How to Remove OneDrive from Quick Access

OneDrive comes built-in on Windows 10, and even if you uninstall it via PowerShell’s Remove-AppxPackage, the GUI or a program like Windows XApp Remover it will remain in the left pane in File Explorer Quick Access. While Windows 10 doesn’t include an option to remove the OneDrive shortcut, we’ll show you how to remove OneDrive from Quick Access by jumping into the Registry and removing the shortcut manually. In this Windows 10 guide, we’ll walk you through the steps to tweak the Registry to remove the OneDrive entry in the left pane of File Explorer, but without ditching the service completely in case you need to manage or upload files to the cloud.

OneDrive (previously SkyDrive, Windows Live SkyDrive, and Windows Live Folders) is a file-hosting service operated by Microsoft as part of its suite of online services. It allows users to store files as well as other personal data like Windows settings or BitLocker recovery keys in the cloud. Files can be synced to a PC and accessed from a web browser or a mobile device, as well as shared publicly or with specific people.

1. Use the Windows key + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run command
2. Type regedit, and click OK to open the registry editor
3. Browse for one of these keys:
   Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6}
   Or
   Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{04271989-C4D2-112C-8D61-CD30CAA176A5}
   Or
   Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{04271989-C4D2-B5B7-959E-F1BD37A65345}
4. Double-click the DWORD value System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree
5. Change the data value from 1 to 0
6. Close the Registry to complete the task

Having trouble finding it?

1. Use the Ctrl + F keyboard shortcut to open Find
2. Copy and paste System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree
3. Click Find Next to start a search
4. This particular value is repeated multiple times under CLSID, so make sure to press F3 until the (Default) value contains the data: OneDrive and once you find it, repeat 5.
5. Once you completed the steps, close and reopen File Explorer, and you should no longer see OneDrive in the left pane. If you don’t see the change, try restarting your PC.

   File Explorer with OneDrive (left), File Explorer without OneDrive (right)

Quick Tip: If you ever need to access the OneDrive root folder, simply type OneDrive in the address bar of File Explorer and press Enter.

If you want to revert the changes, follow the same steps mentioned above, but this time repeat step 5 in reverse by changing the System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree DWORD value from 0 back to 1.

Keep in mind that this won’t uninstall the OneDrive client from Windows 10, we’re simply removing the entry from File Explorer when you don’t have a use for it.