Microsoft cut off the ability to create new Groups in OneDrive in 2014, along with a way to add new users to existing Groups. Now the company is informing users via email that all existing Groups will be inaccessible to all OneDrive users on October 16, and that data in those Groups will be deleted.
The slow death of the Groups feature still allows people who have them in their OneDrive account to download them and move them to their main account before the deadline. The procedure can be checked out at Microsoft's support page (which lists an incorrect September 30 date for the Groups shutdown).
Thanks to Prabu for the tip!
Source: Microsoft
Reader comments
Microsoft to completely shut down Groups in OneDrive on October 16
I got then email for this a few days ago. I'm very annoyed that they didn't give much time or provide us with alternatives.
Posted via the Windows Central App for Android on my BlackBerry Passport
I would like to know, does this really affect Family Room? One way or the other, a clear statement. A while ago, Microsoft said that they were shutting down Groups to new users and we couldn't start new Groups nor invite new members to existing Groups. I believe, if i remember correctly, that they said that existing Groups/Family Room would continue to work but without messaging. So, I think, just the shared calendars, OneNotes, photos, and files in OneDrive would continue to work for existing users. Months after that shut down date, Family Room messaging still works. Now they are saying they are eliminating Groups in OneDrive and to move your data or the data will be erased from OneDrive.
I think, it's prudent, to copy and back up all Family Room data / information.
Microsoft sent the email to everyone using groups. If you didn't get the email, you aren't affected.
As I commented above, all my Family Room documents (including the Family Room OneNote notebook) are located in a standard folder named Family Room on my OneDrive. The folder is shared with my original Family Room members.
Have tried several times to get the jelly heads at MS to answer WHY they are so eager to shut down Groups and Rooms, but still it's quiet like in a fucking grave from fucking Redmond.
https://windowsphone.uservoice.com/forums/101801-feature-suggestions/sug...
Ok Time for take the data out and move to other secure professional good looking option. Me like a customer who looking for the best quality services this move by the Microsoft not look like a good trust in the future. Time to get out.
Old news. Group me is OK, but needs some more work. Calendar is pretty lame.
I don't miss this feature much, as you can add family members to your MS Account. You can then share calendars and OneDrive folders with those family members. The calendar events will show on both of your phones and computers, and there is now a feature to sync shared OneDrive folders on WP OneDrive app.
Yes, this is how I have always done it. The problem is that the average user won't figure it out
How...?
The reason why my wife stuck with windows phone with me if Bec of the groups feature! MS has not used it as a selling point, and now they are shutting it down! WTH
Why Microsoft shutdown this feature? I really like this feature, it's good and feel connected to people that we love, please Microsoft.... Don't shutdown this feature.... It's makes high value of windows phone.
Its already shut down officially, the content is just still out there. I realize a lot of people didnt use it, but for those who did, it was deeply integrated into their workflows. We have tons of stuff in our famliy room One notes. I hope thats not in the family room One Drive.
Yes it is so easy to use, so integrated, showing up on all members phones and computers, that we didn't need to know, and don't know, where our photos, OneNote data, calendars, and files actually reside! Now we'll have to follow the link and try to move the data files. It's the shared OneNote data files, chats and history of calendar events I think may be hard to find. Photos and files are easy to identify.
Does this mean no more shared folders? Or the Group was something different?
Groups was a type of hub in previous versions. You could create a group, invite members and it would be like an app. You open the group and in one place you had a private chat room, shared one note notes, photos, and calendar. As far as I can tell Family Room was just a built in group that was pre named. It was a great feature if you had family and friends on WP.
Thanks for explaining it. So shared folder will still be functional. Cheers.
I don't know what Groups is, so I guess I never used it.
Old time Windows Phone user. I have groups and family group never had any members, as all family except myself used IOS. Got the cryptic email about some service I belong to being discontinued. Mystery solved.
Same cant miss what never was experienced
Yep, would have loved to utilize it - but instead of expanding it out to other platforms, just kill it.
Into the bin with other great MS innovations that they let go fallow, before axing completely.
