Google Drive for Desktop and the feature nobody talks about.

It’s a game changer! We all know the Google Drive web browser application. But there is also Google Drive for Desktop app. This is often compared to Microsoft’s OneDrive, Box, and Dropbox. It has the ability to mirror your cloud storage (i.e. files) into your local computer. But there is one feature inside Google Drive for Desktop that makes it significantly different. Read on.

The history of Google Drive for Desktop

Google Drive was first introduced back in 2012. Things were a bit ‘simpler’. There was a web browser application (drive.google.com) and a Google Drive desktop application for Windows 7 and MACs running  OS X Lion or later. There were talks about a Linux desktop application but that never materialized. 

In March 2017, Google introduced “Google Drive File Stream”. This is a desktop application for customers on G Suite (now Google Workspace) using Windows and macOS computers. It maps Google Drive to a drive letter on the operating system. This allows easy access to Google Drive files and folders without using a web browser.

Google Drive File Stream was a unique product. It features on-demand file access. The file is downloaded or streamed from Google Drive only when it is accessed. Thus the name, “File Stream”.

Additionally, Google Drive File Stream supports the Shared Drives functionality of Google Workspace. You would the ability to access Google Drive’s shared folders.

Then in June 2017, Google announced a new app called “Backup and Sync”. This Drive desktop app would replace and merge the existing separate Google Photo and Google Drive desktop apps, creating one unified app on desktop platforms. The “Backup and Sync” app was targeted toward free consumer Google accounts. It uses a mirroring approach to replicate Google Drive cloud storage into your local computer hard drive.

By early 2021, Google announced that it would combine its Drive File Stream and Backup and Sync products into one product. This is the Google Drive for Desktop that we now have. 

Getting started with Google Drive for Desktop

General Requirements

Be sure you check the system requirements before you install Google Drive for Desktop:

• Windows: Windows Server 2012 and up. Windows 7 and up, with at least Service Pack 1 and Windows 7 security update installed.
• macOS: For Intel devices running High Sierra (10.13) or newer, follow these steps.

Install Google Drive for Desktop

The steps to install the Google Drive desktop app is fairly straightforward. 

For Windows users, simply download the GoogleDriveSetup.exe file, run (double click) on the EXE file and follow the on-screen instructions. For macOS users, download the GoogleDrive.dmg file and do the same.

After installing, you will find the Google Drive for desktop Menu  at the bottom right of your screen for Windows users or the top right for MAC users. You will be asked to sign into your Google accounts (you can sign in to multiple).

If you require additional help, refer to the online Google support documentation.

After signing in, the Drive desktop app will begin to sync Google drive content into your local hard drive. Once completed, you can access Google Drive files and documents from your computer. 

Open the Google Drive for Desktop app. Click on the “Gear” wheel symbol for Setting (top right) and select Preferences. Choose the 2nd tab (on the left) called “Google Drive”. This is the “My Drive Syncing Options”, where you can choose between Mirro or Stream files. 

What it means to Mirror or Stream

The way you access Google Drive files or documents is seamless regardless if you choose Stream or MIrror. The application lets you access your files and folders in either the Google Chrome web browser or through your Windows File Explorer or MAC Finder. You can use Drive for desktop to keep your files in sync between the cloud and your computer.

Syncing is the process of “replicating” the files from the cloud storage to your computer’s hard drive, and vice-versa. After syncing, the documents you see on your computer will match what is in the cloud.

There are 2 ways the Google Drive app synchronizes – mirroring and streaming. In both cases, the changes you make to your document or file on one device are reflected everywhere on other devices.

With mirroring, the files are in both the cloud and on your computer. This means it takes up hard drive space. You can access your files even when you do not have an Internet connection. When the Internet becomes available again, the Google Drive app will synchronize the file changes to the cloud.

With streaming, the Google Drive app will not access files stored in the cloud until you open it. Only then it will download the file for you to use and edit. When you close the file, the app will synchronize it back to the cloud.

So does that mean you cannot open your files if there is no Internet? Yes and no. It is possible to configure the file for Offline use. But if you forgot to do it, then you are stuck.  

Switch from mirroring to streaming

When you switch from Mirroring to Streaming, the folder where you previously mirrored My Drive files will remain on your computer. However, it will no longer sync. To avoid data loss, please complete the syncing process before cleaning up these folders.

For Windows users, you will need to quit Google Drive for desktop before removing the folder from your computer.

Switch from streaming to mirroring

When you switch from Streaming to Mirroring, My Drive will no longer appear in your Google Drive streaming location. Instead, the My Drive files will be downloaded to the folder you choose. If there are already files in the selected folder, the Google Drive app will attempt to avoid duplicating files that already exist in the cloud.

