{"id":93463,"date":"2015-08-14T15:54:35","date_gmt":"2015-08-14T19:54:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/?page_id=93463"},"modified":"2025-10-14T15:25:49","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T19:25:49","slug":"backup-your-data-with-bu-google-drive","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/services\/infrastructure\/storage-backup\/cloud-file-storage\/backup-your-data-with-bu-google-drive\/","title":{"rendered":"BU Google Drive"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span>BU Google Drive is suitable to store your Google Docs and Sheets and is an excellent collaboration tool for working on shared documents.\u00a0 Drive is available for faculty, students and staff.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Faculty\/Staff do <em>not<\/em> have access by default, but can <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/support\/google\/enable\/\">request access<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li>BU Google Drive is InfoSec approved to store confidential information.<\/li>\n<li>Offers storage space with your BU account.<\/li>\n<li>Great alternative to Crashplan for BU Faculty\/Staff as you can access your files anywhere where there is an internet connection.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span>Shared Drive Creation<\/span><\/h2>\n<ul type=\"disc\">\n<li class=\"x_paragraph\"><span class=\"x_normaltextrun\"><span>Effective <strong>August 31, 2023<\/strong>, the creation of free BU Google Shared Drives is no longer allowed. \u202fThis is due to the need to set quotas on the amount of data in our BU Google tenant. \u202fGoogle now charges by the amount of data we have in our tenant, and shared drives take up a significant portion of our overall data quota. \u202f<\/span><\/span><span class=\"x_eop\"><span> If you would like to purchase a Google Shared Drive, please refer to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/support\/storage-options\/\">Storage Options<\/a> page for more information.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Effective <strong>June 1, 2024<\/strong>, a storage quotas of 5GB was implemented on all BU Google Shared Drives.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"x_paragraph\"><span class=\"x_eop\"><span>Learn more about Faculty and Staff Storage options including how to purchase additional storage on our TechWeb<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/support\/storage-options\/\"> Storage Options page.<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Uploading via Drive Application<\/h2>\n<p>Google Drive offers the Google Drive for desktop application, which is available to BU faculty, students, and staff.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Google Drive for desktop &#8211; Appears as a network drive and it downloads files as they are used saving space on your computer.\u00a0 This application allows for folders\/files to be used in Offline mode.<\/li>\n<li>Learn more about\u00a0 about <a href=\"https:\/\/support.google.com\/drive\/answer\/7638428?hl=en\">Google Drive for desktop<\/a> features comparison<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Google Drive for Desktop<\/h3>\n<div class=\"bu_collapsible_container \" aria-live=\"polite\" data-customize-animation=\"false\"><h3 class=\"bu_collapsible\" aria-expanded=\"false\"tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">Installation for Mac<\/h3><div class=\"bu_collapsible_section\" style=\"display: none;\">\n<ol>\n<li>Download the <a href=\"https:\/\/dl.google.com\/drive-file-stream\/GoogleDrive.dmg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">.dmg installer for Mac <\/a><\/li>\n<li>Open the downloaded .dmg file by double clicking its icon.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive6.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive6.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive6\" class=\"wp-image-93538 alignnone\" height=\"73\" width=\"317\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Install by dragging and dropping the Google Drive icon into the Applications folder shown.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive7.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive7-636x475.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive7\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-93539 alignnone\" height=\"475\" width=\"636\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive7-636x475.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive7.png 966w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Run Google Drive and login with your BU login and password and verify when you see the BU login screen.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive8.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive8-636x505.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive8\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-93540\" height=\"505\" width=\"636\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive8-636x505.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive8.png 974w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive9.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive9-636x505.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive9\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-93541 alignnone\" height=\"505\" width=\"636\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive9-636x505.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive9.png 974w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>When the installation finishes, the Google Drive icon should appear on the menu bar in the upper right-hand corner.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive10.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive10-636x187.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive10\" class=\"wp-image-93542 alignnone\" height=\"97\" width=\"330\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive10-636x187.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive10.png 830w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 330px) 100vw, 330px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Open the Google Drive folder. If you have any documents previously stored on Google Drive, they should be syncing to your folder unless you chose not to sync specific folders.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive11.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive11-636x398.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive11\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-93543 alignnone\" height=\"398\" width=\"636\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive11-636x398.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive11.png 974w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Drag and drop any files that you would like to back up to Google Drive. A sync icon will appear letting you know that the file is being uploaded.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive12.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive12-636x481.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive12\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-93544 alignnone\" height=\"481\" width=\"636\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive12-636x481.