Onenote and Box.com

Hey .

You should be able to upload OneNote files to Box.com through the normal web upload and Box Sync. The .one file format however isn't supported by Box's preview software.

Hope this helps!

I was able to upload the onenote files onto the box only when they arrived there then they became a file of nothing. My company is trying to use the box to upload onenote files to the box.com so that people from all over can open those onenote files from anywhere with no problem. I did notice that it really did not like .one file format and I was wondering if onenote was compatable in anyway since I have synced onenote files onto box and tried to get them off and it came back out unreadable.

So the resolution is that --- BOX is incompatible with OneNote?!?  That's not good news and its not a resolution.  If Box is striving to be a collaboartion software then it needs to "play-nice" with other collaboration software.

Can I sync OneNote files over Box in the way that this can be done on SharePoint or OneDrive? I want to use OneNote to store info and have everyone access and update it via Box. Sounds like that's not possible though? ?

Would like to use this as well...  any updates?

Same issue as everyone else; i stored several MS Onenote notebooks on network drives which allowed for everyone to easily access, update, etc the notes within each notebook.

I moved the notebooks into box and have box sync installed...unfortunately nothing is being updated...

please fix ASAP, this greatly hinders my ability to work with my team

I have staff that needs to be able to open OneNote on either their laptop or desktop.  I was able to get this to work by.

1. Created a OneNote folder in Box.  I then synced this folder.

2. In OneNote on both the desktop and laptop (we have the OneNote client installed) go to File > Options > Save & Backup

3. Under the save category Modify the locations for Backup Folder and Default Notebook location point to the OneNotes folder you created through Box Sync.

If the OneNote files are already setup and point somewhere else, I've had luck pointing them to the Box Sync account by right-clicking on the OneNote book and selecting Properties.  I change the location to my Box Sync folder and Ok.  

This is a solution that's worked for my company, hope this helps others trying to sync outside of Microsofts cloud.

P.S.  as a GOT fan, I love  your online name and can't resist saying this, "You know nothing JSnow" ?  Cheers

Bren Lane

Given the strong collaboration between Box and other MS Office programs, how come OneNote is bypassed?

BrenLane

Thanks for your post, the steps you described would only work from a laptop or desktop,were you able to find a way to do this from a mobile device.  The issue is when trying to add a cloud service from One Note Box is not listed but it is listed on other office 365 applications.  It seems that OneNote only sees onedrive and not Box as a service.

Any help would be appreciated.

Hi Bren Lane,

I'd like to understand your method better. A few questions, if you don't mind:

• Your team members are synchronizing their OneNote notebooks between Box, their desktop, and their laptop, right?
• Are any of those notebooks shared between your team members?
• Did you have all team members point their OneNote save & backup location to the single OneNote folder you created on Box?
• Did you have all team members use Box Sync to sync to that single OneNote folder you created on Box?
• What permission do your team members have to that OneNote folder on Box: Editor or Co-owner?

Much obliged for any additional insight,

RobW

BrenLane - wanted to give you a shout out your solution works like a champ.  I started replicating OneNote between my workstation, laptop and phone about 6 mo ago and it's still going well.   Thanks for the tips.

My best

Michael

Hello Robw, 

Here are my responses to your questions.

• Your team members are synchronizing their OneNote notebooks between Box, their desktop, and their laptop, right?  Yes
• Are any of those notebooks shared between your team members? Yes, we only have 1/2 our company on Box, but those who have Box accounts have a shared folder in Box, and I have them setup as co-owners.  Those who do not have Box, are using a shared network folder.
• Did you have all team members point their OneNote save & backup location to the single OneNote folder you created on Box?  Correct, I've setup OneNote to point to the shared folder in BoxSync.
• Did you have all team members use Box Sync to sync to that single OneNote folder you created on Box? It depends on the group. We are an insurance company, as an example our claim reps. have a shared folder, they all share.  That way when someone is covering anothers desk they can access each other's OneNote.
• What permission do your team members have to that OneNote folder on Box: Editor or Co-owner? I have them setup as Co-Owners.

