Fix the OneDrive Icon Issue in the Windows LTSC File Explorer Sidebar

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After installing Windows 11 LTSC, I noticed that the OneDrive icon in the File Explorer sidebar wasn’t working properly. Clicking on it did nothing, and the properties page was completely blank. A quick search revealed that this is an old Microsoft bug. When you install the personal version of OneDrive on the LTSC version of Windows, the installer fails to register the path value pointing to the OneDrive folder for the sidebar icon, resulting in it pointing to a null value. I guess it’s just classic Microsoft—years later, and this bug is still around.

Fix Method

We’ll fix this by registering the correct path for the OneDrive icon through the registry. First, create a new txt file, then copy and paste the content below into it. Save the file and change the extension to .reg, then double-click it to merge it into the registry. If it doesn’t take effect immediately, just restart File Explorer.

If your OneDrive folder isn’t in the default location C:\User\YourUsername\OneDrive, you’ll need to modify the content accordingly:

  • If the OneDrive folder is still in your user directory, like C:\User\YourUsername\NewFolder, just change the value of RelativePath to NewFolder.
  • If the OneDrive folder is outside your user directory, update the value of RelativePath to the absolute path of your current OneDrive folder, such as "RelativePath"="E:\OneDrive", and then delete the line "ParentFolder"="{5E6C858F-0E22-4760-9AFE-EA3317B67173}".
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Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FolderDescriptions\{A52BBA46-E9E1-435f-B3D9-28DAA648C0F6}]  
"Attributes"=dword:00000001  
"Category"=dword:00000004  
"DefinitionFlags"=dword:00000040  
"Icon"=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,\  
00,25,00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,69,00,\  
6d,00,61,00,67,00,65,00,72,00,65,00,73,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,\  
00,31,00,30,00,34,00,30,00,00,00  
"LocalizedName"=hex(2):40,00,25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,\  
6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,00,5c,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,\  
00,5c,00,53,00,65,00,74,00,74,00,69,00,6e,00,67,00,53,00,79,00,6e,00,63,00,\  
43,00,6f,00,72,00,65,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,2c,00,2d,00,31,00,30,00,32,\  
00,34,00,00,00  
"LocalRedirectOnly"=dword:00000001  
"Name"="OneDrive"  
"ParentFolder"="{5E6C858F-0E22-4760-9AFE-EA3317B67173}"  
"ParsingName"="shell:::{018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6}"  
"RelativePath"="OneDrive"

Possible New Bugs

This brings us to another one of Microsoft’s beloved traditions: the “buy one bug, get one free” deal. After fixing the previous bug and restarting my computer, I was greeted with a new surprise — now there are two OneDrive icons in my sidebar, and both of them work perfectly. Thanks a lot, Microsoft!

This bug can still be fixed via the registry, with two methods to try. If the first one doesn’t work, try the second. Initially, I used the first method, but after a few days, two OneDrive icons reappeared in the sidebar. I then switched to the second method, and so far, the bug hasn’t returned.

Method 1

  1. Open the Run dialog by pressing Windows + R.
  2. Type regedit to open the Registry Editor.
  3. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace.
  4. Check if there are multiple folders with the data value OneDrive under NameSpace. If there are, delete the extra folders, keeping only the one with the data value {018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6}.

Method 1

Method 2

  1. Open the Run dialog by pressing Windows + R.
  2. Type regedit to open the Registry Editor.
  3. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\{04271989-C4D2-EFBF-85D9-31CFA598C756}.
  4. Double-click System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree and set the value to 0.
  5. Click OK to save the changes.

Method 2

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