Embedded Files
Welcome back to our in-depth, once-and-for-all course on sharing in Drive. We started lightly with sharing individual files. If you have just subscribed, go back and read that article before reading on.
Today's second installment tackles folder sharing - Drive's most powerful way of sharing information. Ready to dive in?
Temporary view access rights
A folder is shared like a file
A folder is shared like a file
You share folders like you would any other file. You select who you would like to have access (a person or a Google group), and what level of access they have. The access levels are the same: Viewer, commenter, editor. You can also make someone owner of a file.
When you share a folder with someone, it will appear under "Shared with me", just as if you had shared a single file.
There it is - folders are shared with me, just like files.
Sharing a folder shares everything inside it
Sharing a folder shares everything inside it
At this point, you may ask yourself: Why can I become "commenter" of a folder when I cannot comment on a folder? Because when you share a folder, the access right you give a person applies to everything contained in the folder (they inherit it). Even subfolders. This makes folder sharing so practical - you do not have to worry about all the individual files, one share and you are done.
Folder "editors" can also change the folder itself
Folder "editors" can also change the folder itself
When you have "editor" access rights, you cannot only edit the files in the folder, but also the folder itself. That means:
You can rename the folder
You can add files to the folder
You can move files around
You can remove files from the folder.
We could stop the post here. You know how to share folders (just like files), and that by doing so you share its contents.
But this is where differences between My Drive and Shared Drive come in. Let's tackle them one after the other.
What is special in My Drive?
What is special in My Drive?
Editors can add files to folders
Editors can add files to folders
When you give someone editor rights to your folder, they can create, upload or move their files there. When they do, those people will continue to own their files, even if stored in your folder.
File owners can remove their files from folders
File owners can remove their files from folders
People may also to move files to their own My Drive, or delete them. File owners have control over their files, even if they reside in someone else's folder.
If you delete someone's file from your folder, it returns to their My Drive. Nothing gets lost, your files are always safe.
You can share and unshare as you like
You can share and unshare as you like
My Drive has the ability increase and decrease sharing levels. You can, for example:
Reduce sharing levels selectively ("Interns should only have viewing rights on this folder")
Remove permissions for someone entirely ("This file should not be seen by this person")
This can quickly lead to complexity, of course.
What is different with Shared Drives?
What is different with Shared Drives?
Shared drives divide the world in two: In members (of the shared drive) and guests (the rest). Folder sharing has two functions, depending on who you deal with.
When dealing with guests, folder sharing is a management tool
When dealing with guests, folder sharing is a management tool
Because Shared Drives may contain confidential information and folders are a powerful way to give away large quantities of it, only the person with the highest permission (the manager) can share folders with non-members. Think of folder sharing like letting new people into the Shared Drive.
Folder sharing will work like My Drive sharing (except guests will not own files they add and thus cannot delete them).
You can only upgrade access rights, not decrease them
You can only upgrade access rights, not decrease them
Managers can adjust the sharing permissions of folders for Shared Drive members - but they can only increase them. This avoids all the complexity that can arise in My Drive.
If you have a case like "My interns should not see any of these documents", your only choice is to create a separate shared drive for these documents. If your case is "My interns should edit these documents, but not those", think the other way around and give the interns "viewer" rights, then elevate their rights selectively.
The lesson from folder sharing is that it can be simple - or as complex as you make it. I hope you appreciate the difference between the flexibility of My Drive and the simplicity of Shared Drives and start sharing with greater confidence, knowing that ultimately you are in control of everything. Thank you for reading!
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#drivePublished 2021-02-18 by Holger Matthies.Modified 2021-02-18 by Holger Matthies.Written listening to Louis Desero - Lucide
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