Onedrive’s error The tag present in the reparse point buffer is invalid must be one of the most recurring error messages for Onedrive and Onedrive for Business. When you try to access the file or folder in File Explorer, or even command prompt or Powershell, the error Location not found – The tag present in the reparse point buffer is invalid. pops up.
In addition to this error, you may also see similar errors while working with files, like Error 0x80071129: The tag present in the reparse point buffer is invalid :
The Onedrive error was not caused by you, but by a bug in the Onedrive software. Nevertheless, you will have to solve the problem; Windows or OneDrive is not going to do this for you 🙂
Table of Contents
How to fix The tag present in the reparse point buffer is invalid
How to fix The tag present in the reparse point buffer is invalid in Onedrive
Total time 15 minutes
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Open a Command Prompt as administrator
From your Start menu, search and right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator
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Run chkdsk c: /r /f
In the command prompt, type chkdsk c: /r /f
Hit Enter
When the command prompt asks to answer Y/N, type Y and hit Enter -
Restart your PC
Restart your PC. It usually takes some time to scan your hard drive. Once ready, log back into your PC and try to open/edit/delete the problematic file or folder.
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Reset Onedrive in localappdata
If you still can’t access the file or folder, continue to reset Onedrive. Open a Run dialog by pressing Windows Key + R.
Copy and paste this line and press OK:
%localappdata%\Microsoft\OneDrive\onedrive.exe /reset -
Reset Onedrive in Program Files
If resetting Onedrive in localappdata returned an error, try resetting Onedrive in Program Files:
Open a Run dialog by pressing Windows Key + R.
Copy and paste this line and press OK:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft OneDrive\onedrive.exe /reset -
Restart your PC
Restart your PC once more to verify the error was resolved
Resetting OneDrive is validated instruction from Microsoft, but is often not needed in this case. The chkdsk command usually does its job.
What causes Location not found – The tag present in the reparse point buffer is invalid?
The Location is not available error is caused by the sync process of Onedrive. It is very likely a small bug in Onedrive’s software, that the development team of Microsoft has to fix. As the bug has been around for quite some time, I don’t think there’s going to be a fix very soon.
Luckily the reparse error only appears very seldom. Some users will never encounter the error. However, folders with thousands of files are more likely to cause the error. Examples of applications are:
- Tradingview
- BioGame
- Photoshop
- Eclipse / Java
- NI-DAQmx
If you decide not to fix this issue, you may run into serious problems. Some applications may not start correctly, or use wrong data sets. And worse, Onedrive might skip folders during synchronization to the Onedrive cloud. In this scenario, you do not have a backup in case of a failing hard drive, resulting in data loss.
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thanks got it
It worked like a charm.
Thank you for this write up. this helped me fix an issue for a user.
Both the chkdsk and onedrive reset had no effect.
The error message never changed and the folder in question shows as constantly syncing in explorer.exe
Hey Scott, that’s a shame. Have you ever found a solution for your problem?
This helped fix my issue! Thank you!
this is a life saver thank you so much!!!
Thanks!!
Thank you, that worked perfectly. I was having trouble deleting lightroom preview folders and now its all good!!!
I can kiss you! Thank you for all the help!
Thank you very much! I ran chkdsk and afterwards i was able to edit or delete the problematic file.
But, my Outlook is messed up, I can’t sign in with any profile.
Thanks! chkdsk c: /r /f worked!
Vooho, Thanks a lot. I work at B2B service desk and this helped me a lot!
This did work for me! Thank you
The restart prompt worked perfectly, thank you!
I keep encountering this error Visual Studio 2019 when connected to Azure DevOps. I get this when issuing a GET Latest so sync up files between azure and my local repository. This also occurs when trying to promote work items from Dev to Test and so on.
chkdsk c: /r /f solve the problem thx
It’s worked perfectly,,
Thanks a lot..
Worked for me, thanks! 🙂
I’ll just rename the containing folder and ignore the damned thing. Eventually I’ll have the IT people allocate a better virtual machine for me (coz I need more memory anyway), then I’ll TAKE CONTROLL OF ONEDRIVE so that it’s less omnipresent. First the machine warns me, YOU’RE RUNNING OUT OF SPACE. OK, so I’ll delete some older files I don’t need anymore. Then OneDrive tells me, OH, YOU ACCIDENTALLY DELETED SOME FILES, LET ME PUT THEM BACK FOR YOU. “what??” So again the machine warns me, YOU’RE RUNNING OUT OF SPACE Then I tell OneDrive, “delete these files, I mean… Read more »
LOL, aaahh yes, an IT Pro dealing with software that was written to accomodate LCDPIINCs (Lowest Common Denominator Primary Interest Is Not Computers (barely computer literate) (pronounced elk-duh-pinks)
Next time unsync the folders or select them to only be stored in onedrive
Chkdsk fixed this issue for me on my Windows 10 Enterprise laptop with BitLocker encryption enabled.
it work for me.
Chkdsk fixed this issue for me causing an Arduino library to not be accessible.
Running the chkdsk c: /r /f command work for me! Thanks a lot 🙂
None have worked for me yet. I’m trying step 5 now and its saying the command is wrong?
thanks for the information
Thank you so much. I have spent a long time trying to get rid of a folder! It’s finally gone!
Thanks a lot for this! I just tried the 5th step directly and the issue got resolved for me.
This solution worked for me (#1-3). Thank you!
Running the chkdsk c: /r /f command work for me! Thanks a lot!
Running the chkdsk c: /r /f command work for me! Thanks a lot!
I couldn’t believe I was getting rid of that file. This worked for me (#1-3). Thank you!
Chkdsk command sorted this for me too. Thnaks
These steps did not work.
Thank you!! Worked for me.
It should probably be noted this scan could take hours. It may be desirable to run overnight or the weekend.
I tried to use this recommendation, but it was not helpful. I fully uninstall OneDrive but it also did not help me. I still getting same message when I try to delete some files. How to solve it?
Worked for me. Thanks!
Running the chkdsk c: /r /f command worked for me! Thank you so much!!
Thanks! chdsk c: /r /f did it for me. However, at 100% complete of that operation the system did not restart on its own (As it should have), so I had to manually force a power off. When turned back on, the system worked as expected and file could be removed.
worked!
Worked following the 3 steps only. Many thanks
First solution resolved the error with me
“Open a Command Prompt as administrator”
Thank you!!! I was banging my head against the wall trying to delete a corrupt file. #1-3 worked!
Fixed!! I only needed step1 to 3. Excellent advice 🙂
Running the chkdsk c: /r /f command work for me! Thanks a lot!
This solution worked for me (#1-3). Thank you!
Thank you it works for me !!
I have a program (Cyberlink AudioDirectoe) that onedrive does not allow to run. Any Suggestions
That worked. Thanks TEAM!