I like puppies.
What is the problem you are having with rclone?
Sorry for the long post !
I have rewritten the following multiple times, and am still not happy with it. Please bear with me.
Maybe starting with the heading “A log from the command that you were trying to run with the -vv flag” is more informative, concise and telling for experts, than reading my attempt at verbosely describing what I see and think happens.
Ok. Here goes the verbal description:
I've been using rclone to sync files to OneDrive Business (ODB) for years, but only recently discovered --fast-list. During testing, I added --fast-list as a parameter and found that rclone then tries to retransmit everything when the remote uses ODB shared folders. This happens not just the first time, but every single time. I believe this occurs because --fast-list does not enumerate shared folders (properly?), so it always appears as though they are missing, triggering a complete upload attempt each time. (I might be completely wrong!)
What do I mean by "ODB shared folders"? (I might not be using the correct terminology here.)
Access to OneDrive contents can be shared in several ways. One method allows user A to share a folder with user B (typically, by giving user B access to "a SharePoint" or an ODB folder). This only works within the same organisation. For user B and ODB, this appears as just another folder in user B's ODB storage. From rclone's perspective, however, it's different. rclone lsd remote: won't list shared folders, yet rclone can still read from and write to them.
Example: User A shares folder folder_a with User B. rclone can access this folder with rclone sync some_local_folder remote:/folder_a. If nothing changes locally or remotely, the next run will show INFO : There was nothing to transfer. Just as expected.
But the same command with --fast-list added (and --onedrive-delta as prerequisite), e.g. rclone sync some_local_folder remote:/folder_a --fast-list --onedrive-delta will detect all files as missing and [try to] reupload them.
I found this surprising, as my understanding is that --fast-list simply retrieves information from the remote in a different manner. This might reflect a gap in my understanding.
I searched for the problem on my end by:
- Reading up on
--fast-listhere and here. - Searching the forum for similar experiences using the broad search term ‘
Onedrive –fast-list’. There weren't many posts, which suggests this might still be an issue on my side - Stripping the command back to basics:
rclone sync $source $dest --verbose --dry-run --onedrive-delta [--fast-list]. - Testing the command on macOS (15.7.3 x86_64) and Ubuntu (24.04.3 LTS, aarch64) with no difference in results.
- Checking for updates on both platforms using
[sudo] rclone self-update. - Creating a folder with fewer files and running
rclone sync(andrclone copy) multiple times to ensure this wasn't an odd--dry-runissue (similar to what can happen withrclone bisync).
What's the purpose of this lengthy post?
To raise awareness of this issue. I do not think it is a bug, but a constraint when using ODB shared folders. Perhaps a small note in the documentation would help others who encounter the same problem.
Would I like --fast-list to work with shared folders as well? Yes, but this is most likely an edge case and may not even be technically feasible.
Run the command 'rclone version' and share the full output of the command.
On Ubuntu:
rclone v1.72.1
- os/version: ubuntu 24.04 (64 bit)
- os/kernel: 6.8.0-1043-raspi (aarch64)
- os/type: linux
- os/arch: arm64 (ARMv8 compatible)
- go/version: go1.25.5
- go/linking: static
- go/tags: none
On macOS:
rclone v1.72.1
- os/version: darwin 15.7.3 (64 bit)
- os/kernel: 24.6.0 (x86_64)
- os/type: darwin
- os/arch: amd64
- go/version: go1.25.5
- go/linking: dynamic
- go/tags: cmount
Which cloud storage system are you using? (eg Google Drive)
Microsoft OneDrive Business of a Microsoft M365 EFC.
The command you were trying to run (eg rclone copy /tmp remote:tmp)
```
rclone sync $source $remote:$shared_folder --verbose --stats=0 --onedrive-delta --fast-list [--dry-run]
```
Please run 'rclone config redacted' and share the full output. If you get command not found, please make sure to update rclone.
