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How to move files from Microsoft One to USB dive on Android phone

QueenKatherine 0 Reputation points
2026-05-15T02:19:08.0566667+00:00

I need to move my files and photos from my Microsoft account to an SD card (USB) on my Android. Microsoft is saying account is frozen and files will be deleted today. (I just found this out a couple hours ago.) I am unable to move any files or photos anywhere, including to a files app. Please help. (I am not tech savvy at all, so badic language is appreciated.) Thank you in advance!

Microsoft 365 and Office | OneDrive | For home | Android
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  1. Gunasekar N 68,335 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-05-15T03:07:12.4333333+00:00

    Hello, thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A.

    If your OneDrive account is in a frozen state, you cannot move or copy files, and you also cannot make any modifications to them. To regain access to your files and unfreeze your account, you will need to either delete files from OneDrive or upgrade your OneDrive storage plan.

    Go to OneDrive cloud storage online and sign in with your Microsoft account (Use an incognito tab)

    https://onedrive.live.com/

    • Go to Settings > Accounts > Storage.
    • Select Free up space - OneDrive.
    • This will take you to the page where you can find all your large files taking up space on your OneDrive account.
    • If you don't want these files, you can delete them and empty it on the recycle bin folder as well.

    If the files are important, you can upgrade your storage -

    https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/onedrive/onedrive-plans-and-pricing

    If you free up space in your account or upgrade your storage, it usually takes 2-4 hours for the changes to be applied.

    Reference:

    What does it mean when your OneDrive account is frozen?

    Once the account is unfrozen, you can copy or download all of your files from OneDrive and move them to the storage on your Android device’s SD card.

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  2. AI answer

    2026-05-15T02:19:20.1633333+00:00

    Follow these steps on the Android phone to get files and photos from OneDrive onto the SD card/USB.

    Because the account is frozen and time is short, focus on the most important files and do this in small batches (not thousands at once) so it is less likely to fail.

    1. Open OneDrive on Android

    1. On the phone, open the OneDrive app.
    2. Sign in with the Microsoft account that is frozen (if not already signed in).

    2. Download files from OneDrive to the phone

    1. In OneDrive, go to Files.
    2. Find the folder or photos that must be saved.
    3. Press and hold on one file or photo until a check mark appears.
    4. Tap other items to select more.
    5. Tap the three dots (…) or More menu.
    6. Choose Download or Save (wording can vary by version).
      • The files will be saved into the phone’s local storage (often the Downloads or OneDrive folder in the phone’s file manager).

    If the OneDrive app does not allow download because the account is frozen, try downloading fewer files at a time (for example, 10–20 photos) and repeat.

    3. Use the phone’s Files app to move to SD/USB

    1. Open the phone’s Files or My Files app (the built‑in file manager on Android).
    2. Go to Internal storage → Downloads (or the folder where the OneDrive downloads were saved).
    3. Press and hold on a file or folder to select it, then select others.
    4. Tap Move or Copy.
    5. Navigate back and choose SD card or the USB drive (it may show under “Storage devices” or similar).
    6. Open or create a folder where the files should go.
    7. Tap Move here or Paste.

    This copies the downloaded files from phone storage to the SD card/USB.

    4. Move files between OneDrive folders (if needed)

    If some items are already in OneDrive but need to be organized before downloading:

    1. In the OneDrive app, select the files or folders.
    2. Tap the menu at the top.
    3. Tap to show the file list.
    4. Tap the folder to move them to, then tap Move here.

    This does not move them to the SD card, but can help organize before downloading.

    5. If storage is low on the phone

    If the phone says there is not enough space to download:

    • Download and move a small batch of files to the SD/USB.
    • After confirming they are on the SD/USB, delete that batch from the phone’s internal storage (not from OneDrive) to free space.
    • Repeat with the next batch.

    Do not delete from inside the OneDrive app until sure the files are safely on the SD/USB.

    References:

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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