Microsoft is soon to add a new feature to its cloud storage service called OneDrive. Known as “File Restore,” the feature will allow users to restore their OneDrive storage to any point in time and recover files that may have been accidentally deleted or encrypted by ransomware.
Details about the upcoming OneDrive file recovery feature were revealed during a SharePoint presentation on Saturday in San Diego by Stephen L Rose, the Senior Product Manager of OneDrive for Business.
File Restore could roll out in the next two weeks, but it's not known whether it will be available only to OneDrive for Business users or to all OneDrive users.
It seems pretty similar to how System Restore in Windows can be used to restore a PC to a previous system state to recover system settings and installed apps. The difference is that Microsoft does this for files stored in OneDrive.
Certainly, users being able to easily recover their files will encourage them to increase their use of cloud-based storage options. While it may not be specifically intended for this purpose, File Restore could reduce the effects of ransomware attacks that prevent users from accessing their files until they agree to pay a ransom. However, users will need to enable cloud sync every time so that new files are regularly added to their cloud storage.
