14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has recently announced a rather controversial update for the OneDrive for Mac client, as the company has decided to enabled Files On-Demand for everybody, without giving users the option of opting out.
Needless to say, such an approach caused plenty of criticism aimed at the Redmond-based software giant, and now the company has come up with a detailed explanation as to why Files On-Demand is enabled automatically for macOS users.
In short, Microsoft says the feature uses some tech that Apple itself is currently ditching in the latest beta build of macOS, so the company needs to prepare for the moment when this update will go live.
Feature enforced starting in macOS 12.3
“We are building a new experience for several reasons. One of the most important is that the new technology stack (based on Apple’s File Provider platform) is much better integrated with the operating system compared to the first version. This means a better user experience, better application compatibility, and better reliability. This technology stack also enables us to offer new features that we couldn’t offer before, like Known Folder Move, along with lots of other little improvements that you probably won’t notice right away!” Microsoft explains.
“Because the new experience is more integrated with macOS, it will have long-term support from Apple. The first version of Files On-Demand is built on several pieces of technology that are now deprecated. Moving to the new platform enables us to support this feature for years to come.”
Moving forward, the classic Files On-Demand experience will only be available on macOS 12.2, while users running a newer version of the operating system will get Files On-Demand no matter they want it or not. The feature will be enabled by default for everybody, and there will no option to disable it, Microsoft has confirmed.