Bulk Downloading Files from OneDrive using PnP PowerShell

OneDrive for Business stores files in SharePoint Online document libraries, making it possible to bulk download files using PnP PowerShell. This guide covers:

Connecting to OneDrive
Retrieving files from a specific folder
Downloading all files
Downloading files based on conditions

Step 1: Install and Import PnP PowerShell

If you haven’t installed PnP PowerShell, install it using:

Install-Module -Name PnP.PowerShell -Scope CurrentUser -AllowClobber -Force

Import the module:

Import-Module PnP.PowerShell

PnP PowerShell is ready!

Step 2: Connect to OneDrive

First, establish a connection to your OneDrive site:

$OneDriveUrl = "https://yourtenant-my.sharepoint.com/personal/your_email_com"
Connect-PnPOnline -Url $OneDriveUrl -Interactive

🔹 Replace yourtenant with your Microsoft 365 tenant name.
🔹 Replace your_email_com with your OneDrive user’s UPN (User Principal Name).
🔹 This will prompt you for Microsoft 365 login credentials.

Connected to OneDrive!

Step 3: Retrieve a List of All Files

To list all files in your OneDrive:

$Files = Get-PnPListItem -List "Documents"
$Files | Select-Object FileLeafRef, FileRef

🔹 This retrieves all files from the Documents library.
🔹 The output will show FileLeafRef (file name) and FileRef (file path).

Retrieved file list!

Step 4: Bulk Download All Files

To download all files to a local folder:

$LocalPath = "C:\OneDriveDownloads"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $LocalPath -Force

$Files = Get-PnPListItem -List "Documents"

foreach ($File in $Files) {
    $FileUrl = $File["FileRef"]
    $FileName = $File["FileLeafRef"]
    $Destination = "$LocalPath\$FileName"
    
    Get-PnPFile -Url $FileUrl -Path $LocalPath -FileName $FileName -AsFile -Force
}

Write-Host "Download completed! Files are saved in $LocalPath"

🔹 Creates a local folder (C:\OneDriveDownloads).
🔹 Loops through all files in OneDrive and downloads them.
🔹 Uses -Force to overwrite existing files.

Bulk files downloaded!

Step 5: Bulk Download Files from a Specific Folder

If you want to download files from a specific OneDrive folder, modify the script:

$FolderPath = "/Documents/Reports"  # Change to your OneDrive folder path
$LocalPath = "C:\OneDriveDownloads\Reports"

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $LocalPath -Force

$Files = Get-PnPListItem -List "Documents" | Where-Object { $_["FileRef"] -like "$FolderPath/*" }

foreach ($File in $Files) {
    $FileUrl = $File["FileRef"]
    $FileName = $File["FileLeafRef"]
    Get-PnPFile -Url $FileUrl -Path $LocalPath -FileName $FileName -AsFile -Force
}

Write-Host "Files from $FolderPath downloaded to $LocalPath"

🔹 Updates $FolderPath to specify a OneDrive folder.
🔹 Downloads only files inside that folder.

Downloaded files from a specific OneDrive folder!

Step 6: Download Only Specific File Types

To download only certain file types (e.g., PDFs and Word documents):

$LocalPath = "C:\OneDriveDownloads"
$Extensions = @(".pdf", ".docx") # Add more extensions if needed

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $LocalPath -Force

$Files = Get-PnPListItem -List "Documents" | Where-Object { $_["FileLeafRef"] -match "\.pdf|\.docx$" }

foreach ($File in $Files) {
    $FileUrl = $File["FileRef"]
    $FileName = $File["FileLeafRef"]
    Get-PnPFile -Url $FileUrl -Path $LocalPath -FileName $FileName -AsFile -Force
}

Write-Host "Only PDF and DOCX files downloaded!"

🔹 Filters files by extension before downloading.

Downloaded specific file types!

Step 7: Verify Downloaded Files

To check the downloaded files in local storage:

Get-ChildItem -Path "C:\OneDriveDownloads" | Select Name, Length

🔹 Lists the downloaded files with their sizes.

Verified files in local storage!

Step 8: Disconnect the Session

Once you’re done, disconnect the session:

Disconnect-PnPOnline

Disconnected from OneDrive!