Wondering how to save files in Google Drive when you have so many different file types in different locations? Don’t worry, this article shows you exactly how to save to Google Drive. Even if you’re working on Google Colab you can save a file to Google Drive easily before uploading it to Udacity as an open-source model. The scope of this article, however, is to show you how to save files to Google Drive from your hard drive or USB drive, how to save a file from Google Drive to iPhone, and to save to Google Drive Android.
How to Save Files in Google Drive
1. The first step is to open Drive in a browser tab, preferably in Chrome because it allows you to upload multiple files as well as folders.
Tip: You can do this by first signing into your Google account and then clicking the grid icon (nine dots in rows of three) near the top right-hand corner of your screen. From the dropdown, select Drive to launch Google Drive in a new tab.
2. Inside the Google Drive tab, your default view will be the main My Drive folder. There are now two ways to save to Google Drive from here:
a. Drag a file from Finder or File Explorer and drop it into the Drive tab list view (main panel)
b. Click + or click the small arrow next to My Drive under the Omnibox, then choose Upload File, and finally, select the file and import it.
3. Your saved file should appear in the My Drive list view.
How to Save Files from Google Drive to iPhone or Android Device
Let’s use the example of a video or photo file that you saved on Google Drive from your desktop. What do you do when you need to save the media file from Drive to something like an iPhone? Here’s the process to save a file from Google Drive to iPhone or an Android device:
1. Assuming you have the Google Drive iOS app installed on your device, launch it and go to the folder where your file is stored.
2. Tap on the three vertical dots icon (More menu) that you’ll see next to the file and choose ‘Send a Copy’, then select the Save option. It should be Save Video or Save Photo.
Tip: If the file is a document type, then you can tap the Open In option, then Save to Files, then choose the destination folder, and tap Save.
3. Now open the Photos app on your iPhone and you’ll see the video or photo saved there on your local device memory.
To save a file from iPhone to Google Drive, you can tap the + icon inside Drive, then tap the Upload icon, then tap the file in your native file manager app to upload it to Drive. The process is the same when you need to save to Google Drive Android as well, but the process to download is a little different. Instead of choosing ‘Send a Copy’ and then selecting the Save option, you can simply tap the More menu and then the Download button. It will be saved in your Downloads folder and you’ll see a notification from Drive when it’s done.
What Else Can I Do with a File Saved to Google Drive?
Once your file has been uploaded to Drive, you can do any of the following:
Open a file and co-edit with other collaborators in real-time. When several people have access to a document, they can all work on it at the same time. The edits will be instantly saved as they are made.
Share the file with others using a secure link. The link can have specific user permissions, such as View, Comment, and Edit. You can also make the permission common to anyone who has the link.
Rename a file. If you need to keep your files more organized, you can rename them to indicate the contents.
You can, of course, Download or Make a Copy of any file you save to Google Drive, as we saw.
Generate a link or embed code to publish the file to a website.
Other operations - Translate the document, find and enable add-ons to handle other document types like PDF or video, make a file available for offline editing, see version history, and so on.
Once you learn how to save files to Google Drive, you’ll see that it’s possible to access those files from any other device. As long as the device is connected and running a modern browser like Chrome, you can do all the above actions. All you need to do is sign in to your Google account and it will be instantly unlocked to you. The one major drawback with Google Drive is the lack of support for PDF files. For this, there’s a better option that also offers an electronic signature service that is extremely useful for businesses to collect signatures from clients on sales contracts and agreements, from employees for internal circulars, and for various other purposes.
How to Save Files to Google Drive alternative - Wondershare Document Cloud
Similar to Google Drive, Wondershare Document Cloud works with a single login credential, which is your Wondershare ID. This allows you to access all of Wondershare’s many offline and online products. The main difference between Wondershare Document Cloud and Google Drive is that the former is specifically designed for PDF workflows and comes with a built-in electronic signature sending feature for PDFs. Let’s see how it works:
Save a File to Document Cloud
1. Login to the Wondershare Document Cloud portal using your Wondershare ID from any other product in its vast repository - Filmora, RecoverIt, Dr. Fone, FamiSafe, PDFelement, etc. You can also set up a new ID if this is your first time experiencing the magic of Wondershare’s digital products.
