Why is copying files from the "Other computers" section of Google Drive is often slow?
Copying files from the "Other computers" section of Google Drive is often slow because it involves a multi-stage process that is different from a simple file transfer.
Why It's Slow
When you access a file from an "other computer," you're not directly copying it from one location to another within Google's servers. Instead, the process works like this:
Download: Your computer must first download the file from the Google Drive cloud. This speed is entirely dependent on your internet's download speed.
Upload: Once the file is on your computer, you are then uploading it to your Google Drive folder. This speed is limited by your internet's upload speed, which is typically much slower than your download speed.
In essence, you are doing a full download-upload cycle, which is far less efficient than a direct, internal server-to-server copy.
How to Make it Faster
To speed up the process, you need to minimize the number of files and optimize your internet connection.
Zip or Compress Files: The single best way to speed up the transfer is to zip multiple files or folders into a single compressed file before copying. This turns many small files, which require a lot of processing overhead, into one large file that can be transferred more efficiently.
Use the Add shortcut to Drive Feature: Instead of copying the file, you can create a shortcut to it. This doesn't duplicate the file, but it makes it easily accessible in your My Drive. This is the fastest way to "get" a file, but it doesn't give you a separate copy.
Check Your Internet Speed: Perform a speed test to check your upload speed. Most internet plans prioritize download speed, so your upload speed might be the primary bottleneck. If possible, use a wired Ethernet connection instead of Wi-Fi for a more stable and faster transfer.
Pause Other Activities: Temporarily stop other activities that use a lot of bandwidth, such as streaming video, gaming, or other downloads. This frees up your connection to focus on the Google Drive transfer.
Change Bandwidth Settings: If you are using the Google Drive for Desktop app, you can adjust the bandwidth settings to allow for a higher upload and download rate. This can be found in the application's preferences or settings.
Out of the box solution
Moving a file from the "Other computers" section to your main Google Drive folder will make future copies of that file significantly faster.
When a google drive file is in your "Other computers" section, it is considered a synced file from another device. To "copy" it, your computer must first download the entire file from Google's servers and then upload a new copy back to them. This process is slow because it depends on your internet's download and upload speeds.
Once you move the file to your main Google Drive folder, it becomes a native file within your account. Any copy operations you perform on it after that are handled entirely on Google's servers. This is an internal, server-side process that doesn't use your internet connection, making the copy virtually instant, regardless of the file's size.
