How to Share Files on Google Drive

From the list view, click Share in the upper-right-hand corner, enter the email address, and click Send.

You can also right-click the thumbnail and then click Share to start.

From the document, click Share in the upper-right-hand corner, enter the email address, and click Send.

The Share button’s color will vary based on the type of document you’re viewing (i.e., Docs, Sheets, or Slides).

The person you share with will get an email notifying them that they have access to the document.

If the person you share with has a non-Google email address, you will have the option of either recommending that they sign in with a Google account or turning on link sharing.

When sharing a folder, you can customize permissions concerning individual documents in that folder.

From the list view, click the Share icon in the upper-right-hand corner, click Get shareable link, and then click Copy link. Now, you can paste the link in an email or in HTML code.

From the document, click the Share icon in the upper-right-hand corner. Then, click Get shareable link. 

When you share files this way, anyone who has the link can view the document, so make sure you’re comfortable with all information in the document being publicly available.

From the list view, shift+click or command+click the thumbnails for the files you want to share, click the Share icon in the upper-right-hand corner, enter the email addresses, and click Send.

If you want to share all the files in a folder, select the folder, click the Share icon in the upper- right-hand corner, enter the email addresses, and then click Send.

If any person you share with has a non-Google email address, you will have the option of either recommending that they sign in with a Google account or turning on link sharing.

If you often share files and folders with the same people, save time by grouping those contacts in your Google Contacts with the Labels feature: 

1. From your Gmail inbox, click the Google apps icon (the small grid); then, click Google Contacts. 
   
2. In the sidebar, click Create label, choose a name, and click Save.
3. In the main section, hover over the first person you want to add, click the More actions icon (three vertical dots), and then click the name of the label you created. Repeat the process with each person you want to add.
   
4. When sharing, type the name of the label you created instead of a contact’s email address.
   

Google Drive has built-in Twitter and Facebook sharing. To share a file or folder on one of those services, go to the sharing window, click Advanced, click the Twitter or Facebook icon, log in if needed, and then complete the process. 

When you share via social media, the access level defaults to View only.

You can create surveys and questionnaires with Google Forms. The forms themselves are stored on your Google Drive, and the responses are saved on your Google Drive in a Sheets document. 

Once you create a form, you can share it with others, so they can provide feedback. Click the More options icon, click Add collaborators, fill in the contact info, and then click Done. 

You can also copy the link or share the link via Twitter or Facebook. Only those people you’ve listed as collaborators can open the link.

To send the survey in order to get answers, click Send. You can share it via email or Facebook and Twitter or by copying or embedding the link.

Slack is a messaging app that allows easy integration with other apps. To share on Slack in Google Drive, follow these steps:

1. In the workspace (either the app or the website), click Add apps in the sidebar and then click Install next to Google Drive. If you’re using the app, Slack will open your browser. 
    
   
   
2. Click Add configuration and then click Add Google Drive app. Review the options. Then, click Install. 
    
   
   
    
   
3. Click Authenticate your Google Drive account, and follow the prompts. 
   
    
   

Remember that any user in a workspace who wants to share on Slack from their Google Drive will have to follow these aforementioned steps. If you use multiple Slack workspaces, you’ll have to add Google Drive to each workspace.

To share a file, click the Paperclip icon in the compose area, click Google Drive, and choose the file you want to share. You can also create new documents by hovering over Create new and then clicking the document type.

You can upload Microsoft Office files (e.g., Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) and many other types of files to Google Drive and share them like Google Docs. To upload a file in the list view, click New, click File upload, and then navigate to the document. Then, follow the steps above to share it.

Another option is to download Google Backup and Sync. It allows you to automatically back up your computer files to your Google Drive. Once you’ve uploaded these files, you can share them with others by following the steps above.

There are a number of defaults you can change when sharing documents and folders on Google Drive. These include the following:

• Email Notifications: You can add your own text to the generic email by putting something in the Add a note box. Or, you can stop any notification by unchecking the Notify people box. 
  
  
  Click Advanced to cc yourself. 
  
• Access Levels: In terms of document edit access, Google Drive defaults to everyone having access. By clicking on the pencil button, you can change this default to either Comment only or View only.
  
