What is a Shared Drive?

 A shared drive (also called a team drive in some systems like Google Workspace) is a common digital storage space where a group of people can store, access, and collaborate on files together.

Key Characteristics of Shared Drives

Feature	What it Means
Ownership	Files are owned by the team/organization, not individuals. Even if someone leaves the group, the files stay.
Access Control	You can give different people different levels of access — view, comment, edit, manage.
Real-time Collaboration	Multiple people can work on documents at the same time.
Organized by Purpose	Drives are usually named by project, team, or department (e.g., "Marketing Drive", "HR Drive").

My Drive / Personal Folder	Shared Drive
You control the file.	The team or organization controls the file.
File disappears if you delete or leave.	File stays even if someone leaves.
Good for private or working drafts.	Good for collaborative work or official team files.

What You Can Do in a Shared Drive (based on your permission):

Role	Can View	Can Comment	Can Edit	Can Organize	Can Manage Members
Viewer	✅	❌	❌	❌	❌
Commenter	✅	✅	❌	❌	❌
Contributor	✅	✅	✅	❌	❌
Content Manager	✅	✅	✅	✅	❌
Manager	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅

How to Use It (Example on Google Drive)

1. Create or join a Shared Drive.

2. Add members and assign their roles.

3. Upload or create files inside it.

4. Everyone with access can open it via Google Drive > Shared Drives.

5. Use it like a regular folder — just with shared access!

 Use Cases

• A group project with rotating members.

• Organization-wide templates and forms.

• Backup storage for department documents.

Click on this link to learn about Moving Files to and from a Shared Drive.