By integrating Pics.io with Google Drive, you can leverage the power of both platforms to enhance your visual asset management, streamline collaboration, and improve overall productivity when working with visual content.
The main advantages of the integration between Pics.io and Google Drive:
Seamless Connection: Pics.io integrates directly with Google Drive’s folder, leveraging the existing storage infrastructure and file management capabilities of Google Drive. This means that you can access your Google Drive files and folders within Pics.io UI without any need to duplicate or transfer them.
Centralized Asset Management: With the integration, Pics.io serves as the UI for managing and organizing your visual assets and Google Drive serves as the backend for storing data. Existing files can be synced from Google Drive into Pics.io UI, making it easier to search, categorize, and track your Google Drive data within Pics.io. It's important to note that Pics.io does not store files themselves, only their metadata. The files remain securely stored within Google Drive.
Metadata and Tagging: Pics.io allows adding metadata and tags (keywords) to your files stored in Google Drive through Pics.io UI. The metadata updates made within Pics.io are replicated to the physical files as well which means you’ll be able to see it if you download files from Pics.io and use them in another software supporting the metadata displaying.
Version Control and History: Pics.io tracks the version history of files in Google Drive, allowing you to access previous versions, view changes, and restore previous iterations if needed directly in Pics.io. This can be especially useful when collaborating with others on creative projects or when you need to refer back to earlier versions of your visual content.
Collaboration and Review: Pics.io provides collaboration features that enable you to share files and folders stored in Google Drive with team members or clients, assign files to particular teammates, and discuss them externally/internally. All these features facilitate review and approval processes a lot.
How to connect your Pics.io team account to Google Drive?
Before using Pics.io, there are a few important steps you need to follow. First, you need to agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. These documents are designed to ensure that your personal data is protected and that we comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). If you'd like to learn more about how we protect your personal information in Pics.io, you can find additional details on our website.
Once you have agreed to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, the next step is to choose the supported storage type you would like to use with Pics.io, specifically the Google Drive option. Here, you can connect a single folder within MyDrive or Shared (Team) Drive space.
Once you have the storage option, allow Pics.io to get access to your Google Drive through a Google account that owns that Google Drive. Apart from this consent, Pics.io never requires any other information about your Google account, such as logins or passwords. Pics.io does not know the password to your Google account, and there is no chance it can get access to it.
So, The next step is to log in to the Google account of the user which Google Drive's folder will be synced with Pics.io. When choosing the Google account to link with Pics.io, it's best to pick the main account of your organization / the account used for management purposes or create a separate general account for DAM purposes. This will ensure easier integration and centralized control over your organization's files and data when someone responsible for DAM leaves the organization. By using a general account, you'll have easier access and better oversight of your content within the Pics.io system.
Grant Pics.io access to your Google account for it to be able to interact with its Google Drive. Here is why Pics.io requests access to your entire Google account:
Simplified Permissions: Google Drive API provides a more straightforward access control mechanism by requesting access to the entire account and it doesn't support permissions on the folder level to third-party applications. It streamlines the authorization process, especially in our case when Pics.io needs to interact with multiple folders or files to sync them. That is why Pics.io needs to ask for access to the entire user's Google Drive.
Technical Limitations: From a technical standpoint, it is easier for Pics.io to request access to the entire Google Drive account rather than dealing with fine-grained permissions for specific folders that should be granted by users. It simplifies the implementation process and reduces complexity.
NB! Pics.io operates exclusively within a designated working folder in your Google Drive and does not access or modify any other files or folders.
Our integration is fully verified by Google, and we have an official verification letter confirming our compliance with their security and privacy standards. We prioritize data security and ensure that your content remains protected at all times.
Pics.io doesn’t use the usual Google Drive sharing mechanism. Access to your working folder is performed via cryptographic keys provided by Google Drive API.
The last step in the configuration process is to establish a connection between Pics.io and your Google Drive by selecting a working directory Pics.io will be syncing with. You are provided with the option to:
select an existing folder in your Google Drive;
allow Pics.io to create a new folder in your Google Drive;
!NB! Now it is possible to connect only a single Google Drive folder to your Pics.io account, but not the whole Team (Shared) Drive/MyDrive.
For those who use a Shared (Team) Drive, we suggest using a corporate Google Workspace account during the authorization stage to link a folder with Pics.io. That Google user should have either a 'Manager' or 'Content Manager' role to be able to connect a folder from a Shared (Team) Drive to Pics.io.
In case you have your files stored in different folders, see the instructions below.
What should I do if my data is scattered across different folders/drives/Google accounts?
When dealing with the situation of having files scattered across different folders in your Google Drive, you will obviously need to gather them in one place for better management, and here is how you can achieve it:
Create a parent folder either in MyDrive or Team Drive space;
To streamline your file organization, you can create a dedicated root folder within your Google Drive. This central folder will serve as a consolidation point for all the necessary files required for Pics.io as Pics.io can only connect to a single folder within Google Drive, but can access all the subfolders. By transferring relevant folders/files from their original folder into this newly created root folder, you will establish a cohesive storage location that simplifies file management and accessibility.
Start consolidating files into this particular folder;
If you are the owner of the files, just move them from their locations to this particular folder using the namesake Google Drive’s option ‘Move’. If there are files shared with you, but owned by a third party, it’s better to transfer their ownership to your user to avoid any possible permission-related issues.
And this is how you can locate files not owned by you using the default Google Drive search:
FAQ:
What is a working folder?
A working folder serves as a single location where you can conveniently store and manage your files within the Pics.io platform. By utilizing this folder, you can bring together all relevant media assets, ensuring an easily accessible collection.
Any recommendations for teams?
Pics.io only gets access to the Google Drive folder of the user who links their Google account during the initial setup of your Pics.io team space. If you add teammates, Pics.io doesn’t require access to their Google Drives as you're working on the same repository shared in Pics.io.
If you are planning to use Pics.io and you have Google Workspace, it's highly recommended to use Shared Drive with Pics.io (you can read more about it here). The best scenario would be to create a separate shared drive and provide Pics.io with access to it. This way you will not have to give access to the rest of your Google Drive.
Another good practice is to create a separate Google My Drive account (e.g. picsio@example.com) that will be used solely as a Pics.io repository.
NB! Google Drive has a daily upload limit of 750GB, which might be something to keep in mind if you’re working with large amounts of data. If you ever need more flexibility, our internal Pics.io storage doesn’t have any upload limits, so you can store and manage your files without worrying about hitting a daily cap.
Are any other security measures available?
Pics.io doesn’t store your assets. All the files are located in your Google Drive account. So common-sense security measures in Google apply here as well.
The Pics.io Dev Team does not have access to your digital repository. We can only get access to your assets with your consent for support purposes.
For greater security, access to Pics.io production servers is limited to very few members of our Dev Team.
Why can't I sync some folders with Pics.io?
Pics.io cannot synchronize two folders with identical names. Consequently, if there are duplicate folders, they will not be displayed in the collections tree within the Pics.io user interface. It's worth mentioning that any assets already present in this selected folder will become visible in Pics.io once the synchronization process takes place.
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