Google Drive Managing your Files

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Google Drive

Managing your Files

Introduction

Managing Files on Google Drive
After you've been using Google Drive for a while, you might find yourself having a hard time keeping track of all your files. Fortunately, Google Drive offers a number of features to help you manage and organize your files.
In this lesson, you will learn how to find files easily using the searchfilter, and sort tools. You'll also learn about folders, which let you organize your files into groups. Finally, you'll learn about the file action buttons, which allow you to organizepreview, or delete your files quickly.

Managing Your Files

Launch "Managing Your Files" video!Watch the video (4:29). Need help?
Watch the video to learn how to manage your files in Google Drive, and make them easier to find.

Sorting, Filtering, and Searching

Google Drive uses three main tools to help you locate your files: sortingfiltering, and searching.
    • Sorting your files lets you put them in order. By default, your files are already sorted from newest to oldest. However, you can apply other sorts to put your docs in alphabetical order or order them from largest file size to smallest.
    • Filtering your files lets you hide unimportant files and focus only on the ones you're interested in.For example, if you were looking for a presentation, you could use a filter to narrow down your visible files so that you would only see the presentations.
    • Searching lets you look for specific files using words contained within the file.

Finding a File

What makes these tools so powerful is that you can combine them to find exactly what you're looking for. For example, say that Olenna, an art teacher, wants to open a file, but doesn't remember the title. She knows it's adocument, so she can apply a filter that narrows her list down to only documents. She also knows that someone else created the file and shared it with her, so she applies the Shared with me filter, too.
Screenshot of Google DriveApplying the Text documents filter
The file is a worksheet, so she types "worksheet" into the search bar. This narrows down her list further, so the only files displayed are documents that were shared with her that contain the word "worksheet."
Screenshot of Google DriveSearching for files containing the word "worksheet"
She still doesn't spot the file she's looking for. Olenna knows she opened and edited the file fairly recently, so she changes the sort to Last modified.
Screenshot of Google DriveSorting the files by most recently modified
With the sort applied, Olenna finds the files near the top of her files list. You won't usually have to go through as many steps as Olenna did to find what you're looking for. However, if you do have trouble finding a file, these features can help.
Screenshot of Google DriveFinding the desired file

To Sort Your Files:

  • Click the Sort drop-down button, then select the sort you wish to apply. Your files will remain sorted in the selected order until you apply a new sort.  
    Screenshot of Google DriveSorting options

To Apply a Filter to Your Files:

  1. Click the Advanced search options button and then select the filter you would like to use from the drop-down menu. In our example, we'll set a filter for text documents.
    Screenshot of Google DriveFiltering files
  2. Your list of files will be narrowed down to show only the files that match the filter.
    Screenshot of Google DriveA filtered list showing only text documents
  3. If desired, add an additional filter to further narrow your list of files. Repeat until you are satisfied with the filtered list.
    Screenshot of Google DriveApplying multiple filters
To clear a filter, simply locate the search bar and click the on each of your filters until they have all been removed. You can also click the search bar, and then press the backspace or delete key.
Screenshot of Google DriveRemoving a filter

To Search for a File:

  • Locate the search bar and type the word or words you wish to search for, then press the Enter key.
Screenshot of Google DriveEntering a search term
If your files are currently filtered, the search will apply only to those files that are visible. To search all files, clear the filter.
You can switch between List view and Grid view to change the way your files appear in your view pane. UsingGrid view will show a small preview of certain files.
Screenshot of Google DriveChanging to Grid view

Organizing Files

Once you start placing a lot of files onto your Google Drive, you can use folders to help organize and group your files. Folders in Google Drive work just like the folders on your computer. In addition, Google Drive makes creatingand managing your folders easy.

To Create a Folder:

  1. While viewing your Google Drive, click the Create button and then select Folder from the drop-down menu.
    Screenshot of Google DriveCreating a folder
  2. A dialog box will appear. Type a name for your folder and then click OK.
    Screenshot of Google DriveNaming the folder
  3. Your folder will appear in the left-navigation pane below My Drive. You must click the drop-down arrow  next to My Drive in the left-navigation pane to see your folders.
    Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the new folder in the left-navigation pane
You can also use the New Folder button New Folder icon to add a new folder to your Google Drive at any time. Just select My Drive and then click the New Folder button.
Screenshot of Google DriveClicking the New Folder button
To further group your files, you can also create a folder within an existing folder, known as a nested folder. To create a nested folder, select a folder and then click the New Folder button New Folder icon. The new folder will appear as a nested folder.
Screenshot of Google DriveCreating a nested folder

To Add Files to Folders:

  1. While viewing your Google Drive, locate the file you wish to add to a folder.
  2. Click, hold and drag the file to the desired folder in the left-navigation pane.
    Screenshot of Google DriveAdding a file to a folder
  3. The confirmation dialog box will appear at the top of the page, confirming that the file has been moved.
    Screenshot of Google DriveThe moved file dialog box
  4. The file is now stored in the folder.
    Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the moved file in the folder
To add multiple files to the same folder, select the files you wish to add by clicking their checkboxes. Once you've selected them all, click, hold and drag any selected file to the desired folder. All of the selected files will be added to the folder.
Screenshot of Google DriveAdding multiple files to a folder

To Move a File between Folders:

