Organizing “Shared with Me” Files/Folders
Google Drive users love the ability to share files and folders with collaborators. Keeping Google Drive organized can be difficult. This is particularly true for files or folders that are shared with you. Files in “Shared with Me” show in date order which makes it difficult to stay organized. Many regular Drive users remain unaware that “Shared with Me” files can be added to and organized in your Google Drive using the “Add to Drive” option.
Video Tutorial – Organizing Shared with Me Files in Google Drive
To learn more about how to organize shared files, take a look at the Organizing Shared with Me tutorial video.
Adding Shared Files to Google Drive
Use the “Add Shortcut to Drive” option to link files or folders from “Shared with me” to any location within your Google Drive. This makes items easier to find when you need them.
- Locate the file in Shared with Me
- Right click (Command Click for Macs) on the file or folder
- From the menu, choose “+ Add Shortcut to Drive”
- File or folder will move to “My Drive” or you can choose “Organize” to choose a specific location
NOTE: File or folder you Add to Drive will remain listed in Shared with Me. Remember, “Shared with Me” is a label indicating a file originated from someone else.
Not a Copy
Using the “Add Shortcut to Drive” option for shared or View only files (or folders), allows you to place the file (or folder) into your Drive in a location that makes sense for you. Some important things to understand about “Add to Drive” feature:
- It does not create a copy of the file/folder
- It is a link back to the actual file (or folder), so that it is always the most up to date version
- It does not move the file/folder for collaborators, so no need to worry that you will cause a problem for others sharing the file
- If you have “Edit” permissions on the file/folder that you “Add to Drive” then any changes you make, such as edits to a file, adding new items into a shared folder, will be reflected for all collaborators of that file/folder.
Adding Individual Files from a Shared Folder
Add shared folders to your Google Drive. If you only want to move only certain files within a shared folder use the “Shift” + “z” command to “Add to” another folder, so that you do not inadvertently remove files for other collaborators.
