Topic: Google Drive - An Issue to be aware of

[Garden Manager]

I have been using Google Drive fine with no issues for some time now. However recently i have had problems synchronising files on the cloud with my PC (a usefull feature). The app allowing syncing to take place seemed to no longer work, I could up load but not have a mirror image of the drive on my PC. Annoying. I decided to uninstall the app and download/install a fresh copy. Which was where the trouble started.

On reinstalling GoogleDrive onto my PC it firstly asked be to sign in again to my Google account, then it told me the google drive folder (containing all my uploaded files) wasnt empty and i needed to create or select a new one! Wouldnt let me sign in and use Google Drive until i had done so. Point is this meant starting afresh with Google Drive, rather than reconnecting my files in the Cloud with my PC like i was wanting to do. I did a search on the Help pages and Google Drive Forums and found that   to fix the problem i would have to do as it asked and create a new Google Drive on the PC and allow it to re-dowmload all my files in the Cloud, duplicating everything in it!! It seems there is no other way. Fortunately i 'only' have 3500 files/4GB data in the Cloud. Other users of course have much more and have paid to have that data stored.

Just thought i would tell you all about this as a warning/courtesy, in case any other Google Drive users out there have a similar problem. The thing that bothers me is that this issue arose because the PC app went wrong and needed reinstalling, a very minor problem that could occur again and again. I fear i may have to keep on renewing my Google Drive if it does.

[alkanet]

wot, so I could end up losing all those nude photos of myself??

[Palustris]

Don't worry alkanet, they have already been on Facebook so you could retrieve them from there.

[Garden Manager]

No you shouldnt actualy loose anything (depends how you use Google Drive i suppose). In fact if you have this problem you will end up with everything duplicated in a second Drive folder on your PC. A pain yes but not a disaster, particularly if you have a lot stored on your GD or your PC is short of disc space.

[ancellsfarmer]

Am I wrong to think that the Google Drive  is external to your PC, on a google server somewhere, and that being the whole point of it. if you have duplicated the creation of your file, each is seperate and conceivably ,on a  seperate server . This would enable you to "backup" to each, and therefore, be doublely protected. If disaster strikes, or if you seek to do so, you could download the lot to another computer , or enable someone else to do so. I can foresee that in future, the last codecile of one's will would usefully enable the transfer/ deletion or copywrite of all ones works.

[French-Dream]

I not a great lover of all this "cloud" malarkey....I'll stick to an external dive I use..