Welcome
The project work you have built up so far only helps you if you can still open it next week, on another machine, without panic. Today you learn what cloud storage actually is, how to sign into your school OneDrive or Google Drive on a classroom computer, how to back up your Project Portfolio there, and how to sign out so the next person cannot open your account.
Today’s skills: signing in with your school account, uploading a file and opening it again, taking a quick look at version history (the list of earlier saved states of a file that the cloud keeps for you), signing out fully, and checking your Project Portfolio opens on a second machine.
Warm-up
Think about the last time a phone, laptop, or school PC died, froze, or got wiped. Where would your Project Portfolio be right now if that happened to the machine in front of you: only on this computer, on a USB stick, or already in the cloud under your school account?
Three ideas sit behind every safe cloud session on a school machine. Read the table once (or follow while your teacher projects one row at a time), then you will practise the clicks.
| Concept | Why it matters | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Cloud storage — files kept on remote servers you reach through the internet, not only on the hard drive inside this PC | If this classroom machine fails or is wiped overnight, your project work can still open from another device | Your Work Experience log lives in school OneDrive or Google Drive, so you can finish a paragraph on a different lab PC tomorrow |
| School account — the Microsoft or Google login your school gave you (not a personal Gmail or Xbox login) | Teachers, the assessed pieces of work you hand up, and school sharing rules all expect the school account, not a private one | Signing in with your school email so {{code:01_project_brief}} sits where staff can help you recover it if needed |
| Full sign-out on shared machines — leaving the account so the next user cannot open your Drive, mail, or docs | The next student at this PC must not land inside your portfolio or school email | Choosing Sign out, refusing Stay signed in, and closing the browser at the end of class |
You will also meet upload finished (wait until the cloud copy is complete) and version history (earlier saved states of a file) during the hands-on steps.
Worked example snapshot
Jordan is building a Work Experience report for a placement at a local Centra. On a shared school PC, Jordan signs into school OneDrive, uploads one small practice file, and creates {{code:01_cloud_backup_check}} (title only for now). In the main task Jordan then uploads the full Project Portfolio, opens it on the teacher laptop in the corner, and ticks the checklist — that proof stays in the cloud Project Portfolio for the teacher.
Your teacher will tell you once whether this class uses OneDrive or Google Drive. Follow only that path below. Ignore the other platform.
This step is practice for the clicks: sign in on this classroom machine, upload one small practice item (a single file such as {{code:01_project_brief}}, or the practice folder your teacher names), confirm the upload, open version history, create an empty checklist page named {{code:01_cloud_backup_check}}, and sign out safely.
You will prove the cloud copy on a second machine in Portfolio Build — do not leave your seat for a spare device yet. Your full Project Portfolio backup and the finished checklist are the Portfolio Build next, not this practice upload.
If sign-in fails or an upload crawls, check the Common issues table with your teacher rather than guessing passwords.
Common Issues
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| I cannot sign in, or I land in the wrong account | Check you are using your school email, not a personal Gmail, Xbox, or home Microsoft account. Sign out of the wrong account fully, close the browser, then try again with the school address. |
| I cannot find Project Portfolio or my practice file after uploading | In OneDrive open My files; in Google Drive open My Drive. Use the search box at the top and type the folder or file name (for example Project Portfolio or {{code:01_project_brief}}). Check you are not looking inside Shared with me or a different account. |
| The upload seems stuck or the folder looks empty | Leave the tab open and watch the upload status. A big folder can take several minutes on school Wi-Fi. If it fails, upload one smaller file first (for example {{code:01_project_brief}}), then the rest. |
| I cannot open the portfolio on a second machine | Confirm you signed into the same school account. Check the upload finished on the first machine before you left. Try a private/incognito window only if your teacher asks you to rule out a saved wrong login. |
| I forgot to sign out and left Stay signed in on | Return to the machine if you still can, open the browser, go to OneDrive or Drive, open your profile menu, and choose Sign out. Tell your teacher if you cannot get back to that PC. |
Before you start — full folder upload (same control as practice):
- Use {{btn:Folder upload}} (OneDrive: {{btn:+ Add new}} / {{btn:Upload}}; Google Drive: {{btn:+ New}}) and choose your whole Project Portfolio folder from this PC.
- Leave the browser tab open until the upload status clears — a full folder can take several minutes on school Wi-Fi.
- Confirm Project Portfolio appears under school My files (OneDrive) or My Drive (Google Drive), then open one real file inside it before you join the second-device queue.
Portfolio Build (class task)
A full portfolio upload can look stuck on school Wi-Fi, so leave the tab open, tick what you can on the checklist while you wait, and only call it done once the progress indicator has finished. If the queue for the second device is long, that waiting work still counts.
- First, sign back into school OneDrive or Google Drive on your classroom machine, choosing {{btn:No}} when it offers to keep you signed in, because this machine is shared.
- Then upload your whole Project Portfolio folder, and wait until the upload has completely finished before you touch anything else, since a half-finished copy is no backup at all.
- Once it is up, open one real portfolio file, open Version history (Manage versions in Google Drive) so you know where it lives, and close the panel again. Then open {{code:01_cloud_backup_check}}, or create it inside the cloud Project Portfolio if you do not have it yet.
- In that checklist, type five lines — school sign-in, upload finished, second-device open, version history found, full sign-out — and tick whichever you can already prove. Underneath, add a one-line note labelled Cloud copy lives at: so you can find the folder again next week.
- When your teacher calls you to the second-device station, open the portfolio on the spare device and show them one real file with the content you expect, then come back to your seat and tick second-device open.
- Before you finish, sign out fully and close the browser on every machine you used, including the spare one.
- Finally, leave {{code:01_cloud_backup_check}} saved in your cloud Project Portfolio, and show your teacher both the second-device open and the saved checklist before you pack up.
If the bell is close: an open on your teacher’s demo laptop counts, so ask for it rather than skipping the second-device tick.
- Your Project Portfolio is visible in school OneDrive or Google Drive under your school account
- You opened at least one real portfolio file from the second-device station (or a teacher-witnessed open on the demo laptop if the queue was still moving at the bell) and it showed the expected content
- {{code:01_cloud_backup_check}} is saved in your cloud Project Portfolio and records school sign-in, upload finished, second-device open, version history found, full sign-out, and a one-line note on where the cloud copy lives
- Every classroom machine you used is signed out of your cloud account with the browser closed, and you have shown your teacher the checklist before packing up
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