Still fighting with ways to put my OneDrive on an SD card, and ms is removing features first. Smh. *tear*
I guess you mean on 'big' Windows? If so...
http://garvis.ca/2013/02/21/converting-an-sd-card-to-permanent-storage-i...
Didn't work in WX on my hp stream. Brought that try up in the forum.
Does this mean Family Room photos and our 50+ Notes and Lists (Shopping, ToDo, New home wish list, Projects, ...) using OneNote will be deleted or just disconnected?
!!!
Geez Microsoft! I guess since apple and goggle doesn't have this feature (yet) and you are trying to copy them, so it must go.
Ah yes - I need to know too. I have put ALL our family pics for the last 10yrs in a Family Room group shared folder. Hope that I can still access it!!!
You can, but move to personal and use OneDrive shared folders to share.
OneNote will share lists without family room. Just make sure the notebook is not in family room else you'll loose it sometime. Of course now Microsoft own wunderlist, its the best shopping list notes app
I read "Thanks Prabhu for the Tip" ...laughed so hard ... :D
Lol
what is so funny about that?
Prabhu means god in Hindi! And Sanskrit!! So its funny!! ;m:D
+1520 LoL
Does this mean that shared folders are going to be erased?
No, just the ones in the "Groups" section in the left pane. If you don't see it you don't have it.
Thanks, that was the most helpful comment on this article!
Only if its shared from a group you created
Windows not as a service?
Permanently deleting all your content for you with next to no warning IS a great service. To the competition. Unless this is just bad reporting from Engadget that is being regurgitated around the web, I just lost a HUGE amount of trust in OneDrive.
Oh man, this is a pain, we use the family room calendar heavily and have things in it way past October. It's also the only reason my wife won't move away from Windows Phone, what are MS playing at!!
I don't see how this change to Groups in OneDrive would have any effect on your shared Family Room calendar.
Ok thanks. I know they were stopping rooms some time ago, but our family room continues to work. I thought groups was something different? Just getting a little nervous! Cheers
I'm with you. I use Family room alot, but I must express my ignorance on the mechanics (i.e. what servers merge the data, which MS services support the various features.)
They never said they were stopping rooms they said you couldn't start new rooms after March but that all existing rooms would continue to work which they have been.
Posted via the Windows Central App for Android
It's pretty reasonable to assume that family room may be built on the groups backend in some way. Until we have explicit word from Microsoft one way or the other, I wouldn't be so dismissive.
I have no groups navigation in the left side nav panel in OneDrive. Which suggests I don't have any of these OneDrive groups. My family continues to share our Family Room Calendar and OneNote. Thus the reason for being so dismissive. I guess its possible that mileage may vary, but here is the "backend" as I find it: My Family Room OneNote file resides in a OneDrive folder named "Family Room". I guess folks that use this feature as I do can verify for themselve if they need reassurance.
Removing Rooms removes the easy path to sharing these wonderful tools, but the functionality remains its just not quite as easy to set up initially. Creating a calendar and sharing it though, is super simple in Outlook. Log on to calendar.live.com and see for yourselves! If you've already got a Family Room calendar (original Family Room owner would have this) you can easily share it. If not, create a new calendar, and then share it with whomever you want. SUPER easy!
OneNote is very similar. Just to to OneNote online (office.live.com) and either open a Notebook or create a new one (name it Family Room if it makes you feel good) and once the OneNote document is open you'll find a big Share button at the top. Again, original Family Room owner will already have a OneNote notebook titled Family Room.
Hopefully this help folks sleep easier at night.
If that's all try bbm's group calendar feature
We setup a google account to share the calendar in a while back. A shared outlook.com account can be used for the same purpose. Contacts are shared too. And it can even be used for email lists like church ones where we both want to receive a mailer.
The photos, now you can share OneDrive between users that works for photos and docs.
In the back of my head, I have a plan to create a new MS account called pallentx_family or something. The calendar and one notes can then be shared to everyone in the family. Its a pain and a lot of manual work, but once its done, it should function the same.