2. On the Home tab, click the Upload Files button to launch File Explorer or Finder, depending on what system you’re using.
3. Select the PDFs to be uploaded and click OK or Open to import them.
4. The uploaded file or files will be visible in the Document tab or in the Home tab under Recent Document Activity, above which you saw the Upload Files button in the second step above.
What Actions Can I Perform on Saved Files in Document Cloud?
If you look at your document in the list, you’ll see a ‘...’ menu icon. Click on that and you’ll be able to see all the following:
View - This option lets you open and see the PDF file and its contents. You can use it to confirm that everything is correct before you send a file for signing.
Download - If you need to make any changes to the file in a PDF editor, you can use this.
Rename - To be able to identify the contents of a file, you can give it a more appropriate name.
Delete - Remove the file from Document Cloud using this option.
Send for Signature - There are two possibilities here:
1. Send for Signatures can be used to collect multiple signatures on a single copy of a PDF.
2. Bulk Send is to collect one signature on one copy for a large number of people.
While Wondershare Document Cloud is certainly a powerful PDF storage and e-signing utility, you can better leverage the power of PDF along with the flexibility of Document Cloud.
PDFelement Pro DC - The Best Solution for PDF Document Management Offline and Online
PDFelement Pro DC is a robust PDF editor with several powerful functions to handle all your PDF needs. Along with the Wondershare Document Cloud functional integration, it becomes an even more compelling tool to help you manage all your PDF workflows, whether offline or online. Here’s what you can do with this versatile combination of a comprehensive PDF editor with cloud functionality:
Wondershare PDFelement Pro DC
Simplify your Workflow with the Document Cloud for PDFelement.
Offline Capabilities
Edit - Full editing suite with complete control over every element of your document - images, text, comments, watermarks, hyperlinks, embedded media attachments, footers/headers, Bates Numbering, graphs, tables, etc.
Create - Over 300 different file types can be accurately converted to PDF, conserving the original formatting and content layout.
Convert - Convert PDF to useful formats to edit in MS Office applications, eReader editors, image editors, etc.
Protect - Apply strong, password-based encryption to secure your files on the cloud or in transit when sending them.
Forms - Fill, sign, create, convert, and extract data from forms
OCR - Text recognition to convert scanned PDFs to searchable or editable PDFs
Manage and Organize - Merge and split PDF files, organize pages, reorder, rotate, crop, etc.
Optimize - Reduce PDF file sizes for easier sharing and optimal use of storage space
Batch Process - Convert, encrypt, and do other tasks with several documents at a time to save effort and time.
Online Capabilities
● Upload the currently-open PDF file to Wondershare Document Cloud by using the Share → Wondershare Cloud option.
● Download a file from Document Cloud to edit on your desktop by clicking File → Open → From Wondershare Cloud.
● Send the current document for signature collection by clicking Protect → Electronic Signature. This will take you to the Sign tab of Wondershare Document Cloud.
What Does This Mean for Your Business?
You now know how to save files to Google Drive from various devices, and how to download them as well. A G-Suite subscription for your employees will make you more productive because it offers a collaborative environment that is also secure. On the other hand, if you need something specifically for PDF workflows, you can consider using Wondershare Document Cloud as a standalone cloud and e-signing utility or PDFelement Pro DC as a more comprehensive document management solution.
Either way, your internal processes will become more efficient because everyone on your team will have access to whatever they need when they need it, whether they’re in the office, out in the field, at home, or traveling. You can save thousands of dollars in lost productivity by implementing these affordable solutions. All it takes is a few clicks and you’re good to go. What’s that worth to you and what does it mean for your business? Well, why not discover that for yourself today?