---
id: "en/faq-sync"
title: "FAQ: Synchronization, client and mapped disk"
language: "en"
description: "Covers common issues related to synchronization, clients and mapped disks."
canonical_url: "https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/faq-sync.html"
markdown_url: "https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/ai/en/faq-sync.md"
alternates: {"en": "https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/ai/en/faq-sync.md", "zh": "https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/ai/zh/faq-sync.md"}
reading_note: "文档记录不等于当前部署能力；以实际版本、授权模块与配置为准。保留原文的可选、限制及待确认说明，勿补猜接口。 / Documentation is not a guarantee for every deployment. Preserve optional-module requirements, limitations and unresolved API contracts."
---

# FAQ: Synchronization, client and mapping disk

Find tasks here: sync and mapped drives in questions 51–61; file editing permissions in question 62; administrator activity and recycle bins in questions 63–64. See also [Permissions FAQ](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/faq-permissions.html), [Activity and notifications](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/activity-notification.html) and [Recovery troubleshooting](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/faq-technical.html). Numbers remain for old-link compatibility; include the page and question title when citing across pages.

## 51. What is a mapped drive, and how does it differ from folder synchronization?
A mapped drive shows authorized cloud files and downloads content on demand into a local cache. Uncached content generally requires a connection; cached files do consume disk space. Folder synchronization keeps selected files locally for offline work and transfers changes according to direction and permissions.

Dragging from a mapped drive depends on the OS, cache state and destination app. It is not universally unsupported. Download or cache the content first, then copy it locally if needed.

![Windows mapped drive](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/assets/images/mapped-drive-windows.jpg)
*Mapped drive browses cloud files like a local disk and caches files on demand instead of fully syncing everything.*

![Create sync task](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/assets/images/client-sync-create.webp)
*Sync keeps selected cloud or local folders continuously aligned, useful for offline editing and fixed work directories.*

Windows mapped drives use CFAPI, with the cache location customizable during first installation. Mac mapped drives use native File Provider to manage local content. After saving, successful upload and closing editors, right-click the relevant file or folder in the mapped drive in File Explorer or Finder and select the command to release local content, using the same workflow as OneDrive. Verify that the cloud file remains and can download again when opened online. Ordinary sync-folder files are not disposable placeholder cache, and deletion may propagate to the cloud. See [Mapped-drive cache location and release guidance](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/mapped-drive.html).

Linux, including Kylin, has the same synchronization capabilities as Windows and macOS and supports editing files with local applications, but does not support mapped drives. Linux builds have the same capabilities; choose the compiled build for the distribution and processor architecture.

## 52. Why are new files or recent changes not syncing? {#52-why-can-t-i-synchronize-newly-added-files-or-not-synchronize-the-latest-file-versions}
Check pause/network status, upload and folder-creation permissions, type filters, enterprise allow/block lists, size limits and quotas. Wait for locked or actively written files to finish saving.

Inspect the exact sync error. Preserve an independent copy of important files outside the synced area before troubleshooting. Do not move files out and back simply to retrigger synchronization: two-way sync may propagate the move as a deletion.

To repair a sync error, open Settings → Sync folders in the client, click the wrench-shaped action button on the task row, and select Reset this synchronization (重置该同步 in the Chinese interface). The client rescans and realigns that task's local and cloud sync folders. Save open edits, check the sync direction and preserve important changes that have not uploaded before proceeding. Afterward, check the task status and file contents on both sides. This repairs a sync task; it does not release mapped-drive cache.

![Sync management list](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/assets/images/sync-management-list.jpg)
*The sync management list shows task status, sync direction, errors and conflicts, and supports reset handling.*

## 53. Why do I get the message that several files were not synchronized successfully during synchronization?
Use the failed-item log to check permissions, local/cloud space, current upload limits, file locks, unfinished writes, invalid OS filenames or long paths, filters and network/certificate errors. An old 8GB reference is not a universal limit, and Chinese punctuation is not inherently invalid.

Keep the original before retrying; adjust incompatible names or paths when needed. Check network and system time separately, using the correct timezone and synchronized clock. A VPN does not inherently cause clock errors.

## 54. What are the permissions related to synchronization?
If you are in a department and want to synchronize a folder in the department files, the permissions related to synchronization are:

Upload files (synchronously upload local files)

Download your own files

Download other people's files

Move your own files

Move someone else's files

Delete your own files

Delete other people's files

Create folder
Only people with the above roles can perform complete synchronization. If a certain permission is missing, a certain operation during synchronization is missing.

