This toolkit shares an index of tools, resources, and communications developed by the Google Workspace Optimization project to support the community as we transition to a Google Workspace service that no longer offers free and unlimited storage.
Key messages and speaking points
- Google Workspace will remain a preferred collaboration tool at the university, ensuring that faculty, students, and staff can access My Drive and shared drives for file storage and collaboration.
- Upcoming lifecycle management policies will be introduced.
- To maintain the service's sustainability, a storage limit of 5 TB will be applied to My Drives and each shared drive, effective 5 TB.
- Individuals who own My Drive accounts exceeding 5 TB and managers of shared drives storing more than 5 TB GB have been notified via email.
Additional storage in Google Workspace can be purchased through the university. Pricing will be based on an annual cost of $0.15 per GB.
Curated resource guides
Storage Management Guide
Access self-help guidance to manage a drive that exceeds the storage limit, including
- Check My Drive usage: Understand how much data is being stored in your My Drive
- Clean up My Drive: Identify large, redundant, or unused files that may no longer be needed.
- Check shared drive usage: Learn how to see the amount of data stored in a shared drive.
- Clean up a shared drive: Strategies for reducing usage or deleting a shared drive.
- Manage access in shared drives: How to modify a shared drive member's permission level.
- Review security guidance: Reminder that it's highly recommended that Stanford data remains in a Stanford-approved solution.
- Purchase Google Workspace storage: Submit a PTA to be billed based on actual usage.
Storage Options Guide
Access self-help guidance to explore Stanford's storage options, including:
- Storage recommendations (card view): Compare the various storage options available at Stanford.
- Storage recommendations (matrix view): View side-by-side feature comparison of Stanford's storage options.
- Choosing a storage solution: Key questions to consider when selecting a storage solution for your specific needs.
- More tips: Compare storage options based on price and specific use cases.
- Prepare to migrate with Globus: Ensure a smoother migration by preparing your data.
How-to guides
Monitor storage use
- Check My Drive usage: Check usage across Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos.
- View My Drive storage footprint: Understand what files are driving increased storage.
- Check shared drive usage: View storage use for a specific shared drive.
Clean up a drive
- Clean up My Drive: Tips to identify large, redundant, or unused files that may no longer be needed.
- Clean up a shared drive: High level tips to organize a shared drive.
- Free up space in Gmail: Visit Gmail FAQs for tips.
Manage a shared drive
- Remove yourself as a manager: Follow these actions if you are listed as manager of a shared drive for which you are no longer responsible.
- Delete a shared drive: Remove a shared drive that's no longer needed(managers only).
- Understanding “read-only” mode: See which functionalities become restricted in "read-only."
Purchase Google Workspace storage
- Purchase Google Workspace storage: Submit a PTA to be billed based on actual usage.
- Find a shared drive ID: Derrive the ID from the drive's URL.
Other resources
Google Optimization Project webpage
How to get support
- For questions about storage options, submit a storage consulting request
- For technical support, submit a Help request
- To share feedback with the project team, use this form
Communication summary
Articles
- University Sets 5 TB Google Workspace Limit (Jan. 21, 2025)
- Transitioning to a Sustainable Google Workspace (Jan. 23, 2024)
- Navigating the Next Era of Google Workspace for Education (Aug. 15, 2023)
Emails
- My Drive email draft - (sent Feb. 21, 2024) Informed those whose My Drive exceeds 490 GB
- Shared drive manager email: (sent May 16, 2024) Informed managers of shared drives exceeding 490 GB
- Grace period extended email: (sent Aug. 7, 2024) Announced that no storage limits would be enforced before March 1, 2025
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