iPad: OneDrive deletes files after renaming them

iPad Pro iOS 17
A client receives monthly report as PDF and stores them on OneDrive. They have overly long filenames. He renames them to something like Report 3-2024.pdf, Report 4-2024.pdf etc etc. After renaming you still see the old file with the long name and a new file with a shortened filename. After this you can open both files independently.

If you then delete the old file with the long name, OneDrive ALSO deletes the renamed file. Not what the doctor ordered. This is reproducible.

Apple"s own FILES app doesn’t show this behaviour and works flawless, obviously we’re now using FILES instead of OneDrive.app

But can anybody else reproduce this OneDrive behaviour?

I rename files in OneDrive periodically. I have never seen the behavior of duplicating the file (having both the old name and the new; only the new name). Could he be creating an alias?

That was my first thought, but how would you even generate an Alias on an iPad?
Also, if we assume it WAS/IS an alias, why would deleting the original also kill the alias?

Good points. I just went into OneDrive on my iPad (M1 iPad Pro 11) and renamed a file. Only one file properly renamed. It is worth noting that I DON’T see the extensions (e.g., .docx, pdf), only the names in OneDrive. If I add a file type (e.g., .pptx) to the file in the iPad, it adds it to the name but now I have TWO dots (e.g., name.pptx.pptx) when I look at the file via the web interface.

It would be worth asking him what the web version of OneDrive says is going on. I find the web interface is the ultimate source of truth for OneDrive.

So do I, therefore we had another session today. In a controlled environment, with a factory reset MBP next to us to serve as the ultimate TruthFinder (TF). We worked systematically and avoided too much coffee or any other mind altering substances.

  • We could reproduce the faulty behaviour on the iPad many times.
  • The TF Mac did not show any reflection of the fault, It did actual show what we expected.
  • The iPad showed us something that wasn’t real.

In conclusion it must have been something on the iPad that misbehaved.
We solved it by completely by signing out from OneDrive, then deleting the OneDrive App from the iPad, then reinstalling it.

Normal behaviour returned.
Phew!

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