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Accessing and utilizing Google Drive on Ubuntu Linux is a cinch. Dive into Mytour's comprehensive guide to leveraging Google Drive on Ubuntu and Linux.
Setting Up Google Drive on Gnome
Navigating Ubuntu's System Settings, you might stumble upon Online Accounts, but that's not where you'll set up your Google Drive account on Gnome. Instead, let's install Gnome Online Accounts via the Gnome Control Center.
To install the Gnome Online Accounts package, simply press Ctrl + Alt + T to open a Terminal window. Then, type in the following command and hit Enter:
sudo apt install gnome-online-accounts
Launching Gnome Online Accounts
Once the installation is complete, use the following command to open Gnome Online Accounts:
gnome-control-center online-accounts
Alternatively, you can access Gnome Online Accounts via the Unity Launcher. Click on the Search button at the top corner of the Unity Launcher, then type 'gnome control center' into the search bar.
Click on the Settings icon located within Applications.
Next, select Online Accounts under the Personal section in the All Settings dialog box.
Add Google Drive Account
In the Online Accounts dialog box, click on Add an online account.
In the Add Account dialog box, select Google.
Enter your Gmail address for the Google Drive account you wish to access, then click on Next. Enter your password when prompted, then click Next again. If you don't have a Gmail account yet, you can quickly sign up for Gmail.
Click on Allow to grant Nautilus file manager access to your Google account.
Ensure the Files toggle is switched to ON. Then, close the Online Accounts dialog box.
Mount Google Drive in Nautilus
Now you can access and use Google Drive directly within Nautilus on Ubuntu. Your account is mounted within Nautilus and displayed alongside your Gmail address in the left-hand panel. Click on the email address to access the files in your account.
You can add multiple Google Drive accounts if needed. To add another Google Drive account, open Gnome Online Accounts again and follow the steps outlined by Mytour in the section above on adding Google Drive accounts. The accounts will be listed separately in the Nautilus sidebar.
You can also mount Google Drive folders on the Unity Launcher. Hover over the mounted drive icon on the Unity Launcher to see which Google account is associated with it. Nautilus will directly open the mounted Google account.
Using Google Drive files on Ubuntu
Unlike Windows or macOS, your Google Drive files aren't downloaded and stored locally in Ubuntu. You must use an Internet connection to access your account.
To add local files to your Google Drive account, copy the files to the Google Drive folder in Nautilus. To use Google Drive on Ubuntu offline, copy the mounted files from the drive to a folder on your hard drive.
You can also work directly on files within the Google Drive folder. After making changes to the files, they'll be instantly synced back to your online account. However, this method is slower than working directly with files on your hard drive.
If you need to work with multiple files in your Google Drive account, first copy the files to a folder on your local hard drive. Once done, copy the files back to your Google Drive account to replace the original files.
Display Thumbnails for Google Drive Files
By default, Nautilus doesn't preload files or thumbnails from remotely mounted accounts. However, if desired, you can access Edit =>Preferences in Nautilus to make changes.
In the Files Preferences dialog box, click on the Preview tab. Then, adjust the Show thumbnails setting to Always under Files.
Nautilus also doesn't display the number of items in remote folders by default. To view the number of items in folders within your Google Drive account, in the Count number of items menu under Folders, select Always.
Disconnect Google Drive Account
To disconnect your Google Drive account, click on the eject icon located next to your Gmail address in Nautilus.
Additionally, you can disconnect the Google Drive folder from the Unity Launcher. Right-click on the mounted drive icon for the account you wish to disconnect. Then select Unmount.
The icon for that Google account remains locked on the Unity Launcher unless you choose Unlock from Launcher from the right-click menu. Keep the mounted folder icons on the Unity Launcher to easily reconnect folders for each Google account.
Alternative Solutions to Google Drive on Ubuntu
Google Drive isn't the only cloud storage solution out there. Besides Google Drive, there are several alternatives to consider on Ubuntu, including:
Dropbox
Dropbox is one of the top choices. This is because the Dropbox client for Ubuntu works similarly to the Dropbox client on Windows. Files are synchronized and stored in folders on the hard drive; you can select folders in your Dropbox account to sync. After installing Dropbox on Ubuntu, you'll receive notifications on the dashboard providing access to Dropbox's features.
Download Dropbox for Ubuntu and install it here: Dropbox for Ubuntu Download
Mega
Mega offers 50GB of free storage and MEGAsync tool provides easy synchronization between your computer and your Mega account. Additionally, there's a Nautilus extension that integrates your Mega account into the file manager in Ubuntu.
You can get an extra 20GB of storage by installing MEGAsync and 15GB by installing the mobile app.
Cloud storage services like Box and OneDrive don't offer Linux clients. You can access OneDrive via your browser to upload and download files. Ubuntu previously used Ubuntu One, but this storage service no longer exists.
So in the Mytour article, you've just learned how to use Google Drive on Ubuntu. While lacking features like file sharing, Google Drive allows you to easily access and sync files in your account. Wishing you all success.
