A change in Google’s policy makes many changes to your files that you store in Google Drive, your Gmail, and your Google Photos backup. When your account is marked as inactive, it could mean that you will lose files in your cloud storage. We will explain exactly how that works and how to prevent data loss.
Google is taking the broom through its free cloud storage. Files stored online from inactive accounts and Google Photos’ unlimited free (compressed) photo storage will be deleted. This new policy effective June 1, 2021. Although it is six months from now, it is recommended that you take another look at your Google cloud storage before important files and backups or precious photos are lost.
Even if you exceed the storage limit of your online storage space at Google, things will change in your online storage.
Recently, Google sent an email to the accounts that are eligible for this Google broom. But even if you have not received an email, it is wise to do so dwell on your Google cloud storage.
Inactive Google Accounts
Google will stamp your account if you have not been active on Google Drive for two years, which also includes Google Photos and Google Docs. Inactive accounts will delete files (including photos) stored online.
While two years may sound like a long time, it can be very annoying for many people. For example, if you saved files online as a backup, a kind of dormant backup. Or for accounts of deceased people. It is annoying when relatives find out that the online photo archive appears to have been deleted.
But watch out. Even if you are an active user of Google Docs, but have you still put a few photos on Google Photos that you no longer care about? Then your photos will be deleted, but not your documents.
The files are permanently deleted by Google, so if you find out afterwards that you are missing important photos or files. Then there is no way to get them back.
About the storage limit
When you have exceeded the storage limit of your Google cloud storage for more than two years, you will also receive a notification from Google. It is then no longer possible to sync your cloud storage or upload new files. Also, Google Photos refuses to back up your files in original quality. From 1 June 2021 you can no longer make your backups in lower quality.
As of June 1, Google Photos policy will also change. Until before, it was possible to back up your photos in original quality, depending on your available cloud storage. Uploading photos in lower quality is unlimited. However, after June 1, this also depends on your available cloud storage. If you have exceeded your limit after 1 June, your automatic backup will stop.
On the Google support page you can read what actions Google takes if you exceed your storage limit, even after 1 June.
Prevent your files from being deleted
If your Google account is marked as inactive, you should have recently received a message from Google telling you that your files will be deleted if you take no action. You prevent your files from being deleted by becoming active on Google Drive and Google Photos.
Do you have a paid Google account such as Google One or through work. Then your files will not be deleted.
What can you do?
Of course you can become active on your online Google storage or a Google One subscription to make sure your files are safe. However, it exposes another embarrassing fact: the cloud is synonymous with the systems of others. Your files can therefore be accessed or deleted without you having any control over them. Even if Google decides to delete your account for whatever reason, you have lost all your data that you have stored online. Therefore, never rely on cloud storage as the only place for your backup or storage location. Not with Google, but also not with other providers such as Dropbox, Microsoft, Apple or Amazon. Always have a local backup of your files that you have in-house.
You can download your files that you have stored with Google at Google Takeout. However, make sure to download your files in pieces of 2GB (packed as a zip file). A free PC program like 7-Zip knows how to unpack them all at once. You can also download your Google Photos with this, unfortunately Google finds it necessary to divide all your photos into folders, where a folder has been created for each day. It is therefore an extra step to sort the photos you download with Google Takeout.
Google has built in nasty bullying to keep you from escaping Google Photos.
Google has also built in other bullying to keep you out of it Google Photos to let it escape. This way you can select only 500 photos at a time for download. That sounds like a lot, but if you want to save years of photos that you have stored in Google Photos locally, it is very annoying that you cannot do this in one sitting.
Life after the cloud
If you have secured your files from the Google Cloud, it is not necessarily recommended to store them in the cloud storage of another provider. This provider can also decide from one day to the next to mess with your files or photos. Therefore, always make sure you have an up-to-date backup that you have under your own management. An external hard drive (preferably stored in a different location, so that you don’t lose everything in the event of a fire) or on your NAS. As long as you have a good local backup, you can use cloud storage as a storage location, or as a second backup storage location, worry-free.
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