Offline Files Windows 10 Cannot Synchronize Access Is Denied

“I’ve come across a weird issue that surfaced when I was off last week, which was misdiagnosed at the time, but I can’t quite find the root cause of.

We have folder redirection for most user profiles, and use offline files so people can access those files even if they are disconnected from the network (e.g. if there’s a connectivity problem, or they are elsewhere).

Since Friday morning, users have experienced issues with their offline files. They can create files, and save back to the file server (The file server is on Server 2016) if they are connected. But they cannot open the file they have created or any existing files when offline.

If I disable offline files, the access denied issue disappears. The issue reappears when I re-enable offline files.

I have tried re-initialising the offline files cache, to no effect. The same if I delete a user profile and get it to repopulate. Any ideas?”

How to Fix Offline Files Access Is Denied Error?

For offline files access is denied error, there are some possible reasons, such as, lack of permission, file encryption, etc. Don’t worry about it and fix it with given solutions in the following.

Method 1: Windows Folder Redirection Access Denied

The access denied error may occur if you put the user’s subfolder under a root shared folder and use \\server_name\root_folder\user_name as mapped drive path.

To fix this error, you should grant all users read permission at least on the root folder, and then you can sync files between server computer and local computer, Because the offline folder will check the user’s permission on the root share when you establish file synchronization.

Method 2: Offline Files Encryption Access Denied

File encryption can be another reason why you receive “offline files Windows 10 cannot synchronize access is denied”. And the offline files encryption may be automatically enabled after you select a network type, ie, public, home, office when connecting to a new network.

To disable offline files encryption, double-click the Sync Center icon on the taskbar, then pitch on the “Manage offline files” option and the “Encryption” tab, hit “Unencrypt”.

Method 3: Reset Offline Files Cache in Windows 10

No matter what the reason, resetting offline files caches can be the last resort to fix offline files access is denied error.

To make it, go to the following registry key, create a new 32-bit DWORDValue named FormatDatabase and set its value to 1, then restart your computer. After that, all offline database cache will be cleared.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Csc\Parameters

Sync Offline Files in Windows 10 with Sync Center

Supposing you have already enabled offline files and make files always available offline, here I only talk about how to sync files.

Open “Sync Center” and click “View sync partnerships”, then select Offline Files under the Folders (1) link and click “Sync” to start file synchronization. If you want to schedule sync offline files, click “Schedule” and follow the on-screen instructions to set it up.

Easier Way to Sync Files in Windows 10

Now, you may already fix this error “offline files Windows 10 cannot synchronize access is denied”. In addition, you still can encounter other sync problems, such as, offline files sync pending, offline files not syncing automatically, enable offline files greyed out etc. It is actually a waste of time to find a working solution every time you encounter a problem with Sync Center.

To fix it once and for all, the best way is to use an alternative software like AOMEI Backupper Standard. It works well in auto sync files between two computers, and supports syncing files to external hard drive, USB flash drive, network drive, cloud drive, NAS, etc. It’s compatible with all the operating system, Windows7/8/8.1/10/XP/Vista. Besides, you still can make a comment for clearly distinguish, set email notification to get final result, create pre-command/post-command etc.

Then, let’s have a closer look at how to sync files between two computers. Before that, please create a share folder on the target computer and download AOMEI Backupper Standard on the current using computer.

Step 1. Launch this software, click “Sync” and “Basic Sync” to start the file sync.

Step 2. Click “+ Add Folder” to select the folder need syncing. Then, click where the arrow point and select the previous created share folder on the target computer.

Step 3. Click “Schedule” and “OK” to enable daily sync. Also, you can change it to weekly or monthly. At last, click “Start Sync” and wait until the task is completed 100%.