In today’s digital world, people store most of their files online, and Google Drive plays an important role in this.
Many users rely on the Google Drive desktop app to back up photos and videos from their computers to Google Photos.
However, Google has now discontinued the automatic backup of photos and videos to Google Photos through Google Drive for desktop.
This means that any new photos and videos added to computer folders selected for Google Photos backup through Google Drive will no longer be automatically uploaded to Google Photos.
What Has Changed in Google Drive for Desktop?
According to media reports, Google Drive for desktop previously allowed users to select a folder on their computer and automatically back up the photos and videos stored in that folder directly to Google Photos.
This feature was useful because users did not have to manually upload their photos and videos to Google Photos again and again. However, Google has now removed this feature.
As a result, photos and videos added to those selected computer folders will no longer be automatically uploaded to Google Photos through Google Drive for desktop.
It is important to understand that Google Drive and Google Photos are not shutting down. Both services will continue to work as before.
Google has only changed the feature that allowed computer photos and videos to be automatically backed up to Google Photos through Drive.
Phone Backup to Google Photos Will Continue
Users who back up photos and videos from their smartphones to Google Photos do not need to worry about this change.
Regular phone photo and video backups through the Google Photos app will continue as usual.
The change mainly affects users who depended on Google Drive for desktop to automatically back up photos and videos from computer folders to Google Photos.
How to Continue Backing Up Computer Photos
Google has introduced another way for users to continuously back up photos and videos from a computer folder to Google Photos.
To do this, open Google Photos and select the “+” option. Then choose “Back up folders” and select the computer folder containing the photos and videos you want to back up.
This will allow users to continue backing up photos and videos from a specific computer folder to Google Photos.
Users can also import photos that are already stored in Google Drive into Google Photos. This gives them a way to add existing photos from Drive to their Google Photos library.
What Happens to Photos Already Backed Up?
The change has raised concerns about whether photos and videos that are already saved in Google Photos will be deleted.
Google has clarified that photos and videos already backed up to Google Photos will not be deleted because of this change. Existing data stored in Google Photos will remain safe.
However, users who want to continue automatically backing up new photos from their computer will need to update their backup settings and use the new method provided by Google.
Which Users Need to Pay Attention?
This change will mainly affect people who regularly move photos from their cameras to their computers and then rely on Google Drive for desktop to back them up to Google Photos.
It is also important for users who have:
Large collections of old photos stored on their computers.
Scanned photos or documents that they regularly back up.
Computer folders that were previously synced with Google Photos.
Photos and videos that are regularly transferred from a camera to a computer.
These users will now need to change their backup settings if they want new photos and videos from their computer folders to continue being backed up to Google Photos.