At the same time, if the synchronized folder has been set up with "File Access Control", the settings in File Access Control will prevail.

## 55. I deleted a file locally when synchronizing files. Will it still be there in the cloud?
In a normal two-way task, deleting a local file or moving it outside the synced folder attempts to delete the cloud counterpart, subject to permissions. Recovery depends on recycle-bin retention. Two-way sync is not an upload-only backup that preserves every locally deleted file; confirm the backup mode separately.

## 56. During synchronization, if I delete a file in the cloud, will it still be there locally?
Normal two-way sync propagates cloud deletions locally, subject to task direction, permissions and status. Before restoring, check recycle-bin retention and other synced clients to avoid repeated deletion.

## 57. Can several people in our department synchronize a certain folder at the same time?
Yes, BabelBird supports multiple people to synchronize the same cloud folder. At the same time, if multiple users synchronizing the same folder have the same permissions, the files in the local synchronized folders of several users will be consistent.

## 58. If I delete a file on the mapped disk, will it still be there in the cloud?

Deleting a file from a mapped drive also deletes the corresponding cloud file if you have deletion permission. Without that permission, the system reports that the action is not allowed.

For recovery, check the Recycle Bin first. Recovery depends on retained files, your account’s visibility and the organization’s retention policy; it is not guaranteed indefinitely. See [accidental deletion recovery](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/faq-preview-search.html#83-what-should-i-do-if-the-file-is-accidentally-deleted).

## 59. Why can’t I drag files on my mapped disk to WeChat and send them?
Ensure the mapped file is fully downloaded or cached before dragging it into WeChat. Support for virtual files varies by OS and app version. If dragging fails, copy or download the file into a normal local folder and attach it there. Use the current recipient app limits, not an old fixed 10MB claim.

## 60. Why can’t I find my mapping disk?
Because the mapped disk needs to obtain the underlying permissions of the operating system, it is easily restricted by the operating system and cannot be accessed. The current version has solved this problem very well, but under some anti-virus software or operating systems, problems such as the mapped disk cannot be found and the file icons in the mapped disk are incorrectly displayed may still occur.

Check the security software’s block logs first. Ask an administrator to verify the client source and required communication, then allow only the trusted program and necessary communication; do not disable security protection as a whole. If reinstallation is needed, independently preserve local files and edits that have not uploaded before following the administrator’s instructions.

## 61. Why can some files in my synchronized folder be synchronized, but some cannot?
Files within one task can differ in permissions, size, type and lock state. Check the failed item for upload/download/create-folder permissions, filters, quota, cache space, locks and path compatibility. Back up important originals before following the specific sync error; moving files out and back is not a risk-free repair.

## 62. Why can I edit some files in the department but not others?
First check **File Owner Mode (文件负责人模式)** at the top of Enterprise Console → Permission Management (权限管理), and identify the file's current owner:

- **Enabled:** owners automatically have permission to manage files they own, without restrictions from their department role. Their department role still applies to files they do not own. Non-owners are not automatically prevented from editing.
- **Disabled:** owners are subject to department-role restrictions, just like other members.

Then check whether the department role permits the relevant action, such as Edit other people's files online (在线编辑别人的文件), whether a file access rule blocks editing, and whether the file is locked. The uploader is not necessarily the current owner, particularly when uploading into someone else's folder. See [File Owner Mode](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/permissions.html#file-owner-mode) for the switch location, screenshot explanation and full rules.

## 63. Why can’t a super administrator see some departments’ activity? {#63-i-am-a-super-administrator-why-can-t-i-see-the-dynamics-of-some-departments}

Super administrators can view company department folders for administration, but receive activity updates only from departments, projects and shares they have joined. To receive a department’s updates, join that department.

## 64. I am a super administrator, why do files appear in the Recycle Bin after I empty it?

This is the current multi-level Recycle Bin behavior. Department files deleted by a member remain visible at the department-manager and super-administrator levels. Files deleted by a department manager also remain visible to the super administrator, allowing further management and recovery.

When a super administrator also has a department-member or department-manager role, permanently clearing department files requires **two emptying operations**:

1. The first clears files at the administrator’s department-role level.
2. After refreshing, the same files may still appear at the super-administrator level. Check the affected files and perform the second operation only when permanent deletion is intended.

This applies to overlapping roles in the multi-level Recycle Bin. It is not a recovery step for ordinary users. To recover files, do not empty the bin; see [accidental deletion recovery](https://www.babel.cc/public/babelwiki/en/faq-preview-search.html#83-what-should-i-do-if-the-file-is-accidentally-deleted).