  
  Users with edit access can share the access level with or change the access level for other users (e.g., from View only to Edit). To prevent users with edit access from having these abilities, click Advanced and check the Prevent editors from changing access and adding new people box in the sharing setting window.
  
  Commenters and viewers can also make a copy of, download, and print a document. To prevent this ability, click the box next to Disable options to download, print, and copy for commenters and viewers. 
  
• Link Sharing: For link sharing, the default level is Private, meaning only people with access can see the file or folder. To change this status, open the sharing window, click Advanced, click Change, and then choose one of the two options:
  • Anyone with the link
  • Public on the web: available via a Google search
    
    
    

Open the sharing panel as described above. To change a specific person’s permissions, click the Pencil icon. To remove someone, click the X.

Click Save changes to complete.

If you want to transfer ownership of the file to another user, open the sharing panel as described above, click the Pencil icon, click is owner, and then click Save changes. To complete the transfer, click Yes on the warning message.

Google Drive has some limitations and quirks that document owners need to be aware of: 

• Only 100 people can edit and comment on a document simultaneously (that limitation does not apply to viewers).
• Files can’t be shared with more than 200 people.
• If someone changes permissions for a folder that has a lot of subfolders, it will take time for those status changes to filter down.
• If you change permissions for many users, it will take some time for those changes to filter down.
• Document-level passwords are not available.
• Regarding people with edit access, owners can’t set a date for that access to expire.

You can see all the files you own by viewing the sidebar of the My Drive folder. The easiest way to see what’s shared with you is to open the Shared with me folder.

Let’s say your colleague says they’ve shared a file with you, but when you open Drive, it’s not in the Shared with me folder. Chances are they forgot to share it with you. So, check with the owner. Alternately, if you have more than one Google account, make sure you are signed in with the one that your coworker sent the file to. 

If you see the file, but can’t open it, you’ll see a “You need permission” message. Click Request access, and the file owner will receive a notification requesting that they grant you access.

Each Google account gets 15GB of storage. This is shared between Drive, Gmail, and Photos. 

If you reach your quota, nothing is deleted, but you can’t upload new files or photos (you can still create Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides), and any messages sent to your Gmail account will be returned.

Follow Google's tips to free up storage space or buy more storage.

These are the actions that users can take based on their access level. The document owner (and, in some cases, editors) can change these access levels.

Verify with the owner that they haven’t removed you from the file. If they haven’t, make sure that you haven’t accidentally deleted the file from your Google Drive. In the sidebar, click the trash icon. You can scroll through the items or use the search bar at the top. If the item is in the trash, click it to select it and then click the Restore icon. Drive will restore the file to its original location.

If you are trying to share a file that you don’t own, the owner has either set your access level to Comment or View, or, if you have edit access, they’ve checked the box next to Prevent editors from changing access and adding new people. Contact the file owner to remedy this.

On a computer, they are stored deep in the bowels of the Chrome browser data (which is why that browser needs to be able to work offline).  On mobile devices, they are located in the data associated with the Google Drive app.

If you make changes to a file while offline, the file syncs with the version stored in the Google cloud when you reconnect.

If you’re trying to download a file that’s been shared with you, but the option isn’t available, it’s most likely that the owner has given you Commentor or View access and then checked the box next to Disable options to download, print, and copy for commenters and viewers. Contact the owner of the file.

To sync between Google Drive and your computer, you’ll need the Backup and Sync app. If you’ve installed the app and are not seeing the files you expect on either Google Drive or your computer, open the app settings and verify that the folders you want to sync in each direction are selected.

On Google Drive, a limit of 100 people can simultaneously edit and comment on a document (but that limitation does not apply to viewers). There’s currently no way to overcome this limit.

Drive also has a sharing limit of 200 people. If you need to share a file with more people, you can make the file public, then share the link or create a Google group.

In the sidebar, click the trash icon. Then, in the header, click Trash, and then click Empty trash.

Any backups that you’ve created will be located on the sidebar, with an icon that looks like a phone.

Google Drive is a very complex system, so it can be difficult to pinpoint the cause of a slowdown. You can troubleshoot by checking the Google Drive service details page to see if it’s a system-wide issue or by searching the Google Drive help page to see if others are having similar issues.