Google Drive¶

Manage files, folders, sharing permissions, and storage metadata in Google Drive.

Tools¶

Key Features¶

• Drive query syntax — drive_search_files uses DriveApp.searchFiles query syntax and normalizes common Drive API v3 fields such as name, modifiedTime, and createdTime.
• Granular permissions model — Add/remove individual editors and viewers, or set broad sharing access levels (ANYONE, ANYONE_WITH_LINK, DOMAIN, PRIVATE) with VIEW, EDIT, COMMENT, or NONE permission.
• File export for Workspace types — Use drive_read_file for text export or drive_export_as for PDF, Office formats, CSV, and other binary exports.
• Trash/delete workflow — drive_trash_file and drive_delete_file both move files to trash; permanent deletion requires emptying trash in Drive.
• Advanced collaboration — Manage Drive comments and replies with documented Advanced Drive service methods.
• Revision and history reads — List revisions and Drive changes without creating push/watch channels.
• Shared drive discovery — List and inspect shared drive metadata, capabilities, and restrictions visible to the deploying user.
• Batch operations — Use drive_batch to chain up to 20 Drive operations in a single round-trip.

Examples¶

Create a folder and file inside it:

# Step 1: Create a subfolder
drive_create_folder({ name: "Q4 Reports" })
// Returns new folder metadata with folder ID

# Step 2: Create a markdown file inside it
drive_create_file({
  name: "summary.md",
  content: "# Q4 Summary\n\n...",
  mimeType: "text/markdown",
  parentId: "<folder-id>"
})

Search for spreadsheets and share one:

# Find all spreadsheets modified this month
drive_search_files({
  query: "mimeType='application/vnd.google-apps.spreadsheet' and modifiedTime > '2026-06-01T00:00:00'"
})

# Set sharing so anyone with the link can view
drive_set_sharing({
  fileId: "<file-id>",
  access: "ANYONE_WITH_LINK",
  permission: "VIEW"
})

Export a Google Doc as PDF:

drive_export_as({
  fileId: "<doc-id>",
  mimeType: "application/pdf"
})
// Returns the PDF binary content

Limits & Considerations¶

• Drive search syntax has specific operator rules — and/or are lowercase, strings must be single-quoted, and not every Drive API v3 query field is supported by DriveApp.searchFiles.
• drive_export_as only works on Google Workspace formats (Docs, Sheets, Slides, etc.); binary files have no export representation.
• drive_delete_file moves the file to trash and is treated as destructive because trashed files may later be permanently removed by Drive retention or manual trash emptying. Use drive_untrash_file while the file is still recoverable.
• drive_delete_comment and drive_delete_reply are destructive and require explicit confirmation.
• Drive revision history is incomplete for some file types. Binary revisions can expose keepForever; Google Workspace editor files often expose less revision metadata and may reject revision metadata updates.
• Shared drive results depend on account membership, admin policies, and per-drive capabilities. Some operations may be unavailable even when a shared drive is visible.
• drive_list_changes reads from caller-provided page tokens and does not manage push/watch channel lifecycle.
• File listing and searching are paginated; use page and pageSize parameters to navigate large result sets.
• Comments, replies, revisions, shared drives, and changes are paginated by the Drive API; use returned page tokens to continue.
• For retry and partial-success behavior of drive_move_file, create/copy/share tools, and idempotencyKey, see Mutation Safety.