The folder related to ArcGIS on Drive D cannot be deleted.

[QuanZhang]

Why do some folders related to ArcGIS keep appearing mysteriously in my D drive path? I created these folders a long time ago, but even though I deleted them, they keep reappearing every so often. This is really frustrating.
Here are some details about my computer:
* I am logged into ArcGIS Pro using my school account.
* I am wondering if this might be related to OneDrive synchronization issues, but when I checked my OneDrive storage, there are no files from the D drive directory in the cloud storage.
* Here are some example file names:

D:\1.Extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index
D:\2.Soli Moisture\Arc_Soil Mositure\Soil Mositure_index
D:\04_Extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index\Arc_extreme weather
D:\05_Extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index\Arc_extreme weather
D:\Extreme_weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index\Arc_extreme weather

[DanPatterson]

OneDrive isn't supported well

Caution:
Cloud storage services, such as Microsoft OneDrive and Google Drive, are not supported unless stated otherwise in the documentation about specific tools and functionality.

Save a project—ArcGIS Pro | Documentation

So it isn't recommended to use it when working with projects.  Perhaps consider packaging a project if you need to transport your project to your home computer

Package Project (Data Management)—ArcGIS Pro | Documentation

Share a project package—ArcGIS Pro | Documentation

or copy local folders containing your project and data to a usb drive and replicating the paths there.

[QuanZhang]

Thank you for your reply.  

Most of the folders I want to delete are empty folders with no files in them. I am trying to paste all of these folders into the use drive.

I am not sure if this will work (because when I deleted them before, they reappeared after a while). There are no arcgis folders from the D drive in my OneDrive folder. This is really confusing.

[VenkataKondepati]

Hi @QuanZhang,

I’ve seen this kind of behavior before, and yeah, it can be frustrating.

From what you described, this sounds less like OneDrive and more like ArcGIS Pro trying to re-establish default project folders or scratch workspaces that were previously tied to a project template or saved path. Even if you deleted the folders, if those paths are still referenced in any project templates or recent project settings, Pro might try to recreate them automatically — especially when opening or saving projects.

A few things I’d check:

• Default project location in ArcGIS Pro: Go to Settings > Options > General and look at your default folder paths — see if anything still points to

• Also check the “Favorites” and tool environments (like geoprocessing history or custom models) — sometimes old paths are cached there too.

• If you used a project template (.aptx) that had that folder paths baked in, any new project you create from it might try to rebuild the same structure.

ArcGIS Pro tends to be “helpful” like that, but it’s not always obvious what triggered the recreation.

I hope this helps and let me know.

Regards,

Venkat

[QuanZhang]

Thanks for your reply. I went to Settings > Options > General and checked my default storage location. I found that I did not specify a default storage location. Favorites is also empty, and I don't think I used a project template (.aptx).

I would like to add some details about my situation. When I delete the following folders, they are successfully deleted. However, after a while (about a week or two), these folders reappear at the same time.During this period, I may open other ArcGIS Pro files, but this does not mean that these folders will immediately reappear when I open another ArcGIS Pro file.

I suspect this may be related to synchronization settings, but I did not see these folders in any of the cloud synchronization services I use. I have now deleted all these folders again. I hope they will not reappear on my D drive in a few days.

D:\1.Extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index
D:\2.Soli Moisture\Arc_Soil Mositure\Soil Mositure_index
D:\04_Extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index\Arc_extreme weather
D:\05_Extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index\Arc_extreme weather
D:\Extreme_weather\Arc_extreme weather\Arc_extreme weather_index\Arc_extreme weather