  1. Locate and select the file you wish to move.
  2. The file action buttons will appear at the top of the page. Click the Organize button Foldericon.
    Screenshot of Google DriveClicking the Organize button
  3. The Organize dialog box will appear. The file's current folder is indicated by the checkmark Checkmark icon.
    Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the Organize dialog box
  4. Select another folder to store the file. A checkmark Checkmark icon will appear next to the selected folder.
  5. Click Apply Changes. The file is now moved to the selected folder.
    Screenshot of Google DriveMoving a file to another folder

To Set a Folder Color:

Once you have created several folders, you may wish to assign colors to your folders to help stay organized.
  1. Hover your mouse over the folder in the left-navigation pane and then select the arrow  that appears.
  2. A drop-down menu will appear. Hover your mouse over Change color and then select a color for the folder.
    Screenshot of Google DriveSelecting a color for a folder
  3. The selected folder color will appear in the left-navigation pane.
    Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the new folder color
  4. Any files stored in the folder will display the folder's color in the view pane.
    Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the folder color in the view pane

    Organizing Files on your Computer

    If you have installed Google Drive, you can also manage your files using the Google Drive folder on your computer. You even have to ability to create and organize folders! While you won't have access to all of Drive's organization features, like color coding, this is still an easy way to manage your folders. If you have more experience organizing files on your computer, you may prefer this method over organizing your files directly on Google Drive.

    To Create Folders:

    1. Open the Google Drive folder on your computer by double-clicking the shortcut on your desktop or navigating to the Google Drive folder.
      Screenshot of Google DriveOpening the Google Drive folder on your computer
    2. Click New folder to add a new folder to your Google Drive.
      Screenshot of Google DriveAdding a new folder
    3. Type a name for your folder and press Enter. The folder is now created.
      Screenshot of Google DriveNaming the new folder
    4. The folder will appear automatically on your Google Drive.
      Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the new folder on Google Drive

    To Add a File to a Folder:

    1. Locate and select the file or files you wish to add to the folder.
    2. Click, hold and drag the files to the desired folder in the Google Drive folder.
      Screenshot of Google DriveMoving files into a folder
The files will appear automatically in that folder on your Google Drive.
Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the files in the folder on Google Drive

The File Action Buttons

The file action buttons will appear at the top of your Google Drive whenever you select a file. As we have already seen, you can use the Organize Folder icon button to manage your files. But the file action buttons also provide powerful shortcuts that will help you manage your files in different ways.
  •  Trash icon Click the Trash button to move a file to the Trash folder, which is like the Windows Recycle Bin.
  •  Preview icon Click the Preview button to see a quick preview of a file without opening it.
  •  More icon Click the More button to Add a Star to a file, rename a file, or mark a fileas unviewed. You can also access the other file actions from the More button.

To Delete a File:

Deleting a file from your Google Drive is very similar to deleting a file from your computer. You will have to move the file to the trash folder and then delete it permanently, like deleting a file from the Recycle or Trash Bin on your computer.
  1. While viewing your Google Drive, select the file you wish to delete.
  2. The file action buttons will appear. Click the Trash button Trash icon to move the file to the trash folder.
    Screenshot of Google DriveMoving a file to the trash folder
  3. The confirmation dialog box will appear at the top of the page. The file is now in the trash folder.
    Screenshot of Google DriveThe confirmation dialog box
  4. Click More in the left-navigation pane.
    Screenshot of Google DriveClicking More in the left-navigation pane
  5. Additional options will appear in the left-navigation pane. Select Trash to access the trash folder.
    Screenshot of Google DriveNavigating to the trash folder
  6. The trash folder will appear. Locate and select the file you wish to delete.
  7. A new set of file action buttons will appear at the top of the page. Click the Delete forever button. The file will be permanently deleted.
    Screenshot of Google DriveDeleting a file permanently
To delete all files in the trash folder, simply click the Empty trash button.
Screenshot of Google DocsDeleting all files in the trash folder

To Unsubscribe from a Shared File:

You cannot delete a file that someone else has created and shared with you. However, you can unsubscribe from the file, which will remove it from your Google Drive.
  1. To view files that others are sharing with you, select Shared with me from the left-navigation pane.
    Screenshot of Google DriveNavigating to files shared with you
  2. The list of files shared with you will appear. Select the file you no longer wish to use.
  3. The file action buttons will appear. Click the Trash button Trash icon.
    Screenshot of Google DriveUnsubscribing from a shared file
  4. The Unsubscribe? dialog box will appear. Click Remove item to unsubscribe from the file. The file is now removed from your Google Drive.
    Screenshot of Google DriveClicking Remove item to unsubscribe from a file

To Preview a File:

Previewing files is a great way to make sure you're opening the right version of a file or just to take a quick look at files without opening them.
  1. Select the file you wish to preview.
  2. The file action buttons will appear. Click the Preview button Preview icon.
    Screenshot of Google DriveClicking the Preview button
  3. preview of the file will appear to the right of the view pane.
    Screenshot of Google DriveViewing the preview of the file

To Use the More Button:

The More button allows you to access the full list of actions for any file. Most of the actions found under the More button are accessible in other places on Google Drive, but it serves as a great shortcut.
  1. Select the file you wish to modify.
  2. The file action buttons will appear. Click the More button More icon .
  3. A drop-down menu will appear. Select the desired action from the menu.
    Screenshot of Google DriveClicking the More button

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I made these pages for me and my friends to help solving the problem we face regarding Computer & internet, if anyone wants me to answer a question or find out about some information please send me email and I will try to reply.*P.S. some of the article I wrote and the other I found on the internet I posted them in sprit of learning and shearing, please forgive me if you found something you don’t want to be in my blog, email me and I will delete them. Thank you for your interest in my pages.امل نجم Amal Nagm

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