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Earlier this year, Google announced that it would be moving away from the old “Backup and Sync” application for desktop. Instead, the company would be “revamping” the service to include support for multiple accounts, along with the ability to upload directly to Google Photos. The changes began as Google renamed the old “Drive File Stream” app for enterprise clients to “Google Drive for desktop”.
Now, it seems that this is going to be the same app that will make its way to personal accounts. A reader of 9to5Google discovered that features of this new app are beginning to roll out in version 49 of Google Drive. When you first launch the app after it’s been updated, you’ll be greeted with a few highlights:
- Safely store all your files: Choose folders on your computer to sync with Google Drive, back up to Google Photos, or both
- Access Google Drive from your computer: Stream or mirror files and folders from Google Drive to your computer
- Use more than one account, without having to switch: Connect and access files from four Google accounts at the same time
In addition to being able to store your files as you would expect, Google Drive is introducing the ability to either stream or mirror your files. This is similar to what Dropbox offers, as you can save your files in the cloud, but will still be able to view them from the file explorer and then download them to your computer.
Another useful feature is the ability to upload pictures directly to Google Phot from your computer. You will even be provided with the option to choose between “Original” or “Storage Saver”. The former counts towards your storage limits, while the latter uploads a compressed version of the image.
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