Greetings, friends! Cloud storage is very popular now. Their main purpose is to store and access information from any device at any time, as well as the ability to share this information (documents, photographs, and other files) with other people. In addition, popular cloud services provide a number of useful functions for users - creating and working with documents online, sharing, etc.

On my blog I have already posted instructions on two large cloud services - and. And I dedicate today’s article to one more thing – Google Drive. Until recently, I didn’t use it so actively - I mainly relied on Yandex.Disk. But, due to recent events, I started thinking about backup options.

I suggest you understand the interface and main functions of Google Drive. Let's talk about how to use it - upload and provide access to files and folders, perform other actions on files, work with documents and applications online.

If you prefer video format, then you can view my detailed tutorial below:

How to log into Google Drive?

The disk is linked to your Google account, and to get inside the cloud, you need to log in to your account - enter your login (gmail) and password.

You can access Drive from this page www.google.com/intl/ru/drive/

Or go from mail by clicking on the “Google Apps” icon at the top right.

How much disk space?

15 GB are provided for free. This space is divided into files on the disk itself, files and letters in Gmail, and Google Photos. By the way, the latter automatically includes images that you upload to posts on the Google Plus social network. You can remove them from Google Photos so that they don’t take up space, but they remain in your posts.

If you need more space, it can be purchased for money. There are several tariff plans with monthly or annual payment for up to 30 TB of memory.

You can also have several Google accounts and each will have its own disk with free space.

Cloud storage interface

Let's go over the main sections, buttons and settings of Google Drive.

Via the “Create” button in the upper left corner you can upload files and folders from your computer to your disk. And also create folders and documents directly in the cloud. You can create text documents, tables, presentations with slides, Google Forms (for surveys, questionnaires, recordings of Skype consultations), drawings, maps and websites.

Below this button is panel with the main Disk partitions.

In the "My Drive" section there are all files and folders uploaded to the cloud, as well as documents and folders that you created in the cloud.

By selecting a particular file/folder with the mouse, you can perform various actions on it; I’ll talk about this later. To select several files at once, hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and click on the desired files.

The display of files on Disk can be sorted by name, by date of modification, by date of viewing.

In the "Available to me" section files from Google Drives of other users to which you have access are displayed - for example, you followed a link to this file, or you were sent an invitation with access. To open a file, double-click on it.

In the "Recent" section– files that you have recently worked with (opened, downloaded, edited, etc.) are displayed.

Google Photos section– This is where the images you've uploaded to the Google Photos app appear. Also, pictures uploaded to posts on Google Plus are automatically saved here. You can get into the application itself by clicking on the Google applications icon from disk, mail, or the start page of the Google Chrome browser.

In the application settings, you can check a useful box so that photos and videos do not take up unnecessary storage space.

To do this, go to Google Photos, click on the three vertical bars at the top left, go to settings.

And check the appropriate box:

"Tagged" section– files and folders that you mark as important to you go here. Marking is very simple - select the file, right-click, and select “Add mark” from the list that opens. To remove a file from “Marked”, right-click again and select “Unmark”.

Basket- it contains files that you delete from your Google Drive. The Recycle Bin can be emptied, then the files are permanently deleted. You can also restore any file from the Recycle Bin by selecting it with the mouse and clicking “Recover from Recycle Bin”.

There are several more useful icons in the upper right corner of Google Drive.

You can configure the display of files in the cloud as a list or grid. By clicking on the letter “i” in the circle, you can view the history of your actions on the disk, as well as the properties of any file by selecting it with the mouse. Clicking on the gear will open an additional list of tabs.

In the “Settings” tab:

You can change the interface language.
Enable offline access (saving Google documents to your computer to work with them without an Internet connection). On this issue, you can read the separate instructions.
Disable automatic downloading of photos from Google Photos to a folder on disk.
Choose an interface option – spacious, regular or compact.

There are also alert settings.

And the ability to connect different Google applications to your drive.

Clicking on the tab “Install disk on computer”, you can download the application for PC, as well as for smartphones on Android or iPhone. Here, keep in mind that the PC application is synchronized with the online cloud and all files end up on your computer, taking up space. Since this does not suit me, I prefer to use only the web interface. The only advantage of synchronization is the ability to quickly send a large file to the cloud or save all files from the cloud to your computer at once, and then disable synchronization.