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive12.png 975w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li><span> <\/span>A green check mark will appear once the file is uploaded. You can verify if the file has been uploaded by visiting <a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/a\/bu.edu\/\">https:\/\/drive.google.com\/a\/bu.edu\/<\/a> <span>and checking for your file there.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive13.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive13-636x481.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive13\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-93545 alignnone\" height=\"481\" width=\"636\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive13-636x481.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive13.png 975w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><\/a><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<br \/>\n<div class=\"bu_collapsible_container \" aria-live=\"polite\" data-customize-animation=\"false\"><h3 class=\"bu_collapsible\" aria-expanded=\"false\"tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">Installation for Windows<\/h3><div class=\"bu_collapsible_section\" style=\"display: none;\"><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Download the <a href=\"https:\/\/dl.google.com\/drive-file-stream\/GoogleDriveFSSetup.exe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">.exe installer for Windows<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Run the installation file from the download directory.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive14.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive14.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive14\" class=\"size-full wp-image-93546 alignnone\" height=\"118\" width=\"118\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive14.png 118w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive14-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 118px) 100vw, 118px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Sign into Google drive using your BU email address. Verify your login information at the BU login screen.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive15.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive15-636x502.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive15\" class=\"wp-image-93547 alignnone\" height=\"333\" width=\"422\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive15-636x502.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive15.png 975w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 422px) 100vw, 422px\" \/><\/a><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive16.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive16-636x502.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive16\" class=\"wp-image-93548 alignnone\" height=\"332\" width=\"421\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive16-636x502.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive16.png 975w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 421px) 100vw, 421px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>When the installation finishes, you should see the Google Drive icon in the taskbar at the bottom right corner of the screen.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive17.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive17.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive17\" class=\"size-full wp-image-93549 alignnone\" height=\"61\" width=\"441\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Open the Google Drive folder and drag and drop any files you would like backed up to Google Drive. A sync icon should appear while the file is syncing to the server.<\/li>\n<li>A green check mark should appear once the file has been successfully uploaded. Verify that the upload has finished via the web interface: <a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/a\/bu.edu\/\">https:\/\/drive.google.com\/a\/bu.edu\/<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Uploading via Web<\/h2>\n<div class=\"bu_collapsible_container \" aria-live=\"polite\" data-customize-animation=\"false\"><h3 class=\"bu_collapsible\" aria-expanded=\"false\"tabindex=\"0\" role=\"button\">Instructions<\/h3><div class=\"bu_collapsible_section\" style=\"display: none;\"><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Navigate to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/a\/bu.edu\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/drive.google.com\/a\/bu.edu\/<\/a> preferably with Google Chrome if you would like to upload entire folders without installing the Drive application to your computer.<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive1-636x423.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive1\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-93533 alignnone\" height=\"423\" width=\"636\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive1-636x423.png 636w, https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive1.png 975w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Login with your BU email. Verify your email at the BU portal if prompted.\n<ul>\n<li>If using the old user interface for Google Drive, click on the upload icon next to \u201cCreate.\u201d<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive2.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive2\" class=\"wp-image-93534 alignnone\" height=\"211\" width=\"184\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>If using the new user interface for Google Drive, click on the \u201cNew\u201d button.<br \/>\n<a href=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive3.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/tech\/files\/2015\/08\/GoogleDrive3.png\" alt=\"GoogleDrive3\" class=\"wp-image-93535 alignnone\" height=\"296\" width=\"245\" \/><br style=\"clear: both;\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Select either file or folder depending on what you would like to upload.<\/li>\n<li>Alternatively, you can just drag and drop the files\/folders into your web browser while you are on the Google Drive page.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>BU Google Drive is suitable to store your Google Docs and Sheets and is an excellent collaboration tool for working on shared documents.\u00a0 Drive is available for faculty, students and staff.\u00a0 Faculty\/Staff do not have access by default, but can request access. BU Google Drive is InfoSec approved to store confidential information. Offers storage space&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1301,"featured_media":0,"parent":107425,"menu_order":2,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/93463"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1301"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=93463"}],"version-history":[{"count":50,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/93463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":160077,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/93463\/revisions\/160077"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/107425"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/tech\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=93463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}