Upload Files to Shared Google Drive but Mine Is Full

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Workaround, Google shares longterm plan

Several weeks agone, Google rolled out a alter to Drive that lets you create shortcuts to files and folders. The feature had been in testing since August 2019, and its goal is to help you lot ameliorate organize shared files and folders without duplicating them, thus saving you storage and reducing the redundancy and defoliation when you motility things around. However, this seemingly benign improvement has completely ruined shared folders for anyone who syncs Bulldoze locally to their PC or Mac.

The characteristic regression isn't yet visible if yous're working with folders that have already been shared and organized. Then if your family, group of friends, team, or visitor already uses some shared folders, they won't be affected until September 2020 — the date at which shared folders and files will be automatically switched to shortcuts for everyone except the original owner.

That temporary reprieve is probable why many of us didn't notice the change. To see it in activeness, you have to endeavor to share a file or folder at present. On the sender's end, nothing changes, but on the recipient'southward end, things are completely different from what they used to exist.

This commodity and the change it describes applies to people using Google Drive and shared folders, be it on personal Google accounts or G Suite ones. All the same, if yous're a G Suite user, Google recommends something completely different from basic shared files and folders, and which should be unaffected past this change: Shared Drives and Drive File Stream. File Stream may be more tedious to deploy, but information technology has advantages over Fill-in & Sync and is better suited for a professional environment. You tin can get a short explanation of the benefits in this discussion I had with realtestman in our comment section below.

What'southward changing on the spider web

On the web, the switch to shortcuts is merely aesthetic from a user'southward perspective. Equally long as yous're online, clicking a received file or folder opens them similar you're used to. Yet:

the option to "Move" them to our Drive is grayed out
the option to "Add together to Bulldoze" is at present "Add together shortcut to Drive"
dragging and dropping them to your Bulldoze creates a shortcut too.
Edit: if y'all highlight the file and type Shift+Z on your keyboard, yous should be offered the old choice to move it to your Drive. See update annotation at the end of the post.

Summit : "Move" or "Add together" to Bulldoze is no longer possible. You tin only add together a shortcut. Lesser : Even elevate-and-drop creates shortcuts.

When they're in your Drive, the icons have a shortcut arrow on them to differentiate them from the files and folders that y'all own.

The benefit hither is that you lot can create as many shortcuts every bit y'all want, so you could rapidly access a shared file or folder from multiple places within your Drive without duplicating them. Anyone who enjoys hierarchy and organisation will love this. File buying is too clearer on Google's cease: Ane file, one owner, one identify. Fewer sync bug, fewer bugs when people brand modifications on their end. Based on the company'southward documentation, this aspect seems to be the biggest motivator behind the change.

Interesting side effects

The ane file equals one original location equation requires Drive users to adjust the way they think nearly sharing and moving things around. For example, these are 2 consequences that make sense in this new paradigm, but that you never had to remember about previously:

If you are the owner of a file in Drive and motion it from your Drive to a shared folder where you're a recipient (and not the owner), that file will ~~no longer be yours~~ still exist yours but information technology won't be saved in your Bulldoze. You're nevertheless in control of access privileges and tin can move it out, and if the owner of the shared folder deletes that binder, your file gets repatriated dorsum to your Drive.
If the possessor of a shared binder gave you the privilege to move things around, and you motility a file from the shared binder to your Bulldoze, people it's shared with will lose access. The file no longer obeys to the rule of sharing from its parent folder because it's no longer there.

Bulldoze will warn you virtually these, but you lot may click without reading the warning or realizing what information technology ways.

How this translates to your computer

At present think of those files and folders that you choose to sync locally to your computer. If yous have a PC or Mac, you probably utilise Google's Backup and Sync to make some or all of your Bulldoze directly attainable from your file browser.

With shortcuts, Google-type files (like Google Docs, Sheets, Slides) and not-Google-blazon files are both unaffected when syncing locally. The sometime require you to be online regardless if it's a proper file or a shortcut, and the latter get synced even if they're shortcuts.

The last point needs to be further clarified because it surprised me. Say someone shared with me a "Shared Excel.xlsx" file. From Google Drive spider web, I created a shortcut for that file in my Bulldoze. I then opened the Drive folder on my PC and saw that the file was fully synced, not every bit a shortcut, merely in its entirety. This was unexpectedly nice. Just to be sure, I turned off internet access, and opened the file. Everything worked. Whatever changes I made were synced once I came back online.

Recipient'due south terminate: Shared Excel (full file), Google Doc (shortcut, doesn't matter), and folder (shortcut).

