Google Drive

Introduction

Using the Google Drive external storage in ownCloud, you can mount all or a subfolder of Google Drive.

For subfolders, use the following scheme:

  • subfolder = empty (mounting the root, all of Google Drive will be used)

  • subfolder = $user ($user variable represents the current logged in ownCloud username)

  • subfolder = name (a folder name, can be cascaded like name1/name2 or name/$user)

If the subfolder is not present in Google Drive, no Google Drive mount will be shown in the users file list.
Using subfolders is beneficial if you want to selectively encrypt Google Drive mount points
The variable $user is the substitute for the currently logged-in user. The subfolder with the username must be created manually in Google Drive.

ownCloud uses OAuth 2.0 to connect to Google Drive. This requires configuration through Google to get an app ID and app secret, as ownCloud registers itself as an app.

All applications that access a Google API must be registered through the Google Cloud Console. Follow along carefully, because the Google interface is a bit of a maze and it’s easy to get lost.

In the examples used, <your domain> represents how you access your ownCloud server, where you see the login screen. This may look like:

https://example.com
 or
http://example.com
 or
IP/owncloud

Preparations in the Google Cloud Console

Create a Google Drive Project

  1. You can use your existing Google account such as Groups, Drive, or Mail, or create a new one and log into the Google Cloud Console. After logging in click the Create Project button on the top right side.

    Google Cloud Console

  2. Add a new project by clicking the + button on the top right side.

    Create Project

  3. Give your project a name, and either accept the default Project ID or create your own, then click the Create button. For this example a random name was chosen, "owncloud-04-27". However, feel free to choose your own name.

    Choose a name

  4. After your project is created, click on the notifications bell and select your project.

    Notification bell

  5. Go to Api overview to select google’s API.

    API

  6. Select Google Drive API

    Google API

  7. Enable the Google Drive API

    Enable

  8. You now must create your credentials.

    Create Credentials

  9. First, select Web Browser and User data.

    Access type and Data

  10. The next screen that opens is Create OAuth 2.0 Client ID. Enter your app name.

    Access type and Data

Configure Authorisations

These authorizations are necessary to tell Google which source URI requests are allowed. You can configure multiple Authorized URIs if you wish to enable admin and personal access at the same time for different purposes.

Authorized Redirect URIs

To configure Authorized Redirect URIs, select one of the two possible URI Schemes:

  • If you are configuring storage as an administrator - choose the admin URI,

  • If you are a user and configure your personal storage - pick the personal URI.

https://<your domain>/index.php/settings/admin?sectionid=storage
 or
https://<your domain>/index.php/settings/personal?sectionid=storage

Authorized JavaScript Origins

This is just https://<your domain> which represents how you access your ownCloud server, where you see the login screen.

Configure to connect to Google Drive

The following example procedure configures an admin-based storage mount. The domain used in this example is http://51a8725b.ngrok.io

  1. Login to your ownCloud account

    Login in ownCloud

  2. Go to Storage in the Settings

    Go to Storage in the Settings

  3. Enable external Storage

    Enable external Storage

  4. Select Google Drive

    Select Google Drive from dropdown menu

  5. The Google Drive App is enabled

    Give the mount point a meaningful name. We have used Google Drive in this example.

    Now you have your Google Drive App enabled

  6. Copy the Authorized Redirect URI from the browser

    The URL from this page is the one you have to enter in the **Authorized Redirect URIs**

  7. Enter it the Google Drive Console here

    Client ID

  8. Choose a project name for the consent screen.

    A consent screen has to be created. This is the information in the screen Google shows you when you connect your ownCloud Google Drive app to Google the first time.

    Choose a Project Name

  9. Download the credentials as JSON file.

    Download your Credentials

    You can either open this file with the editor of your choice (SublimeText for example), or you can put in your web browser to view it. You can always download this data from your Google Drive project at a later time for other Google Drive mounts.

    Here is an example output:

    Credentials

  10. Client ID and Client Secret

    Enter the Client ID and Client Secret in the ownCloud Google Drive mount screen and click Grant Access. Now you have everything you need to mount your Google Drive in ownCloud. Your consent page appears when ownCloud makes a successful connection.

    Click Allow when the consent screen appears.

    Grant Access

  11. Success

    You are finished when you see the green light confirming a successful connection.

    See the External Storage Configuration for additional mount options and information.

    All Green

  12. Files View

    Go to your files view. You will see the newly mounted Google Drive.

    Your Google Drive Folder