Users Drive Orphans

Users - Drive - Orphans

• API documentation
• Collections of Users
• Definitions
• Collect orphaned files

API documentation

• https://developers.google.com/drive/v3/reference/files

Definitions

See Drive File Selection for symbols not listed here, such as <DriveFileEntity>

<DomainName> ::= <String>(.<String>)+
<EmailAddress> ::= <String>@<DomainName>
<UniqueID> ::= uid:<String>
<UserItem> ::= <EmailAddress>|<UniqueID>|<String>

<DriveFileName> ::= <String>
<DriveOrderByFieldName> ::=
        createddate|createdtime|
        folder|
        modifiedbyme|modifiedbymedate|modifiedbymetime|modifiedbyuser|
        modifieddate|modifiedtime|
        name|
        name_natural|
        quotabytesused|quotaused|
        recency|
        sharedwithmedate|sharedwithmetime|
        starred|
        title|
        title_natural|
        viewedbymedate|viewedbymetime

Collect orphaned files

Collect a users orphaned Drive files/folders into a target folder; only orphaned files not in the trash are processed.

gam <UserTypeEntity> collect orphans
        [(targetuserfoldername <DriveFolderName>)|(targetuserfolderid <DriveFolderID>)]
        [useshortcuts [<Boolean>]]
        (orderby <DriveOrderByFieldName> [ascending|descending])*
        [preview [todrive <ToDriveAttribute>*]]

• targetuserfoldername <DriveFileName> - This is the parent folder name for the orphaned files; the default is "#user# orphaned files". In this string, #user# and #email# will be replaced by the source user email address, #username# will be replaced by the source user mail address without the domain. This folder will be created is necessary.
• targetuserfolderid <DriveFolderID> - This is the parent folder ID for the orphaned files; it must exist.
• useshortcuts false - Add the target user folder as a parent of an orphan if it can be done without affecting its access by other users; otherwise, put a shortcut to the orphan into the target user folder. This is the default behavior
• useshortcuts or useshortcuts true - Put a shortcut to the orphan into the target user folder and do not modify the orphan's parents. GAM will not duplicate an existing shortcut.
• orderby <DriveOrderByFieldName> [ascending|descending])* - Specify the order in which files are processed.
• preview - If preview is specified, no files are collected; a CSV file listing the files to be collected is output.
• todrive <ToDriveAttribute>* - When preview is specified, the CSV file can be uploaded to Google

Example

Collect a users orphaned files into the folder "Orphans - testuser@domain.com" on their My Drive; use shortcuts rather than changing the orphan's parents.

gam user testuser@domain.com collect orphans targetuserfoldername "Orphans - #user#" useshortcuts

Problem with useshortcuts false

• testuser2 owns a file X1234 located in a folder owned by user testuser1 and shared with additional users
• testuser1 removes testuser2's access to that folder
• File 'X1234' now looks like an orphan to testuser2
• gam user testuser2 collect orphans useshortcuts false
• This moves X1234 to the folder testuser2 orphaned files; i.e., it has a new parent
• testuser1 and all other users no longer have access to X1234 as it is now in a folder for which they have no access