Actions on files and folders in Google Drive

To upload files and folders from your computer to the cloud The "Create" button is used. You click on it and select the corresponding menu item - a window for selecting files on your computer will open. To select multiple files at once, hold down the Ctrl key.

When the file is selected, click on the “Open” button, and it will begin downloading to Disk. Information about the process will appear in the lower right corner.

An alternative download option is to minimize the Google Drive tab to a smaller window and drag files from your computer to the “My Drive” section with your mouse.

You can do a number of things with files, folders, and documents on the drive. To do this, select the desired file (or several) with the mouse and right-click. A list of available actions appears. The same actions are duplicated on the panel above.

The contents of the file can be viewed by clicking Preview. If you want to edit the document, then select "Open with". The drive will offer you an application through which you can open the file.

To open the contents of a folder– click on it 2 times. You can perform all the same actions on files and documents in a folder.

You can give access to any file, folder or document on the disk to another person. To set up sharing, click on the corresponding menu item.

In the window that opens, you need to enter the gmail email of the person to whom you want to give access. Click on the pencil icon to indicate the access type. This can be commenting, viewing and editing.

If you have granted commenting or viewing access, you can prevent the user from downloading, copying, or printing the file. Just tick the boxes you need. Don't forget to save your changes.

Then click "Submit". The user will receive a letter informing them that you have granted them access to the files. He will see this file on his disk in the “Available to me” section.

To block access, you again need to right-click on this file, select “Sharing”. In the window that opens, click on the user name.

Access is denied, the user will see this message:

You can also configure access settings. The default is view. Also, using the link, the user will be able to download the file or save it to his disk. You can also enable commenting or editing.

If you click “More”, you will see other settings. For example, you can enable access for absolutely any user on the Internet, that is, the file will be available through search. Or disable access via a link and send an invitation for shared access to a specific user via email (we discussed this process above).

The next point of action on files is "Move". It can be used to move files into folders. This is convenient if you have a lot of files and want to organize them. You can also move files by dragging them with the mouse.

Creating folders on disk is easy. Click on the “Create” – “New Folder” button.

By the way, you can change the color of the folders.

Paragraph "Add a note" useful if you want to add your favorite files to the Starred section for quick access to them.

Paragraph "Rename" will allow you to change the name of a file or folder.

Paragraph "Show properties"– to view the properties of a file and the history of actions on it.

Paragraph "Versions"– it is available for those files that you upload to Disk.

Let's say you downloaded an archive of materials from your computer and shared a link to it with subscribers. Then you needed to make edits to this archive, you downloaded it to your computer again and edited it. Then we re-uploaded it to Disk with the same name so that the link to the archive did not change. By the way, when downloading again, you can choose how to save this file - separately (the link to it will change), or as a new version that will replace the previous one.

However, the previous version will not be deleted immediately (by default, it is saved on disk for another 30 days). But, you can delete it manually or check the box so that previous versions are not deleted. This is done precisely through this “Versions” item.

The remaining actions on the files: create a copy, download to your computer and delete in the trash. By the way, to delete the file in the trash, you can drag it with the mouse to this section on Google Drive.

So, we figured out the main points of the Google Drive web interface. Now a few words how to download to your computer or save to disk a file that was shared with you via a link from another Google Drive.

If you followed the link and are logged in to your Google account, then you will see a Google Drive icon at the top, by clicking on which you can save this file to your disk. Nearby there is an arrow for downloading the file to your computer.

Well, I hope my Google Drive instructions will help you navigate the settings and functionality of this cloud service. Well, if you still have questions, I will be happy to answer them in the comments.

I wish you success!

Best regards, Victoria Karpova

Google Drive makes it easy to store and access online files in the cloud, allowing you to access them from any computer with an Internet connection. If you upload files from compatible programs such as Microsoft Word or Excel, you can even edit them in Google Drive.

Uploading files to Google Drive

Google Drive gives you 15 gigabytes (15GB) of free storage space so you can upload files from your computer and save them to the cloud. There are two main types of files that can be stored in Google Drive:

  • Files you can edit such as Microsoft Office, PDF files, and other text files
  • Files You Can NOT Edit, such as music, videos, compressed archives (.zip files), and most other files

Once you upload a file - no matter what type of file it is - you will be able to manage, organize, share and access it from anywhere. Because files in Google Drive are synced across your devices, you'll always see the most recent version of the file.

You can also view different types of files even if you don't have the software required for that file on your computer. For example, you can use Google Drive to view a Photoshop file even if Photoshop is not installed on your current computer.

