Introduction
The question many people want to know the answer to is: what are Google team Drives? Google Team Drives are Shared Drives. Team Drives differ from the regular Google My Drive. In my previous post, I highlighted some differences between both. A Team Drive is a shared storage space that allows for collaboration by teams. It allows teams to store, search, and access shared files on the drive remotely from any location and from any device. files in a Team Drive belong to the team. Even when a member leaves, the files still remain in the shared drive.
Google Team (Shared) Drives offer unlimited Cloud storage space, hence its popularity. Let’s give a breakdown of the major differences between Google My Drive and Google Team Drives.
| S/No. | Features | My Drive | Team Drive |
| 1 | Type | Individual Private Google Drive | Shared Drive for the Team available for G Suite Enterprise, Enterprise for Education, Drive Enterprise, Business, Education, and Nonprofits edition. |
| 2 | Storage Space | Varies depending on plan (15GB for free, 30GB for Basic G Suite and Unlimited for G Suite Education, Business and Enterprise plans) | Unlimited Cloud Storage space |
| 3 | Ownership of files and folders | Owned by the individual who uploads the files and folders | Owned by the Team. Any member can access any of the shared files. |
| 4 | Limits and Types of files you can add | You can add all file types to Google My Drive | All files types except google Maps. You can have a maximum of 1000 Team (Shared) Drives A Team (shared) Drive can contain a maximum of 400,000 files and folders. Maximum individual file size to be uploaded or synced is 5TB. Individual users can only upload a maximum of 750GB daily between their My Drive and Team (Shared) Drive. A folder in a shared drive can support up to 20 levels of sub-folders. Membership limits: Users and groups- 600 Total individuals (users and group members)- 50, 000 It is the recommended best practice to add members to the Team Drive via Google Groups and not individually. |
| 5 | Who can move files and folders | Owner can move files and folders | Users/members can only move files while administrators can move both files and folders. Subscribe to EduTechTainMent to be notified when an the post on how to bypass this feature limitation is published. |
| 6 | Sharing Priviledges | Different users will see different files and folders depending on the set sharing permissions | All members see the same files and folders. Adding a user to a Google Group automatically adds and grants him/her access to all the shared drives that include that group. Administrators can restrict access to certain sub-folders. Members can share files in a Team (Shared) Drive with other non-team members. Such files appear in the users Shared with Me folder but cannot be added to his/her My Drive or in another Team (Shared) Drive |
| 7 | DMCA | Prone to DMCA (copyright) take-downs. | Less prone to DMCA take-downs |
| 8 | Duration of files deleted into the trash | All deleted files or folders remain in the thrash (and contribute to total My Drive used space) until the user/owner selects Delete Forever. | Each Team Drive has its own trash. All deleted files and folders remain in the thrash for 30 days, after which they are finally deleted forever. However, members can delete specific files when they wish. If the G Suite (Education) Gmail from which a Team (Shared) Drive is created is deleted, the Team Drive will not be deleted. Subscribe and stay tuned to EduTechTainMent to find out how to get an Educational/Institutional gmail account!!! |
| 9 | Ability to restore deleted files and folders from the trash | Yes, owner deleted files and folders can be restored back from the trash to their original locations. | Yes if a member has Edit or Administrative privileges- Manager, Content manager, or Contributor access. |
| 10 | Backup capability | Very good for free/basic plans and excellent for others. | Excellent |
| 11 | Syncing files to my computer | Yes, users can sync files to their personal computers. | Depends on which sync solution is employed. If it’s a Drive File Stream sync solution: Yes If its a Backup and Sync solution: No N. B. When using Drive File Stream, you cannot move a folder from My Drive to a Team (Shared) Drive. |
The following types of members exist in a Team Drive.
Types of members and their Functions
- Manager:
Functions: By default, can manage members, and upload, edit, move or delete all files. - Content manager:
Functions: By default, new members will be Content managers. A content manager can upload, edit, move, or delete all files. - Contributor:
Functions: by default, can edit all files and upload new files, but can’t move or delete files. - Commenter:
Functions: Can only comment on all files. - Viewer:
Function: Can only view all files.
How to Create and Add members to a Team (Shared) Drive
Create a Team Drive on Computer
Go to Your Drive on your PC
Click Shared drives, on the left side of the screen.
At the top left, click New.
Enter any desired name for the shared drive.
Click on Create.
Create a Team Drive on Android
Open the Google Drive app on your android device.
In the top left, tap Menu
Click on Add
Enter any desired name for your newly created Team Drive.
Tap on OK.
Add Members to Team Drive on Computer
Go to Your Drive on your PC.
On the left side, click on Shared drives and double-click one of your shared drives.
At the top, click + Add members.
Add names, email addresses, or a Google Group. Note that, by default, new members will be Content managers. They can upload, edit, move, or delete all files.
Modify the following options/privileges for members:
Access for new members, click the Down arrow
Whether new members get notified, click Skip sending notification.
Click to Send.
Add Members to a Team Drive on Android
Open the Google Drive app on your Android device,
In the top left, tap Menu
Next to the shared drive, you want to add to, tap More
Add names, email addresses, or a Google Group (preferable). By default, members can upload, edit, and delete files.
Modify the following options/privileges for members:
Access for new members, tap More
Whether new members get notified, tap More
Tap on the Send
How to Join a Team Drive via Group Invitation Link
Click on the invitation link for the Team drive of interest. Select the Google account you want to use in joining the group (if you have several Google accounts). Click on Join Group. Wait for some time, depending on the group policy. Check under your shared Drives to see the new Team drive you just joined listed. In some cases, the Team Drives may be listed under the Hidden Drives in your Shared Drive folder.
Conclusion
Now you know better why Google Team (Shared) drives are very important. Read my other post to know how to get your own Team Drive, and also how to get the best use out of your Team Drives.
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