Important: Files vs. Google documents

There is a distinct difference between Files (e.g. Microsoft Office files) and Google documents (from Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides). Google Drive will access files differently from Google documents. 

Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides are cloud documents.  On the web browser, Google Drive will show the document size But on your local computer (i.e. Windows File Explorer or MAC Finder) the document size will always be only 1KB. It is only a URL to the cloud document. When you click, it launches your Google Chrome web browser (or your default browser), starts the app (i.e. Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Google Slides), and loads the data into the app.

So in the strictest sense, this cloud-only approach means everything is in the cloud. Nothing is on your local computer. This is why a Chromebook does not need big local storage space. Google accounts are used to make sure your data is safe. The credentials are also verified in the cloud.

This is significant. With Google Docs, Google Slides, and Google Sheets, you (and your team) are always working on just one document. There is no synchronization. It doesn’t matter if you select Mirror or Stream. 

When you create a new Microsoft Office file, there is a local file created on your computer. The Microsoft Office file takes up hard disk space. When editing and/or deleting the file, it will impact the hard disk storage space.

With Microsoft Office files (Word, Excel, and Powerpoint), you are working off a local copy, downloaded from the cloud through the Google Drive Desktop app. When you save, it needs to copy the file back to the cloud, i.e. synchronization. 

The Microsoft Office approach is a hybrid of cloud and local storage space. Choosing to mirror or stream makes a lot of difference.

The benefits of File Streaming (that nobody talks about)

Now that you understand the architecture, it is no surprise that Google Drive works best with Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides because these are cloud documents. But you likely have a hybrid environment.

Taking the streaming approach to synchronize has its pros and cons. We think there are more pros than cons. 

When your staff resigns – file access control

Many companies adopt a BYOD (Bring Your Own Devices) policy for laptops and mobile phones for their employees. Dropbox, Box, and Microsoft Office OneDrive work by mirroring files to your local computer.

When a staff resigns, the administrator must disconnect the account from the device and delete all files belonging to the company from the BYOD laptop. This can be a challenge and a security issue.

In contrast, if the Google Drive desktop app is configured to stream files, then disconnecting the account from the device is sufficient. The disconnecting is done on the cloud via the Google Workspace Admin console. You do not need to access the device.

When you are running out of local storage space

Google Workspace Starter offers 30GB of cloud storage. The Standard package offers 2TB. If you use 1TB of cloud storage, then mirroring will consume 1TB of local hard disk space. If local hard disk space is a concern, then mirroring is not ideal.

In streaming, only files that are opened are temporarily downloaded into the local computer hard disk. When you close the file, it is removed. This means you use less local storage. That is why a Chromebook typically does not require large local storage.

When your computer is stolen or the hard disk crashes

Mishaps are unpredictable and it happens at most unexpected moments. There is even a law for it, “Murphy’s Law“. The real issue is data loss prevention. When that happens, how much data would you lose and how much time would you need to recover?

If all the files are stored in the cloud and you are using Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides, then recovery time can be as short as 5 minutes. If you use Microsoft Office (and the files are in the cloud), then add 10 minutes to install the app.

This means it is easy to swap computers if you keep everything in the cloud.

When your computer is infected by a virus or ransomware

Google Drive also has virus detection built-in. When you upload or download a file, it will scan for viruses. Of course, if there is a brand new virus type that is not yet known, it may be missed. If the file size is greater than 100MB, then it will not scan. 

Viruses and ransomware have gotten very sophisticated and deviously cunning. Can an infected file get uploaded to Google Drive? Yes, it is possible but the chances are slim for files below 100MB.

If you stream, only opened files are susceptible to viruses because they are downloaded. If streamed files are infected, you will not be able to synchronize back to Google Drive. You would only lose the current work from when you last saved it. 

If you mirror, all the files are also on your local hard disk. It makes the entire Google Drive cloud storage more vulnerable and open to attacks.

Generally, viruses infect local files. But with Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides, those are cloud documents and not local files. Streamed files, e.g. Microsoft Office, are not 100% protected but the probability is small. 

Note: For pragmatic reasons, most Microsoft Office files should be less than 100MB. Otherwise, you really should consider compressing the content, e.g. reducing the size of embedded images.

The disadvantages of streaming

Using Google Drive for Desktop file streaming is not ideal when working with a large file. This could be:

• Editing High-resolution photographs or images
• Rendering large video files
• Working with big CAD (Computer Aided Design) documents

In this scenario, it is better to use a NAS like Synology and have a scheduled nightly synchronization to Google Drive.

Final Words

Streaming files is a unique approach to synchronization. It is not without its limitations but the security advantages are very compelling when used in the right use cases.  

If you have concerns about the security of your office documents or simply want to find out more about Google Workspace, click here, and let’s meet up online.