ARCHIVED: File storage and ownership in Google at IU groupspaces

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On this page:

Overview
File owners
- Google at IU groupspaces
- Google at IU My Drive
Check ownership
Compare groupspace storage and Google My Drive storage

Overview

Note:

As of January 31, 2019, you can no longer create new Google at IU groupspaces. Google is deprecating the underlying technology for groupspaces and encouraging customers to use the new Google Sites app for web publishing. To learn how to convert an existing Google at IU groupspace, see ARCHIVED: Convert a Google at IU groupspace to the new Google Sites.

Files that appear on a Google at IU groupspace's "Files" page may be owned by the groupspace or, alternatively, may be owned by an individual's or a group's Google My Drive account. For details about how to determine ownership of groupspace files and for implications of file ownership, see below.

Important:

Always use your Google at IU account for Indiana University coursework and other university business. Personal (free) non-IU Google accounts are not approved for institutional data. When working in Google apps, you can check the upper right to see which account you're logged into.

By default, unless you sign out, Google keeps you logged in, even if you close your browser; thus you could be logged into your personal account, even if you started from google.iu.edu. Consider adding a profile picture for each of your accounts to help differentiate between them.

File owners

Google at IU groupspaces

To view the list of files currently associated with a Google at IU groupspace:

In the groupspace, click the Settings () icon at the top right.
Click Manage site.
From the menu on the left, choose Attachments. The list of files should display.

Files stored in the groupspace display a file size and include a Download option; files stored in Google My Drive do not display a file size and do not include an option to download.

For example, in the image below, "uploaded Document.docx" is stored in the groupspace, while "Word added from Drive.docx" is stored in Google My Drive:

Google at IU My Drive

Content may be stored in an individual's or group's Google My Drive, and shared within a Google at IU groupspace. This content may appear as embedded Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Slides, Google Forms, and so on; as embedded Google My Drive folders; as files added from Google My Drive to the ARCHIVED: Files page; and more.

Important:

Content stored in Google My Drive is owned by an individual or group and will remain available only as long as the individual or group has a Google at IU account. To avoid data loss when an individual leaves the university, be sure to ARCHIVED: manage your Google at IU content ownership appropriately and report any content loss to your campus Support Center immediately.

Check ownership

To determine whether a file is owned by a Google at IU groupspace or by a group or individual Google My Drive account:

Owned by a Google at IU groupspace

Navigate to the list of files currently stored in your groupspace, as described above.
Locate the appropriate file in the list that displays.

To identify when a file is owned by a groupspace, see Site storage.

If you determine that a file is located in Google My Drive, not the groupspace, see the next section.

Owned by an IU Google My Drive account

Locate the file in your Google My Drive. If you know its name, you can search for it in the search bar at the top of the page to locate it quickly.
Click the file. Its owner will be listed in the details panel on the right.

Note:

If you don't see the details panel, right-click the file, select View details, and then, in the panel on the right next to "Activity", select Details.

Compare groupspace storage and Google My Drive storage

	Storing files in a Google at IU groupspace	Storing files in IU Google My Drive
Folder structure	Can create folders in the Files page, but no subfolders	Can create folders and subfolders
Automatically shared with groupspace participants	Yes	No, folder must be shared with Google Group manually
Editable permissions	It depends; general groupspace permissions apply by default, but page-level permissions may be turned on.	Yes, can set Edit or View access
Owner	Owned by groupspace	Owned by individual; see ARCHIVED: Manage departmental content in Google at IU for implications.
Can access files from...	Groupspace only	Groupspace and Google My Drive