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This wikiHow teaches you how to stop files and folders from automatically syncing between your Google Drive cloud and your computer's local storage, using a desktop internet browser.
Steps
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Open Google Drive in your internet browser. Type drive.google.com into the address bar, and hit ↵ Enter or ⏎ Return on your keyboard.
- If you're not automatically signed in, enter your email address or phone number, click NEXT , enter your password, and click NEXT again.
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Click the icon on the bottom-right. This button looks like a white cloud icon with a blue arrow in the lower-right corner of your screen. It will open your backup and sync menu in a pop-up window.
- You will see this icon only when a sync is in progress. If you don't see it, try uploading a new file to your Drive.
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Click the ⋮ icon in the sync window. This button is in the upper-right corner of the backup and sync pop-up. It will open your sync options on a menu.
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Click Pause on the sync menu. This will pause the current file sync on your account.
- You can resume syncing anytime by clicking Resume on the same menu.
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Click Preferences on the sync menu. This will open your backup and sync preferences in a new window.
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Click Google Drive Settings on the left menu. This option is located on a navigation menu on the left-hand side of the Preferences window. You can see a list of all your sync folders here.
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Uncheck a folder on the list. Click the blue checkbox next to a folder on the list here, and make sure the box is empty.
- Unchecked folders will not be synced from your Drive to your computer's local storage anymore.
- Checked folders will still be automatically synced between your computer and your cloud storage.
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Click the blue OK button. This button is located in the lower-right corner of the window. It will save your new settings, and prevent the unchecked folders from syncing in the future.
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Open Google Drive in your internet browser. Type drive.google.com into the address bar, and hit ↵ Enter or ⏎ Return on your keyboard.
- If you're not automatically signed in, enter your email address or phone number, click NEXT , enter your password, and click NEXT again.
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Click the icon on the top-right. This button is located below your profile picture in the upper-right corner of your screen. It will open a drop-down menu.
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Click Settings on the menu. This will open your Drive settings in a new pop-up window.
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Click General on the left menu. This button is at the top of a navigation menu on the left-hand side of the Settings window.
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Uncheck the box next to Offline . When this option is checked, all your Drive files are automatically synced to your computer's local storage for offline access.
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Click DONE . This is a blue button in the upper-right corner of the Settings window. It will save your new account settings.
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