Home
ShareWhy do I get a "needs to be downloaded" error when copying files in macOS?
Answer: Every year, I back up the home directory on my Mac to an external hard drive. This process has become more difficult in recent years since I receive an error a few minutes after the copying process begins. The error says:
The operation can't be completed because "[username]" needs to be downloaded.
It took over an hour of troubleshooting to figure out this cryptic error. After much trial and error, I discovered a single folder was causing the entire home directory backup to fail. It was the OneDrive folder located at:
~/Library/CloudStorage/OneDrive
Important: You'll need to enable access to your user Library folder to access the CloudStorage directory.
I could copy every other file in my home directory without a problem. But this folder specifically caused an error.
I confirmed this by trying to copy the OneDrive folder and received a -36 error:
If you're getting a "needs to be downloaded" error when copying your home directory, you'll need to copy everything besides the CloudStorage folder. You can either copy groups of folders (like I did during my troubleshooting process) or, more simply, remove the CloudStorage folder from your user Library folder, then copy your entire home folder.
▶ If you choose the second approach, I recommend temporarily turning off OneDrive syncing so it doesn't automatically recreate the folder while you're copying the Library data.
This strange bug took me a while to track down since I assumed the "needs to be downloaded" error was an iCloud issue. But it wasn't an Apple problem; the issue was caused by Microsoft's OneDrive folder (probably why it hasn't been fixed in several years). It was a tricky location to isolate, so I hope my solution is helpful for anyone who has received the same error.
