Installing Google Drive for Desktop


Important:

Google Drive for Desktop no longer acts as a true backup service and is more of a syncing service. The application mirrors whatever is in your selected folders to your Google Drive and as such, if you delete a file from your computer in one of those folders, it will delete it from your Google Drive. You will have 30 days to recover any deleted files from your Google Drive trash in the event you delete a shared file.

Download the installer

  1. Navigate to Download Google Drive for Desktop (clicking this link will open a new window).
  2. Click the download button.

To install on Mac

  1. Open Finder, and click “Downloads” on the sidebar.
  2. Find “Googledrive.dmg” and double-click to open.
  3. Double-click Google Drive.pkg and follow the installer prompts.
  4. Find the Google Drive app, double-click to open.
  5. Click sign in with Browser and sign in to your Princeton google account.
  6. Click the Google Drive icon on the menu bar in the top right, click the gear, and click Preferences.
  7. Click Add Folder to choose the folders you want backed up to the Google Drive.  
    Note: While Princeton does not support adding photos to Google Photos, you can still backup your photos to your Google Drive through this application by adding your photos folders.
  8. Once you have selected folders to upload, Drive for Desktop will begin syncing them to the cloud.  You can check to make sure they have uploaded successfully by going to http://drive.google.com and checking for the files.

To install on Windows

  1. Open a File Explorer window and navigate to the Downloads folder.
  2. Double-click to open “googledrivesetup.exe”.
  3. Click install to begin the installation.
  4. The program will download and install.
  5. Click sign in with Browser and sign in to your Princeton google account.
  6. Enter your full Princeton email address (netid@princeton.edu) in the Email or Phone field, click Next.
  7. In the Central Authentication Service (CAS) window, enter your netID and password. Do not use @princeton.edu in this step.
  8. Respond to the Duo prompt.
  9. Click the Google Drive icon on the task bar in the bottom right, click the gear, and click Preferences. 
  10. Click Add Folder to choose the folders you want backed up to the Google Drive.  
    Note: While Princeton does not support adding photos to Google Photos, you can still backup your photos to your Google Drive through this application by adding your photos folders.
  11. Once you have selected folders to upload, Drive for Desktop will begin syncing them to the cloud.  You can check to make sure they have uploaded successfully by going to http://drive.google.com and checking for the files.