```
[m1a]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh m1a
shell_type = unix
md5sum_command = md5sum
sha1sum_command = sha1sum
[m1af]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh -i ~/.ssh/ssh.internal.admin.pub admin-redacted-cl-m1@redacted
shell_type = unix
md5sum_command = md5sum
sha1sum_command = sha1sum
[m2a]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh m2a
shell_type = unix
[m3a]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh m3a
shell_type = unix
[odql]
type = onedrive
region = global
token = XXX
drive_id = XXX
drive_type = business
[odql_encrypted]
type = crypt
remote = odqlsc:Encrypted
filename_encryption = obfuscate
directory_name_encryption = true
password = XXX
password2 = XXX
[odqlsa]
type = onedrive
drive_id = XXX
drive_type = business
no_versions = true
token = XXX
[odqlsb]
type = onedrive
token = XXX
drive_id = XXX
drive_type = business
no_versions = true
[odqlsc]
type = onedrive
token = XXX
drive_id = XXX
drive_type = business
no_versions = true
[odqlsc_encrypted]
type = crypt
remote = odqlsc:Encrypted
filename_encryption = obfuscate
directory_name_encryption = true
password = XXX
password2 = XXX
no_versions = true
[odqlw]
type = onedrive
region = global
drive_id = XXX
drive_type = business
no_versions = true
token = XXX
[u1sd]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh u1sd
shell_type = unix
[u2sd]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh u2sd
shell_type = unix
[u3sd]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh u3sd
shell_type = unix
[u4sd]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh u4sd
shell_type = unix
[u5sd]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh u5sd
shell_type = unix
md5sum_command = md5sum
sha1sum_command = sha1sum
[u9a]
type = sftp
ssh = ssh u9a
shell_type = unix
md5sum_command = md5sum
sha1sum_command = sha1sum
### Double check the config for sensitive info before posting publicly
```
A log from the command that you were trying to run with the -vv flag
I've left out the -vv flag for some commands, not because I think I am smarter, but for brevity. I will happily provide all commands with -vv if this helps.
+++ show contents:
sv-u5 ~ rclone lsd odqlsb:
-1 2025-12-19 00:15:49 0 Attachments
-1 2022-04-07 16:31:49 6 Repository # this folder has been shared with odql:
sv-u5 ~ rclone lsd odqlsb:Repository
-1 2026-01-05 00:26:01 105 logs
sv-u5 ~ rclone lsd odql:
-1 2024-05-23 23:51:53 1 Apps
-1 2024-09-29 11:20:30 0 Attachments
-1 2019-01-05 19:13:41 1 OneNote
-> shared folder 'Repository' _not_ displayed for odql:
sv-u5 ~ rclone lsd odql:Repository
-1 2026-01-05 00:26:01 105 logs
-> shared folder 'Repository' _can_ be accessed _from odql:_
+++ sync:
sv-u5 ~ rclone sync /mnt/logs/ odqlsb:Repository/logs --verbose --stats=0 --onedrive-delta --dry-run
2026/01/05 13:13:48 INFO : There was nothing to transfer
sv-u5 ~ rclone sync /mnt/logs/ odql:Repository/logs --verbose --stats=0 --onedrive-delta --dry-run
2026/01/05 13:13:58 INFO : There was nothing to transfer
-> shared folder 'Repository' _can_ be synced _from odql:_
+++ add --fast-list:
sv-u5 ~ time rclone sync /mnt/logs/ odqlsb:Repository/logs --verbose --stats=0 --onedrive-delta --fast-list --dry-run
2026/01/05 13:20:17 INFO : There was nothing to transfer
real 0m53.678s
user 0m1.842s
sys 0m0.152s
sv-u5 ~ time rclone sync /mnt/logs/ odql:Repository/logs --verbose --stats=0 --onedrive-delta --fast-list --dry-run
2026/01/05 13:22:27 NOTICE: audt3z9pw8lp: Skipped copy as --dry-run is set (size 279.591Ki)
2026/01/05 13:22:27 NOTICE: abvxj5h9m6x3: Skipped copy as --dry-run is set (size 2.931Mi)
2026/01/05 13:22:27 NOTICE: bd8nvmvh3qt0: Skipped copy as --dry-run is set (size 267.346Ki)
2026/01/05 13:22:27 NOTICE: bob2ei0ul0bq: Skipped copy as --dry-run is set (size 238.774Ki)
2026/01/05 13:22:27 NOTICE: al777ubxao59: Skipped copy as --dry-run is set (size 23.690Ki)
...
2026/01/05 13:22:27 NOTICE: zk39tu63u6ya: Skipped copy as --dry-run is set (size 214.284Ki)
real 0m1.077s
user 0m0.091s
sys 0m0.044s
-> --fast-list changes the way the contents are enumerated.
If used on a shared folder, it sees no files, and thus assumes everything needs to be [re]transmitted (not "re", actually).
