Question
What is the difference between Google My Drive and Google Shared drives?
Answer
My Drive is your personal, individual storage space. Files and folders in My Drive are owned, organized, and managed by you.
Shared drives are collaborative spaces designed for departmental or team content. In a Shared drive, the University of Notre Dame owns the content, and all members share a common, unified file and folder structure.
University Recommendation: The University of Notre Dame recommends that all departmental and ongoing team content be stored in a Shared drive to ensure business continuity, collective ownership, and shared access.
For a comprehensive comparison of all features, refer to the official Google Support document: Shared Drives vs. My Drive
The functionality of My Drive and Shared drives is similar, with the following key differences:
| Shared drives | My Drive | |
|---|---|---|
| What types of files can I add? | All file types, except Google Maps and existing documents with attached Apps Scripts. | All file types |
| Who owns files and folders? | The University owns all files and folders. Content is not lost if a member leaves the team or the University. | The individual who created or uploaded the file or folder owns it. |
| Can I move files and folders? | Files and folders can be moved within the Shared drive by members with Manager, Content Manager, or Contributor access. | Files and folders can be moved by members with Owner or Editor access. |
| Can I sync files to my computer? | Yes (however, we recommend you Stream the files rather than sync)* | Yes (however, we recommend you Stream the files rather than sync)* |
| Sharing | All team members see the same, unified file and folder structure. | Different users may see different files in a folder, based on their individual access permissions. |
| How long do files I delete stay in Trash? |
Each Shared drive has its own trash. Files are deleted forever after 30 days. Members can delete specific files or empty the Trash sooner. |
Files or folders in the Trash will be automatically deleted after 30 days. |
| Can I restore files? | Yes, files can be restored by members with Contributor access or above. | Yes, files can be restored if you created the folder or file. |
*Account holders have access to their Google Drive content on a PC and Mac using the Google Drive for Desktop app.