Google announced Tuesday that it will be integrating Google Drive into Gmail, a move that will make it possible to send files up to a massive 10GB in size over email.

A new button in the Gmail compose window will give users the ability to attach a file from their Google Drive account rather than attaching the file itself to the message.

Once it's attached, Gmail will ensure that your recipient has permission to view the file in your Drive account -– or will prompt you to grant that permission –- and then sends the message.

The feature works not only for files you attach to the message, but also for links to items stored in Google Drive you might paste into a message.

SEE ALSO: Google Officially Launches Google Drive

Since you’re essentially sharing a link to the file in the cloud rather than the file itself, you can continue to update it, with those updates showing up for your recipient as well. As with other cloud services such as Dropbox and Box, you can collaborate on the shared document with the recipient directly in Google Drive, keeping a single copy rather than passing drafts back and forth.

Microsoft currently offers a similar feature via Outlook and SkyDrive.

Each Google Drive user is granted 5GB of free storage from Google. In order to store and send files larger than 5GB users will be required to purchase additional Google Drive storage space to accomodate those files. Currently you can purchase 25GB of additional Google Drive storage for $2.49 per month, or 100GB for $4.99 per month.

Image courtesy of Deviantart, R2krw9.