I hope this information helps you out RobW.

Bren Lane

amalik1, 

I've not tried this with a mobile device, sorry I can not be more help here.

Bren Lane

amalik1, 

I've not tried this with a mobile device, sorry I can not be more help here.

Bren Lane

Bren,

 Just wanted to confirm you haven't seen conflict errors with this?  It seems like this would be ripe for having conflicts, especially since OneDrive doesn't let you save the 'full onenote' file locally, it only saves a stub file on the local computer.  

The lack of support fo mobile is something that would still need to be addressed, though your solution is a good intermediary.  

We are in the process of moving off of fileshares and onto Box.  We have one file that about 100 people access from their computers.  We have uploaded it to Box and users are syncing, but there is a concern about permissions.  Since a user must be a Co-owner or Editor in order to sync, then that also means the user has the ability to edit and delete the file.  When this file was on the file share, most users only had read-only access thus eliminating the risk of accidental edit or removal of the file.  Are there any recommendations for how this group can continue to see up-to-date info in the Notebook, but without having the ability to edit and/or delete?  I appreciate your help.

Dear BrenLane,

so is the notebook you have setup in the sync folder on your desktop linked as a shared notebook? When I did this I has no sync icon next to the notebook. I am worried that changes done through box will work not or differently than the inbuild sync of OneNote when I am collaborating with colleagues and their box synced desktop OneNote.

Thanks for your help.

Hello Tomwa,

Yes, the shared notebooks are accessed through Box sync.  Each notebook has the sync icon next to it and all of our updates show up.  If you're not seeing the sync icon next to the folder, that tells me you're notebooks are not syncing. 

Bren Lane

When I create a notebook into my box folder it is not a multiuser notebook and thus does not get the syncing green button. Also a collegue then opening the notebook in his box folder on his dropbox also does not have a syncing green icon. The moment we both work on the same note OneNote shows a copy of the file as box.org does create a sync issue copy.

My idea now was to create a newworkshare in my box folder on my computer and link from there.

Thanks for your help.  

BrenLane - thanks. How do you share Onenote notebooks? When I right clock "share" it tells me I need to put it on sharepoint...

Hello lala789,

To share it in Box, you need to have Box Sync loaded on your computer.  Then I select Share On > Network. In step 3, I click browse and select the Box Sync folder, and the OneNote folder that I setup on Box.  That Box folder is shared with everyone working on the project.

Our company doesn't use Sharepoint, so I'm not sure if you have an option to by pass that.  I've included a screen shot of what my share options look like.

Hope that helps you out.

Bren Lane

Hi All

One way I use to access OneNote files from Box is to map the Box file folder as a Network drive using Webdav. Then you can just open any file using its native application in Windows Explorer. You can find out the simple way to map Box to a network drive here: http://the-gadgeteer.com/2012/02/27/how-to-use-your-box-account-as-a-network-drive/

The only issue is that you can't lock the file for editing by others and there may be conflicts if more than one user is accessing the OneNote file concurrently. I haven't seen this yet though.

Gday PRMiller and all the other participants in this thread,

I too have been curious about integrating Box with OneNote. I found an interesting article that purports to explain some of the technology behind OneDrive's unique sync engine technology. This may explain why syncing OneNote content with other storage services does not - or cannot - work as expected.

https://getonetastic.com/?i=onenote-sync

I too eagerly await a faster, leaner OneDrive sync engine, which will be especially helpful for larger notebooks and notebooks containing PDFs!

Would that also work with the OneNote mobile app on the iPhone?

Hi all,

I can see how to do this if the file you wish to sync is on your C drive. We use our share drives for all storage, and it does not seem to allow you to change the location of box sync file is. 

Any ideas?

Thanks!