Microsoft has tucked four new Copilot skills directly into File Explorer, and they’re tailor-made for people who live in OneDrive. With a right-click, you can summarize a file, ask questions about it, auto-generate an FAQ, or compare up to five documents side by side. The result: fewer browser detours, less context-switching, and faster answers when you’re knee-deep in project folders.
What’s new inside File Explorer
The new skills surface when you right-click a supported OneDrive file in File Explorer. In Windows 10, the commands appear directly in the menu. In Windows 11, hover over the OneDrive entry in the context menu to see the options.
Here’s what Copilot can do from that menu: Summarize a document, answer natural-language questions about it, generate an FAQ draft, and compare up to five files for similarities and differences. The experience runs through OneDrive on the web behind the scenes, but you trigger it from the desktop where you’re actually working.
Why it matters for OneDrive users
Knowledge work is often a scavenger hunt. McKinsey has estimated that employees spend about 19% of their time searching for and gathering information. By putting Copilot right into File Explorer, Microsoft removes the friction of opening a browser tab, finding the right site, and uploading a file—saving minutes that add up across a day.
Real-world examples: A sales manager can compare five proposals to spot scope changes; an HR lead can turn a policy document into a quick FAQ for onboarding; a finance analyst can ask a quarterly report to pull out revenue deltas and cost drivers without reading 60 slides.
Requirements before you start
You’ll need a Microsoft 365 Family or Personal subscription and to be signed into OneDrive in Windows. Files must be stored in OneDrive and visible in File Explorer. An active internet connection is required, as analysis happens online via OneDrive services rather than locally.
Make sure Windows 10 or 11 is up to date and that the OneDrive sync client is running. If you don’t see the Copilot entries in the context menu, restart OneDrive or sign out and back in with the account tied to your Microsoft 365 subscription.
How to try the new Copilot skills
Open File Explorer and navigate to a OneDrive folder. Right-click a supported file. In Windows 11, hover over the OneDrive menu in the context options; in Windows 10, the Copilot options should be listed outright. Choose Summarize to get key points, Ask questions to query the file in plain English, or Create FAQ to draft Q&A entries based on the document.
To compare files, select up to five documents, right-click, and choose Compare in Copilot. You’ll get a consolidated view that calls out overlaps and differences—useful for version drift or aligning multiple stakeholder drafts.
Supported file types (and what’s missing)
Copilot works with Microsoft 365 formats (DOC, DOCX, PPT, PPTX, XLSX, FLUID, LOOP), universal text formats (PDF, TXT, RTF), web files (HTM, HTML), and OpenDocument types (ODT, ODP). Media files like photos and videos aren’t supported yet, so image-heavy projects will need traditional tools or separate transcription/vision workflows.
Pro tips, privacy, and performance
Because processing occurs online, your OneDrive permissions and sharing settings still apply. For shared folders, Copilot will only analyze what your account can access. If your file hasn’t fully synced, wait for the OneDrive checkmark to appear before invoking Copilot to avoid errors.
Expect best results with well-structured documents that have headings, tables, or clear sections. For spreadsheets, Copilot can summarize sheets and call out trends, but complex macros or external connections won’t be executed—treat it as an analysis layer, not a calculation engine.
Who benefits most
Students assembling research packets, freelancers juggling client briefs, and small teams iterating proposals will feel the biggest impact. For larger organizations, this is also a preview of how file-centric AI will flow into everyday workflows, echoing findings from Microsoft’s Work Trend Index that employees want assistance at the point of work, not in separate apps.
Bottom line
These File Explorer shortcuts don’t reinvent Copilot—but they do put it where it belongs: right next to your files. If you keep work in OneDrive and have a Microsoft 365 Family or Personal plan, turn them on and start saving time the next time you face a folder full of drafts.