Converting files to Google Drive format

If you're uploading files that you plan to edit online, you'll need to convert them to Google Drive format. Conversion allows you to edit the file and easily share the file with others. Only certain file types such as MS Office file and PDF documents can be converted to Google Drive format.

Unfortunately, this conversion is not always perfect. Depending on the level of formatting used in the original document, the converted document may appear completely different from the original, as shown in the example below.

Remember: the changes made to the original document when converted to a Google Doc are not always just cosmetic—you may even lose information from the original file. You should always first view the file that has been converted before sharing it with others. Remember: You always have the option to store your files in their original format if you prefer not to edit them online.

Uploading files and folders

Uploading files from your computer to Google Drive is very easy. If you use the Google Chrome web browser, you can even download entire folders.

To upload a file:

Depending on your browser and operating system, you may be able to upload files by simply dragging and dropping them from your computer to your Google Drive.

To upload a folder:

Note: This feature is only available if you are accessing Google Drive through Google Chrome.

Converting files to Google Docs format

When you download certain types of files, such as Microsoft Office files or PDF documents, you will only be able to view those files. If you want to edit these types of files in Google Drive, you must convert them to Google Docs format.

To convert a file:


Practice!

  1. Try uploading a file from your computer to Google Drive. Make sure it has been added to your Google Drive.
  2. Download and convert your Microsoft Office file to Google Drive format.
  3. Open the file to see if Google Drive has retained your file's original formatting.

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In the modern world, the importance of fast and convenient exchange of information cannot be overestimated. Google Drive greatly simplifies our lives by allowing us to upload documents of any type, easily view them and just as easily edit them, and also provide different levels of access to other users. Today we’ll figure out how to upload a file to Google Drive.

Adding files from your phone

Google provides access to files not only in the browser of a personal computer, but also through personal smartphones and tablets. You can upload files from both iOS and Android phones. To do this you need to do the following:

  1. Depending on the device platform, open either the Play Market or the App Store.
  1. Enter the query “Google Drive” into the search bar and click on the result found.
  1. Click the "Download" or "Install" button.
  1. In any suitable application, open the selected file, then click “Send”.
  1. From the context menu, select Google Drive.

The ability to add files via your mobile device makes it easy to manage your documents without making multiple copies. When editing files on a computer, tablet or phone, the changes will be available from all devices: using storage provides access to the current version.

For many users, it is easier to structure and edit information using a personal computer. This can be done in two ways: using any browser or through the Google Drive folder.

Via browser

To upload videos, photos, contacts or any other file through the browser, you need to follow these steps:

  1. Open the vault after logging into your account.

When using updated versions of Chrome and Firefox, everything becomes even easier: you just “drag and drop” files onto the open loading page in the browser.

Be careful: if you upload a file with the same name as one already stored, only the updated version will be saved. Old versions, however, will also be available: in order to open them, just go to “Version Management”.

As soon as the download completion notification appears on the screen, the files will be ready to work from any device on which the client for accessing Google Drive is downloaded.

Via Google Drive folder

Often you have to edit text or graphic files on your computer, while it is more convenient to store them on Google Drive. For this purpose, there is a free Startup and Sync application: it is designed for both Mac and Windows computers. The same program will help you if there is a need to synchronize a large amount of information.

When you remove the application from your PC, the current versions of the files will remain available in the browser. Once the client is installed, a Google Drive folder will appear on your desktop. Also, during installation, you can select any folder located on your PC - it will also be synchronized. Everything you transfer to it will be automatically synchronized with the cloud and every device that has the Drive application.

Installing the application on a PC is discussed in more detail in the next paragraph, but now let’s tell you briefly:

  1. On the download page, click “Download”.
  2. After downloading, go to the “Downloads” folder on your computer and run the file.
  3. Wait until everything you need to install the program is downloaded from the Internet.
  4. Then you need to log in, specify the necessary settings and select, in the second step: which folders on the computer to synchronize, and in the third: what you want to synchronize from Disk with the computer.

After successfully installing the client, you will need to follow these simple steps to add the required information to the cloud storage:

  1. Select the required documents.
  2. Add them to the Drive folder.

Now the selected documents will be available on all devices connected to Google Drive. It may happen that while transferring files, the Internet signal suddenly weakens or disappears. There is no need to worry: the program will automatically continue transferring information as soon as the connection is restored.

