Better Work AppsInstall free

Getting started

Inventory and manage Drive without reading file contents.

A practical guide to building catalogs, reviewing permissions and carrying out reversible Drive actions safely.

Install

Install Drive Suite once from the Google Workspace Marketplace, then open it in Google Drive or Google Sheets. In Drive, select a folder before opening the add-on. In Sheets, paste a Google Drive folder URL or ID.

Install Drive Suite

Create a first inventory

  1. Select a folder and leave recursive scanning on if you need its descendants.
  2. Choose a filter and a new spreadsheet or an editable existing spreadsheet.
  3. Review the displayed privacy and record-limit information, then select Start scan.
  4. Use Refresh status while work continues. If a run pauses, select Continue; partial results remain visible and never become a deletion baseline.

Why permissions are requested once

drive

Drive Suite requests this broad Drive scope at installation so it can inventory metadata and, only when you explicitly choose it, copy, move, rename, trash, create folders or adjust sharing. It never downloads, exports, OCRs, converts or inspects file contents.

drive.addons.metadata.readonly

Read limited context for a folder selected in the Drive add-on host.

spreadsheets

Create and update the catalog or action table you choose. App-owned columns are protected; user columns are preserved during Sync.

script.scriptapp / script.storage / script.send_mail

Checkpoint work, run one authorized dispatcher trigger, retain minimal per-user state, and send only opt-in monitor digests.

script.external_request

Check an opaque installation identifier and plan status with Better Work Apps for Pro access. No Drive metadata, IDs, names, links, Sheet data or file contents are included.

Safe management

Every consequential action is Choose → Preview → Validate → Confirm → Confirm again → Run → Review / Undo. The preview lists items, before and after values, collisions and access failures. Copy preserves the source; removal uses Drive Trash only; sharing to a domain or anyone requires an additional typed acknowledgement. Undo is offered only when Drive Suite can prove no newer Drive edit would be overwritten.

Scheduled Sync

Pro Sync polls on the selected interval and reconciles by file ID. It preserves columns you add after Drive Suite’s app-owned columns and writes a dated change report. A partial, failed or capped scan never marks catalog items as deleted.

For help, share the Drive Suite version, the action, and an error message—never folder links, file names, IDs or confidential catalog content. Contact support →