Updated: June 18, 2019.

Contents:

Introduction to Google Drive. How to Create Files in Google Drive on an Android Smartphone. Steps to Upload Files to Google Drive from Android, iPhone & iPad. How to Share Files in Google Drive on Android, iPhone & iPad.

In the traditional computing system, a Drive describes any device that is used to either store or backup data. Decades ago, devices such as a diskette, USB or flash drive, hard drive, SSD, etc, all found purpose in data storage. However, with the advent of cloud technologies, all that has changed. Today, we talk about different cloud technologies like Google Drive, iCloud Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, and so on. These are cloud-based storage solutions designed to securely store and back up our data files. We install Google Drive and set it up in order to be able to access fully all the cloud-based storage features either on Android, Macs, PCs or iOS devices.​

With any Drive especially Google Drive, you will be able to create, store, upload, sync and share files between your various mobile devices. It lets you collaborate with your friends and colleagues on different tasks in real time. Your team members can have access to information or files on your shared folder from anywhere around the world. This is because any file you place in the Drive folder is saved to Google’s cloud storage system. You can copy and paste files into it. It also gives you the opportunity to create subfolders as well as the ability to delete files from it. You can also access data files from any location on your mobile devices.

How to Create Files in Google Drive on an Android Smartphone

By default, Drive is pre-installed on Android devices. If your device doesn’t have one you can download it from Google Play Store. You will need to have the Google Docs, Google Sheets, and/or Google Slides apps already installed on your phone if you want to create a file in Google Drive.

Here are the steps to follow:

Tap ＋ sign at the bottom-right corner of the screen and a new menu will pop up. Choose a document type. Select one of the following options: (“Google Docs” – which is an MS Word-like document, “Sheets” – an MS Excel-like document, “Slides” – It creates an MS PowerPoint-like document). Enter your document name. Type in a name for your document when you are prompted. Click on the “CREATE” button. This is the button at the bottom-right corner of the pop-up menu. The will apply the name to your document and will open it. Create your document. Input the document’s data, text, etc. To save the document in Google Drive, tap < at the top-left corner of the screen.

Steps to Upload Files to Google Drive from Android, iPhone & iPad

When you open the Google Drive app on your mobile device, follow the steps below to upload files to Drive: Tap ＋sign at the bottom-right corner of the screen. A pop-up menu appears. Select the “Upload” button which you will see in the pop-up menu that displays. Select “Photos and Videos” at the bottom of the menu which takes you directly to the Photos page on an Android device. Choose a location. Tap the album or folder in which the file that you want to upload is located. Select a file. Just tap a photo, video, or document to select it. If you want to select more than one file, tap each file that you want to select. Then, Tap “UPLOAD” at the top-right corner of your screen. The action will prompt your selected file(s) to begin uploading to Google Drive.

On any mobile device, you will notice a blank space with a white ＋ at the bottom of the screen, along with a grid ☰ icon in the top-left corner of the screen. Any file(s) you upload to Google Drive is available across all platforms that support Drive.

How to Share Files in Google Drive on Android, iPhone & iPad

Here are the steps to use to share files:

Locate the file you want to share. You can do this by scrolling through your Google Drive until you find the data file you want to share with friends or team members. Tapping “⋯ ” icon which is to the right of the document, displays a menu.

Tap and hold the file that you wish to share. Click “Add people” which is a menu option. It will prompt a new window to open. Tap the “People” field near the top of the page to their email address(es). Click the “Edit” icon which is a pencil-shaped icon on the far-right side of the email field. A drop-down menu will appear. Select a “Share” option. You can click one of the following options in the drop-down menu: Edit or Can edit – This gives the person with whom you share the file the ability to edit it. Comment or Can comment – The person with whom you share the file can leave comments about the file, but not edit it. View or Can view – Gives the person with whom you share the data file the ability to view, but not edit or comment on it. You can tap the “Message” text box to write the message that you wish to pass across. Then, click the “Send” icon which is in the top-right corner of your screen to share your file via email.

Drive is one of the cloud-based storage services created by Google. Others in this category include Google Docs for online word processing, Google Sheets, and Google Slides.