Deleting Files from Google Drive (laptop, hard drive, screen, icon)
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I'm using Google Drive in conjunction with Google's "Backup & Sync" utility to back up files on my laptop. I'm running into capacity issues. My plan is to discontinue backing up several folders and remove those folders from my Google Drive storage. From what I can tell, however, this looks like a 2-way sync, and I'm concerned if I delete those folders on Google Drive, the files will also be deleted from my PC. Is it possible to configure the Backup & Sync app so that it's strictly a 1-way sync? In other words, anything I do on my PC is synced to Drive, but if I delete files on my Google Drive they are not removed from my PC? Seems like a reasonable request, but I can't find a setting that will do that. Any suggestions? Thanks.
I'm using Google Drive in conjunction with Google's "Backup & Sync" utility to back up files on my laptop. I'm running into capacity issues. My plan is to discontinue backing up several folders and remove those folders from my Google Drive storage. From what I can tell, however, this looks like a 2-way sync, and I'm concerned if I delete those folders on Google Drive, the files will also be deleted from my PC. Is it possible to configure the Backup & Sync app so that it's strictly a 1-way sync? In other words, anything I do on my PC is synced to Drive, but if I delete files on my Google Drive they are not removed from my PC? Seems like a reasonable request, but I can't find a setting that will do that. Any suggestions? Thanks.
It's got both. 1-way and 2-way. Hence the name, Backup and Sync. From the icon in the tray, right click, select preferences. You should get a screen like this. The first choice (Your Computer) on the left is a 1-way backup, the 2nd, "Google Drive" is a 2-way. Select the first and designate which folder to backup automatically.
Thanks for getting back to me. My preferences screen looks exactly like yours. Before posting, and before I did anything rash, I saved a test file to my laptop's Documents folder, allowed it to upload to Google Drive, then deleted it from Google Drive. It was almost immediately deleted from my laptop's Documents folder.
The only difference from your screen - and I suspect it is critical - is that I had "Removing Items" set to "Always remove both copies". If I change that to "Ask me before removing..." I can stop it from deleting from my hard drive, but that's problematic, too. I cannot answer "no". When it asks, the only options are (1) to allow it to remove from my hard drive or (2) restore it. If I don't choose one or the other, the "ask" screen remains visible when I open "Backup & Sync". I'll be deleting a couple hundred files on Google Drive in order to free up space. I don't want to restore them, and I don't want to remove them from both locations. Those are the only two options "Backup & Sync" gives me. Basically, I'm looking for a 1-way sync option. If that's possible, I can't find it. What am I missing?
Thanks for getting back to me. My preferences screen looks exactly like yours. Before posting, and before I did anything rash, I saved a test file to my laptop's Documents folder, allowed it to upload to Google Drive, then deleted it from Google Drive. It was almost immediately deleted from my laptop's Documents folder.
The only difference from your screen - and I suspect it is critical - is that I had "Removing Items" set to "Always remove both copies". If I change that to "Ask me before removing..." I can stop it from deleting from my hard drive, but that's problematic, too. I cannot answer "no". When it asks, the only options are (1) to allow it to remove from my hard drive or (2) restore it. If I don't choose one or the other, the "ask" screen remains visible when I open "Backup & Sync". I'll be deleting a couple hundred files on Google Drive in order to free up space. I don't want to restore them, and I don't want to remove them from both locations. Those are the only two options "Backup & Sync" gives me. Basically, I'm looking for a 1-way sync option. If that's possible, I can't find it. What am I missing?
I may not use it as others do which is why I never realized that it works that way. I rarely if ever delete items directly on the cloud. What was there before I installed B&S is still there and available to me on my cell phone and other devices. If I log into google, I select Drive and can see that. As for syncing the folders on my computer, I only use it 1-way anyway. If I delete something from my desktop, I sure don't need it on the cloud. So this way, my computer dictates what I want to keep. If you go directly to the cloud and delete a file from one of your synced folders it will of course delete it on on your computer. You can sync different computers and folders for each one. Those do not fall into just 'Google Drive' but under each computer's backup. The solution is to not alter the files on the cloud, just on your computer. It does have a folder structure on the cloud for that reason. To see what I am referring to, open a browser, login to google, then go to drive. You will see the same folder structure you asked to backup from the windows app assuming you did that. If you chose to backup 'Desktop' under
'My Laptop' or whatever your computer's name is, you should see that folder on the cloud.
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