Folders are ruined

Still, await at that received folder. It'south a unproblematic .gshortcut link. I can't open it similar whatsoever other binder, tin can't expect inside, can't sync anything in information technology.

If I become offline and try to open information technology, I get striking by the Chrome dino. I have zilch admission to anything in it. The fact that it shows up as a shared shortcut in my file browser is all I go from it. It's barely a reminder that there's a folder, somewhere, that someone shared with me.

When I'one thousand offline, this is what I see of the shared folder.

Note that this happens even though Backup and Sync is set up upwardly to sync everything on my PC. There's no setting to sync shared folders, and even if I switch to "Sync merely these folders," the shortcut binder doesn't show upwardly in the list. It's just non recognized as a binder. The whole problem would go away if it were.

Now imagine you're a member of a family unit, small squad, or any group that relies on shared folders in Google Drive. The owner of a binder keeps going as normal, everyone else:

needs to be online to see what's inside the folder and which modifications other users have made
can't have the files inside the binder sync automatically in the background to their computer, then they don't have easy access to the latest version
has to manually download any not-Google-type file every time to view information technology or edit it, so upload information technology once again (Google-type files are unaffected because they get edited alive)
has to go to the Bulldoze website to motion a local file from their calculator into the shared folder — they can't do information technology from their file browser, which was possible earlier
too has to go to the Drive website to movement a Bulldoze file that they own into that shared folder. But when the changes sync locally to their reckoner, that file, which was on their machine, is gone, poof, deleted. It's only accessible from that dang binder shortcut. On the web, it's clear that they're even so the owner, but locally, that ~~doesn't~~ matters very little because the file at present belongs to another structure. Edit: See the "Interesting side furnishings" section above for more than info.

In fewer words, local admission for folders is utterly nerfed.

This is mindboggling. No other cloud storage service and sync app does things this mode, every bit far as I know. Dropbox, I Bulldoze, and others just treat folders as folders. What's inside shows up on your computer, regardless if you're the owner or recipient. All changes sync. Everything is accessible offline.

Tedious workaround... and not even

The only way I establish to circumvent this shared binder limitation on my PC was to open up the folder in Google Drive web and create individual shortcuts for every file inside my Drive. That way I'm dealing with shortcuts to files and not folders, which are more lenient every bit I explained earlier with the "Shared Excel.xlsx" story. Edit: Google fifty-fifty recommends this as an "alternative" in its documentation.

The issue with this workaround, beside how tedious it is to basically recreate the initial shared folder structure on your end with individual file shortcuts, is that any files that get added afterward by anyone (owner, me, or other people) won't sync, and any folder construction change won't sync. I'd take to go and double check things every at present and then to make sure I'one thousand not missing anything.

Chrome OS and Android are largely unaffected

Chrome OS simply has i limitation

I tested the same shared files and folders on my Pixelbook and noticed that things remain largely the same. I can nevertheless open shortcuts of shared folders and see their content without existence redirected to Drive on the web.

Superlative : Shared folder and files within my Drive. Bottom : Opening the shared binder shortcut to see its content.

I tin also make everything available offline, except Google-type files (Docs, Sheets, Slides). That includes folders also. However, there's ane restriction: I tin't move a file from my Bulldoze or my estimator into the shared folder shortcut. This used to be possible before with regular shared folders. I need to go to Drive on the web to upload whatsoever file to this shared folder.

Summit : Making a folder available offline. Bottom : Can't movement a file to a shared folder shortcut.

Finally, if I effort to move a file from inside a shared folder to my Bulldoze, it creates a copy and keeps the original. Yous may recollect that on the spider web, it lets me move it but warns me that I'm near to have access away from other people.

Shush... Android notwithstanding lets you properly move shared folders

It'south non a secret anymore, but if you desire to avert this silliness for the next few months until September 2020, and then I have a small tip for you. Moving shared folders properly to your Google Drive is withal possible in the Android app. I'thou using Drive v2.20.121.04 and it'south at that place, but information technology could be removed in a later version, so here'due south the APK file if yous desire to install information technology manually. Itshould nevertheless work until Google ruins things by changing all folders to shortcuts on the server's stop in September.Edit: See update note at the terminate of the post for a similar solution from the web.

In the Android app, go to the sharing tab (third tab) and tap the iii-dot carte on the correct of any received file or folder. Scroll down and await for the Motion option, beneathAdd together shortcut to my Drive. Information technology's surprising that the shortcut menu was renamed, like on the web, but the move option isn't gone equally it is at that place. Oh well, Google's inconsistency is helpful for one time.

