see a list of things that are syncing, such as:

Favorites

Passwords

Open tabs

History

Settings, etc.

Turn off "Open tabs" (this is the main one that brings over tab groups and open pages). Optionally, turn off History and Favorites if you don't want any browsing data from home showing up at the store.

For extra privacy, you can click Turn off sync entirely for this profile on the store computer.

After making these changes:

Close and reopen Edge.

The unwanted tab groups should disappear (or stop updating).

If the groups are still visible right away, you can manually close or delete them:

Right-click any tab group > choose Ungroup or Close group.

Or open a new Edge window and close the old one.

Extra safety tip (recommended long‑term solution)

On the store computer, create and use a separate Edge profile that is signed in only with the store email (or not signed in at all for browsing):

In Edge Settings > Profiles > Add profile > Create a new one and sign in with the store Microsoft account (or choose "Continue without an account").

Use this new profile for any work-related browsing. Your home/personal profile stays completely separate.

This way, your personal banking/credit card tab groups stay only on your home computer and never appear at the store.

I hope this helps address your privacy concern. If you found this information helpful, I kindly invite you to mark the answer as accepted so others facing a similar issue can benefit from it as well.

Thank you again for being a valued member of the Q&A community, and please feel free to reach out if you need any further assistance. Wishing you all the best!

Answer 2

OneDrive storage is tied to the Microsoft account, not to a specific computer.

In this scenario there are effectively two separate OneDrive accounts:

Personal OneDrive (personal email on computer #1)
Work/OneDrive for Business (work email on computer #2)

Buying more storage for the personal OneDrive only increases the quota for that personal Microsoft account. It does not add space to the work account and cannot be “shared” across different accounts/emails.

Therefore:

If computer #2 is signed into a different OneDrive account (work email), additional storage must be purchased or assigned for that specific work account (or files must be deleted there) to resolve the “out of space” issue.
The extra space purchased for the personal account on computer #1 cannot be used by the work account on computer #2.

To keep personal information separate from work:

Continue using the personal Microsoft account/OneDrive only on the personal computer for personal files.
Use the work Microsoft 365/OneDrive for Business account only for business files on the work computer.
Avoid signing into the work OneDrive with the personal account (or vice versa) if separation of data is required.

References:

Share via

Help Please!! "OneDrive" 2 computers/2emails/1business,1 personal

2 answers

Your answer