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Telegraph Lab

Files and documents

Find and export
your Google Drive data.

Drive storage includes files owned by individual users and files in shared drives. Google Admin separates those figures from Gmail and Photos so you can describe the company's document collection.

Report in
GB
Category
Files and documents
Last checked

Find your Google Drive data size

  1. Use a Google Workspace administrator account with Storage and Reports privileges.
  2. Open Google Admin → Storage and inspect the Drive service figure.
  3. Under Shared drives using the most storage, choose View all shared drives for the full list.
  4. Use Reporting → User Reports → Accounts to export user-level Drive storage used (MB). If calculating a total from users, add shared-drive storage once and convert MB to GB.
Check whether your figure is already the organization-wide Drive total before adding shared drives. Storage reports can take up to 24 hours to update.

What to include in your data inventory

Report in GB, stating whether the figure covers individual drives, shared drives or both. Add file counts and the main document types if available.

Check the oldest retained files and mention any migration from an earlier file server. Include the users whose files remain in scope, including retained former-employee accounts.

Add the dates covered and the people who use this software. Label estimates and describe how you calculated them.

Export your Google Drive history

  1. Ask a super administrator to confirm the Data Export requirements for your Workspace edition.
  2. Open Data → Data import & export → Data export and create an export covering the agreed company data.
  3. Check the shared-drive scope. An organization-wide export and an export limited to specific users can include different content.
  4. Download the Drive service archives from the completed export. For selected files or accounts, use a Vault Drive search where licensed.

Google-native documents are converted according to the export route. Keep metadata and folder information with the files.

Google Takeout can collect one user's data when allowed. Review shared-drive coverage separately and download all archive parts before their expiry.

Why Google Drive data has value for AI training

Business documents preserve proposals, working instructions and project deliverables. Folder and ownership context can explain which team produced each item.

Related spreadsheets and presentations can show how the company moves from an analysis to a decision.

What stays private

Choose the users and shared drives in scope. Permission to access a shared document should be checked alongside the company's rights to include it.

Telegraph Lab reviews the proposed material with you and agrees how sensitive information will be handled. Preparation can include excluding material, redacting details and replacing personal identifiers. Your company keeps ownership; the licensing agreement defines the material, permitted uses and authorized recipients.

Common questions about Google Drive data

Should Gmail be added to the Drive volume?

Use the Drive figure and report Gmail separately.

Will an export of selected users include shared drives?

Check the export scope carefully. Google's organization-wide and user-filtered exports handle shared-drive content differently.

Does the storage number prove we have every file version?

The meter describes storage use. Review the export's version coverage separately.

Can we start with the storage report?

Yes. Include the Drive total, the shared-drive scope and the dates of the retained files.

Your data inventory

Add your numbers to the picture.

Enter the quantities and years covered in your data inventory, then share it with your Telegraph Lab contact. We’ll review the material and discuss the next step with you.

Discuss your data