Google Drive for Desktop

Google Drive for Desktop is required for Burke-assigned computers.

The following information was taken from the Google Workspace Learning Center and you can read more in-depth information on that website.

The Google Drive for Desktop application creates the ability to copy, save, and open files directly in Google Drive within the Finder in MacOS. You can access uploaded files in any browser or device that has Drive installed.

If you uninstall Drive for desktop, your Drive files won’t be affected. You can still access the files from Drive on the web.

Files from Drive, such as Google Docs, Sheets, etc., will automatically open in a web browser when you choose to open it from your Finder.

Below you can see the same folders that I have access to in Google Drive in both my MacOS Finder and Google Drive.

1.0 Install Drive for desktop

1. On your computer, go to Use Drive for desktop with work or school and follow the installation instructions to download and install Drive for desktop. 
2. At the bottom right (Windows) or top right (Mac), click Drive for desktop Open Google Drive .

When you install Drive for desktop on your computer, it creates a drive in My Computer or a location in Finder named Google Drive File Stream. All of your Drive files appear here.​

 

1.1 Check your sync status

While Drive for desktop is actively syncing your files, any changes made in either interface are reflected in the other. When you delete something locally in Drive for desktop, it’s also deleted from Drive.

On the web

When you see Upload complete, your files have uploaded successfully and can be accessed in any browser or device that has Drive installed.

On your computer

Dragging files to a folder in Google Drive for desktop automatically uploads them to Drive on the web (though it might take a moment for files to sync).

• Files with Sync  haven’t been uploaded to Drive yet.
• Files with Done  have uploaded successfully and can be accessed from Drive in any browser or from any device with Drive installed.

1.3 Open your files

On your computer

1. Open a Finder window and you will see an icon for your Google Drive in the Favorites area in the left-hand sidebar.
2. In My Drive or Shared drives, double-click the file that you want to open.
   • Files created by Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, or Forms open in your browser.
   • Other files open in their regular applications on your computer.

 1.4 Access your files offline

Set up offline access so that the next time you don’t have internet access, you can view your documents, shuffle folders around, and edit files stored in Drive.

When you make files in Drive for desktop available offline, the app keeps a storage-consuming, cached copy locally, which allows you to work without connectivity to the web. The files sync when you’re back online.

On your computer

Set up offline access for PDFs, Office files, and more on your desktop:

1. Open a new Finder window and navigation to your file or folder.
2. In My Drive or Shared drives, right-click the file or folder that you want to access offline.
3. Click Drive for desktopAvailable offline.

 1.5 Using Google Drive as a backup for files

When you set up Google Drive for Desktop, you have options that allow you to automatically backup specific folders on your computer. When you add or remove files from these designated folders, the files will automatically be copied and removed from your Google Drive.

It is recommended to set the following folders for automatic back-up to Google Drive. However, you can select any folder you wish based on your own preferences.

1. Desktop
2. Downloads
3. Documents

You can manage these folders preferences by clicking on the Drive icon next to your clock in the upper right-corner of your computer screen and then click on the settings gear icon . 

1.6 Google Drive files: Stream or Mirror?

The browsing of files from your MacOS Finder is a great way to access files, but be careful when you are setting up the application preferences. Make sure to use the Stream option for file access. Do not  choose the mirror option as this will copy files from Google Drive to your computer and this will fill up your computer storage very quickly. 

1.7 Check that it's working

At any time you can look at the icon in the title bar to check the status of Drive for desktop. If the icon is grayed out, there might be an issue. If you click on the icon, you will see a status of updated at the bottom of the popup window. You will also see green checkmarks next to the most recently updated files.

In Drive for desktop, under the “Activity,” tab a “Some errors occurred” banner may display if there were issues. To display the list of errors, you can either:

• Click the link in the banner.
• Click Settings  Error list.

Here is an article about how to fix errors.

1.8 Help me!

If you have any questions, please contact your designated tech support staff member.