The menu for shared files/folders still includes the "Motility" option.

This lets you replicate the former behavior of shared files and folders. In the screenshots beneath, you tin can encounter the new shortcuts as well equally duplicates without the shortcut icon. On mobile, there'southward no departure actually, but these shared folders volition behave like real folders on your computer, with total local admission, and this is how yous circumvent the issue... temporarily.

Left : Shared files and folders every bit shortcuts. Right : By using the "Move" option, I become dupes that aren't shortcuts.

Beside this quirky omission on Google'south finish, things are relatively unchanged on Android, even when dealing with shortcuts. You can make files bachelor offline (whether Google-blazon or non-Google-blazon), but non folders — though yous tin manually brand all files inside a folder offline. Notice how this is unlike from Chrome OS, where folders can be made offline, only Google-type files can't. Each time I think I'm washed with the discrepancies, I discover a new 1.

You tin can move or upload files to a shared folder shortcut, which doesn't matter on mobile but volition bear on your admission if you sync to your reckoner. Y'all tin also move files exterior of a shared binder, but like on the spider web, this removes access from everyone else.

1800 words and dozens of inconsistencies and surprises afterward, it'due south abundantly clear that this shortcut change isn't benign. Essentially, nosotros went from "this is a folder, I shared it, washed," to a confusing mess and shortcut system that took me hours to untangle... and I recall I didn't uncover all the issues yet. It'due south so confusing that at first we thought this whole state of affairs was a bug, but we reached out to Google which confirmed to us that this is expected beliefs.

Now imagine having to explain all of this to your family unit or friends or team members (in the latter case, if you lot're non using Share Drives and File Stream): "Well, Joe, no, you tin't meet the monthly Excel report on your PC considering it's inside the folder shortcut. No, it doesn't sync to your reckoner, it'southward a folder but not a binder. Only click it. Yes, the file is there in Chrome (center roll). Await, Joe, did y'all move the file out? Now everyone lost access. Dammit Joe! Move it back. OK, at present download it. I know, it makes no sense. Delight don't bear on annihilation from your estimator or telephone. You have two days to add together your division's numbers into the canvas that yous downloaded. When you're done, upload the new version. I know, information technology doesn't brand sense either. Yep, we'll look into getting an Office 365 license adjacent calendar month."

Comparatively, every other cloud storage service out there still treats folders every bit folders and manages to do this without complaining about duplicate files and sharing privileges.

Even though I understand how things are easier on Google'southward cease with this new approach, the ramifications (though mostly logical) are just also confusing. Layer later on layer, I laughingly wondered if an engineer designed this organization and thought information technology made perfect sense, but forgot that regular users would have to adopt it. Or maybe the Drive devs forgot that PCs and Macs be, and thought everyone has access to a Chromebook with a fast internet connection all the time. It could also be a conspiracy theory to discourage the usage of non-Google Docs/Sheets/Slides files in Drive, because those files are the well-nigh affected when they're within shared folders.

UPDATE: 2020/04/10 3:15am PDT BY RITA EL KHOURY

Workaround, Google shares longterm plan

Thanks to comments from our readers and input from Google's Remy Burger, this mail has been updated to reword and clarify a few points, specifically regarding file ownership and consequences for companies and Yard Suite users. Remy too shared with united states a workaround and the Drive team's longterm plan.

First, you can nonetheless move shared files and folders to your Bulldoze, fifty-fifty on the web (no need for the Android app), but the option is hidden behind a keyboard shortcut. Become to your Shared with me section, highlight the shared files or folders you desire to move, and blazon Shift+Z on your keyboard. Yous'll see the onetime motility menu and tin can choose where to put those folders. On your PC, they'll sync and behave like they used to, no shortcut mess. More than info tin can be found here, and y'all can always type ? in Drive to bring up the list of keyboard shortcuts if you forget this one.

Shift+Z brings up the old Movement carte du jour, letting you add shared folders to your Drive.

Finally, Remy revealed that the Drive team will "keep this behavior [Shift+Z] around for folders until nosotros take a solid solution to sync shared folders." I call up that helps appease our commonage fears about the modify. As I mentioned earlier in the mail, a lot of issues would be solved once Google's Fill-in and Sync started recognizing shortcuts as folders and synced them every bit such. You'll all the same need to explain to others how the change affects where files "are" and how sharing privileges can be revoked if they motion a file out inadvertently, simply the bulk of our complaints virtually this new organisation will be gone. Hopefully, Google figures out a solution for syncing shared folders quickly.

Cheers: Elliot Rees, toineenzo

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