Note how fast it is (1 sec vs. 53 sec).
+++ --fast-list and -vv
sv-u5 ~ time rclone sync /mnt/logs/ odqlsb:Repository/logs -vv --stats=0 --onedrive-delta --fast-list --dry-run
2026/01/05 13:43:24 DEBUG : rclone: Version "v1.72.1" starting with parameters ["rclone" "sync" "/mnt/logs/" "odqlsb:Repository/logs" "-vv" "--stats=0" "--onedrive-delta" "--fast-list" "--dry-run"]
2026/01/05 13:43:24 DEBUG : Creating backend with remote "/mnt/logs/"
2026/01/05 13:43:24 DEBUG : Using config file from "/home/service-deployment/.config/rclone/rclone.conf"
2026/01/05 13:43:24 DEBUG : fs cache: renaming cache item "/mnt/logs/" to be canonical "/mnt/logs"
2026/01/05 13:43:24 DEBUG : Creating backend with remote "odqlsb:Repository/logs"
2026/01/05 13:43:24 DEBUG : odqlsb: detected overridden config - adding "{HkZ8H}" suffix to name
2026/01/05 13:43:25 DEBUG : fs cache: renaming cache item "odqlsb:Repository/logs" to be canonical "odqlsb{HkZ8H}:Repository/logs"
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : abvxj5h9m6x3: size = 3073088 OK
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : audt3z9pw8lp: size = 286301 OK
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : audt3z9pw8lp: Size and modification time the same (differ by -211.88527ms, within tolerance 1s)
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : audt3z9pw8lp: Unchanged skipping
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : bd8nvmvh3qt0: size = 273762 OK
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : bd8nvmvh3qt0: Size and modification time the same (differ by -929.884651ms, within tolerance 1s)
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : bd8nvmvh3qt0: Unchanged skipping
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : bob2ei0ul0bq: size = 244505 OK
...
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : u1dakk9ygmuw: Unchanged skipping
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : s94nl0emkmjs: Unchanged skipping
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : OneDrive root 'Repository/logs': Waiting for transfers to finish
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : Waiting for deletions to finish
2026/01/05 13:44:30 INFO : There was nothing to transfer
2026/01/05 13:44:30 DEBUG : 7 go routines active
real 1m5.654s
user 0m1.843s
sys 0m0.179s
-> still 'INFO : There was nothing to transfer' as expected.
sv-u5 ~ time rclone sync /mnt/logs/ odql:Repository/logs -vv --stats=0 --onedrive-delta --fast-list --dry-run
2026/01/05 13:29:59 DEBUG : rclone: Version "v1.72.1" starting with parameters ["rclone" "sync" "/mnt/logs/" "odql:Repository/logs" "-vv" "--stats=0" "--onedrive-delta" "--fast-list" "--dry-run"]
2026/01/05 13:29:59 DEBUG : Creating backend with remote "/mnt/logs/"
2026/01/05 13:29:59 DEBUG : Using config file from "/home/service-deployment/.config/rclone/rclone.conf"
2026/01/05 13:29:59 DEBUG : fs cache: renaming cache item "/mnt/logs/" to be canonical "/mnt/logs"
2026/01/05 13:29:59 DEBUG : Creating backend with remote "odql:Repository/logs"
2026/01/05 13:29:59 DEBUG : odql: detected overridden config - adding "{HkZ8H}" suffix to name
2026/01/05 13:30:00 DEBUG : fs cache: renaming cache item "odql:Repository/logs" to be canonical "odql{HkZ8H}:Repository/logs"
2026/01/05 13:30:00 DEBUG : abvxj5h9m6x3: Need to transfer - File not found at Destination
2026/01/05 13:30:00 DEBUG : al777ubxao59: Need to transfer - File not found at Destination
2026/01/05 13:30:00 DEBUG : audt3z9pw8lp: Need to transfer - File not found at Destination
2026/01/05 13:30:00 DEBUG : bd8nvmvh3qt0: Need to transfer - File not found at Destination
...
2026/01/05 13:30:00 NOTICE: z9z4lbaghqtx: Skipped copy as --dry-run is set (size 550.203Ki)
2026/01/05 13:30:00 DEBUG : Waiting for deletions to finish
2026/01/05 13:30:00 DEBUG : 6 go routines active
real 0m0.809s
user 0m0.095s
sys 0m0.047s
+++
I’ll have a look into that.