Deleting Large Files from Google Drive Automatically
If your Google Drive is running out of storage, the first thing you would consider is identifying and deleting the large files. If you’ve hundreds of thousands of files, manually finding large files would require you to go through each file and view details. We’ll discuss the better alternatives to automate this procedure.
Method 1: Sort Files in your Google Drive by their Sizes
At first glance, Google Drive doesn’t provide any feature to sort your files by their sizes. However, a hidden feature in Google Drive lets you sort files from larger to smaller, and the reverse. It makes it easier to identify which files are taking your precious cloud storage and accordingly delete them.
- Open up your Web Browser.
- Make sure that you’re signed in to your Google Drive account.
- Type http://drive.google.com/#quota in the Address Bar and press Enter.
- Google Drive will show up the files in your account by their sizes.
- To sort files in the reverse order, just click on the File Size column-head.
Note: Unlike Method # 2, your files can be recovered from the Bin folder after deletion.
Method 2: Using Google Storage Manager
Using Google Storage Manager, you can not only view large files in your Google Drive account, but also Google Photos and Gmail (email attachments).
Warning: Deleting files using this method is immediate and permanent. Once deleted, your files cannot be recoverable even from the Bin folder.
- Open the Google One website.
- Sign in to your account.
- Scroll down and click on the “Free up account storage” under the “Get your space back” section.
- Click on “Review and clear” under the “Large files” category.
- On the new page, you’ll get an entire list of all large files found in your Google Drive account. Use the checkbox on the top left corner to specify which files to delete.
- To delete all files, check “All items”.
- Click the Delete icon on the upper right corner of your screen.
Method 3: Automatically Deleting Large Duplicate Files
Another way is to use a cloud-based solution Cloud Duplicate Finder. CDF is a browser-based application that supports finding duplicate documents, photos, videos, music from Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Dropbox and Amazon S3. You can find duplicates from the entire Google Drive account, or specific folders of your choice. It is fast, easy and bandwidth-friendly. No data is downloaded to your PC as the entire process is performed on the Web. Moreover, it shows a preview of your files without needing you to manually download them.
Is Cloud Duplicate Finder Secure?
CDF uses the official APIs provided by Google — the only authorized and secure way for accessing your cloud files. CDF does not store your password. You can provide the permission once, and then revoke them later after deduping your files.
Deduping Files on your Google Drive
Step 1: Register on CDF Website
- Open the Cloud Duplicate Finder website and register a new account. Account registration is free.
- Click on the verification link in your email and log in to your new account.
Step 2: Add Google Drive
- Click on the Google Drive tab.
- Click on the Add New Drive button on the left.
- Login to your Google Drive account. If your account is protected with a 2-Step Authentication, you’ll want to enter the OPT or tap the Push Notification that appears on your mobile screen.
Step 3: Start Search
- Once your Google Drive is successfully added, you’ll see all the containing folders in the left-hand side panel.
- Check the boxes to select folders you want to scan for duplicates.
- Click on Scan.
Step 4: Remove Duplicates
- CDF will list all duplicates inside a list box along with basic details about each file (file size, path, date).
- Check the files you want to delete or use the Select Duplicates button to mark them automatically.
- Now, click on Select Action and choose whether to delete them or move to another folder in your Google Drive account.