Body
Environment
U-M Google, Drive
Issue
What are shortcuts in Google Drive, and how do I use them?
Resolution
- Shortcuts in Google Drive make it easier to organize content and share relevant information and files with collaborators across multiple accounts.
- Shortcuts act as pointers to files/folders not owned by you. They can be stored in another folder, a shared drive, or your My Drive.
- Shortcuts and their titles are visible to anyone who has access to the folder or shared drive containing the shortcut. However, even if someone can see the shortcut, they can only open it if they have the appropriate access and permissions to the original file/folder.
- There are two ways to create a shortcut to a file or folder you don't own:
- For files and folders: Right-click on the file/folder that was shared with you in Drive, hover over Organize, and select Add shortcut. Select where you'd like the file/folder shortcut to be stored and click Add.
- For files only: Open the file and click the Drive icon with a plus sign next to the star icon near the file name at the top. Select where you'd like the file shortcut to be stored and click Add.
- You can delete a shortcut, but you can’t delete the original file, or a file you don’t own. The shortcut's owner can delete the shortcut, but the target file can only be deleted by the file's owner.
- You can create a copy of a shortcut in a Drive folder, but you can’t create a shortcut to another shortcut file. You can make up to 500 shortcut copies per file or folder yourself.
- Each file or folder can have up to 5000 total shortcuts made by anyone.
Refer to the Google Help Center for more detailed information on using and managing shortcuts in Google Drive.
Additional Information
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