by Missing Personal Vault, but it’s not gone. Here’s how you can bring it back. OneDrive’s Personal Secure feature is designed to protect all your important files and folders with additional security measures. To keep your Personal Safe truly “personal”, you can configure a two-factor authentication method to access it, such as facial recognition scans, PIN codes, phone or email codes, or even fingerprints.
Read: How to Fix Onedrive Stuck at Signing in
Table of Contents
How to Fix Missing Personal Vault in OneDrive
However, sometimes the personal vault becomes too secure and hides from everyone, even you. While that doesn’t mean the files you stored there are gone, let’s figure out how to restore Personal Vault so you can access your data again.
1. Enable Personal Vault
If you’ve just started using the OneDrive app, there may be a simple reason you can’t find Personal Vault: You haven’t turned it on. If you want to use it, you have to configure it manually. Here’s how to activate Personal Vault using the app:
- Click on the OneDrive icon in the taskbar.
- Click Help & Settings > Unlock Personal Vault.
- In the Microsoft OneDrive window, click Next > Allow.
- Sign in using your Microsoft account credentials.
- Follow the instructions displayed.
2. Check Inside Other Folders
You might not find your Personal Vault because you accidentally moved it to another OneDrive folder. Unfortunately, that means you’ll have to find it manually.
For security reasons, Windows does not display the Personal Vault folder in the left sidebar of File Explorer. Also, you cannot find it or any of its contents using the search box. The only way is to open your folders one by one and find a private safe inside.
3. Check for Corrupted System Files
A corrupt or missing Windows system file can be the reason for the disappearance of your Personal Vault. To resolve this issue, you can run an SFC scan, and Windows will automatically detect and fix any corrupt files. Here’s how to perform an SFC scan:
- In the Start menu search bar, find Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
- Type sfc /scannow.
- Press Enter.
If the SFC scan isn’t enough, you can try using Command Prompt to run Deployment Image Maintenance and Management (or DISM). In the Command Prompt window, type DISM.exe /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth and press Enter to start the scan.
4. Reset OneDrive
Resetting OneDrive can help you get your Personal Vault out of its hiding place. You don’t need to worry about data loss if you go this route, as OneDrive will keep all your files and folders. The only downside to resetting OneDrive is that you have to wait for OneDrive to resync all the files.
How long the reset takes depends on how much data you keep in your OneDrive account and how good your internet speed is. But the trouble is worth it if he manages to get your personal safe back.
Follow these simple steps to reset OneDrive:
- Open OneDrive app.
- Click the three-dot menu in the upper right corner and select Settings.
- Click on Reset Now.
5. Reinstall OneDrive App
If this is not the first time that your personal safety has disappeared from OneDrive, then you should try reinstalling the app. Re-installing the app will remove corrupt and leftover files from your system, which can prevent OneDrive from working properly.
To uninstall it, search for OneDrive in the Start menu search bar and select Uninstall. Once Windows has completed the uninstall process, you can get the app from the Microsoft Store.
Conclusion
OneDrive is a great cloud storage service for your personal data, although it does require an occasional troubleshooting process. The last thing you want to see is your personal vault with your important files and folders disappearing. In that case, our guide hopefully helped you get it back in no time. Even if you have to try multiple solutions, it is still much more efficient than searching your files on your old external storage devices.