The Startup and Sync application, in addition to making it much easier to work with documents on your computer, has another important advantage: the ability to upload an unlimited number of photos and videos. The program will provide access to pictures that capture important moments of your life from any device.

To do this you need:

  1. Download and install the “Startup and Sync” add-on.
  1. Launch the client and log in to your Google account.
  1. Select the type of documents to be uploaded: photos with videos, or other files.
  1. Select the folders from which you want to transfer photos or videos.
  1. Select the appropriate size (it is important to indicate “High quality” in order to upload an unlimited number of photo and video materials).
  1. Click the “Start” button.

After installing the application, the question of how to upload photos to Google Drive will completely disappear: now synchronization will be instant. When you add pictures to the folders on your computer that you specified in step 4, they will automatically be uploaded to the cloud.

Editing

A significant advantage of cloud storage is the ability to make edits to texts so that they are accessible from a phone, tablet and computer at the same time. You can edit documents in two ways: through a browser and on the computer itself.

Via browser

  1. Right-click on the document and open the “Version Control” section.
  1. Select "Download new version".
  1. Then, in the window that opens, find the desired document on your PC, select it and click “Open”.

These simple manipulations will allow you to store all drafts in one document for a month, which will greatly facilitate working with versions.

On the computer

If you need to make changes to the information, just go to the Disk folder and open the required document on your personal computer.

When changes are made, the current version will be synchronized with the cloud without additional actions. The latest amendments will continue to be accessible from all devices.

Deleting documents

When you delete a document on one of the devices, it will be deleted from the cloud. However, if an error is detected, it is still possible to restore the information. Deleted documents are not completely erased, but first go to the trash. They are available for recovery until you delete them again using your browser.

Download Google Drive to your computer

How to download Google Drive for PC?

To do this, go to your Gmail and click on the appropriate link at the top:

Gmail: go to Google Drive

Well, there everything is also clear:

Download the Google drive program to your PC

The program downloads quickly, if everything went well, the following window will pop up:

Downloaded Google Drive

Click “Login” and enter your Gmail account information.

Next you have to go through an easy installation and synchronize Google Drive with a folder on your PC. In the 2nd step, you can click “Advanced settings” and configure some things. For example, change the folder that will be synchronized, and also uncheck (or leave) "Start Google Drive automatically when you turn on your computer".

After all the minor settings, click "Synchronize". If no files were downloaded to this disk, then synchronization will occur instantly. A new tray icon (bottom right) serves as an indicator of the running Google drive program:

Google drive icon

When loading files to disk, this icon flickers a little.

Now let's look at what you can do using the Google Drive program.

Google drive program - its features

To be honest, there are no special features. Moreover, the most important (in my opinion) function is missing, for which these cloud programs are needed: the ability to upload a file to a synchronized folder, receive a link and give it to anyone.

Of course, you can upload file(s) to this folder, but you cannot quickly get a link to them, as, for example, in Yandex.Disk. In it you can simply right-click on the file and get the so-called. public link— it can already be given to people for downloading.

More details about Yandex.Disk:

  • (if you're tired of it).

Opening the web interface

and there you have to tinker a little to get links.

This is the second time I’ve posted this video about this service, but, as they say, “neither add nor add”:

Download Google Drive for PC and get links

As you can see, the usual procedure for obtaining links to files is somewhat difficult here. Unlike Yandex (where the link to the .mp3 file opens the online player), music format files cannot be listened to online.

But you can watch an online video - a player starts up that looks very similar to the player from Youtube and, moreover, You can get a code to embed this video on your website. Yandex doesn’t have this (yet)

But good old Dropbox has a lot:

Unfortunately, Google drive does not provide direct links to files (like the Yandex service), which, again, can be “compensated” with this:

In addition, the video files are not located on the server on which the site is located, so there is no need to waste time transferring additional files.

Is it possible to increase the size of Google Drive?

Yes, but only for a fee. Quite a strange approach. All competitors offer to at least slightly increase space by inviting new users via a special link. There is no such thing here:

Expanding storage space in Google drive

Perhaps because Google is targeting its service at large business clients, for whom it is easier to immediately pay for free space or something else... In the meantime, 5 GB of free space is available.

Deleting files from Google Drive folder

If you delete files from a folder on your PC, they will all go to the “Trash” - you can view it in the browser and there you can restore the files or delete them forever. Everything is the same as with other cloud services.


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