Re: Pallentx:
Good idea. If it works, once set up, it seems like it would function the same. If so, I wonder why Microsoft feels they have to eliminate a feature and inconvenience their customers?
See my response above regarding overreacting. Creating an entirely new account would be a huge mistake. Your Family Room stuff is already set up and working, what purpose would you have to go through all this work? Besides, the separate account, my opinion, will be a nightmare. Just share using your already active and functioning accounts. This is what Family Room has already done for you. People are overreacting to this message which most likely doesn't affect you (as you all seem unaware of the group functionality in OneDrive).
Microsoft unfortunately still have a worst habit of removing features that was genuinely useful. Instead of making better strategy at pushing it, they just lazily shut it down just because few people use it which is suck.
If they rather just improve and market the feature always, maybe there will be more people using it. Also if they just make Rooms feature as an app for iOS and Android, then Rooms for WP will be even more useful.
I wonder what will be the next to remove?
Re: aXross,
I agree and wonder what will be next, too. This behavior, eliminating great useful features Microsoft introduced, will make me think twice about taking my time to get involved with and adopt features in the future. I guess it is always good to know exactly where all your data is and to have backup copies so when Microsoft eliminates another feature, I'll still have access to them.
I hope they have a decent replacement. #GroupMe is not it.
No it is not! GroupMe is dysfunctional and hard to use. Microsoft should shut down GroupMe and replace it with Groups.
I've had zero problems with GroupMe
I use GroupMe every day as a texting application. It is not linked to a phone number (like every other texting platform). For some reason the basic IM'ing functions of past aren't available with notifications to multiple phones. While it is far from perfect, it is light years better than skype for me.
But it's light years behind rooms...
Yup.. Some of the best features of windows phone 8.1 are being discontinued. Family Room was very useful feature
My family agrees.
Yes my wife is upset about losing Family Rooms.
My wife was very upset about Family Rooms. It made things a little more difficult and GroupMe is not a good solution. The fact that Rooms were integrated, was the best part. Worked out of the box.
I don't care that MS is shutting down Groups. What I care about is what does MS plan to replace it with?
Family Room still works fine, despite Microsoft threatening to shut it down by March. I wonder how this OneDrive Groups shutdown affects that, though.
We are probably going to a get a half arsed attempt replacement which will probably languish for awhile before getting killed off for something else. Rinse and repeat.
Yeah, standard MS practice is to kill something people liked. Then spend 1-2 years building something really great to replace it.
They are closing it down because "people" don't like/need/use it.
Exactly. It isn't exactly taking off, especially since iphone/droid users don't get integration.
Yeah, we used it a lot. We still use the family room calendar and family room One Note notes.
Does this include Family Room?
Yeah I'd like to know of this is any relation to rooms/family_rooms that existed in WP8x, will that be affected by this?
+1. I know you're just echoing Engadget on this news, but can you guys please reach out to Microsoft and find out if/how it will affect Family Room?
And when does the new family accounts take over, rather annoying how half baked everything is
https://windowsphone.uservoice.com/forums/101801-feature-suggestions/sug...
Assuming "don't get rid of it" isn't enough of an argument to have them keep it, I made the below suggestion. Allowing the pinning of notebooks, OneDrive folders, and other components that made up Family Room seems like it's a way to keep what people liked but without MS having to support rooms.
However, it looks like I'm the only one who thinks this is a decent idea.
https://windowsphone.uservoice.com/forums/101801-feature-suggestions/sug...
I would like to know, does this really affect Family Room? One way or the other, a clear statement. A while ago, Microsoft said that they were shutting down Groups to new users and we couldn't start new Groups nor invite new members to existing Groups. I believe, if i remember correctly, that they said that existing Groups/Family Room would continue to work but without messaging. So, I think, just the shared calendars, OneNotes, photos, and files in OneDrive would continue to work for existing users. Months after that shut down date, Family Room messaging still works. Now they are saying they are eliminating Groups in OneDrive and to move your data or the data will be erased from OneDrive.
I think, it's prudent, to copy and back up all Family Room data / information.
I don't think this is anything to do with Family Room.