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Sync Google Drive on Ubuntu 24.04 and 26.04: the ways that work in 2026, step by step

Ubuntu 26.04 no longer shows Google Drive in the Files app, and Ubuntu 24.04 is now offered the upgrade. Here is how to get your Drive on either release: built in, with rclone, or with a sync app.

By Ambifold · Published · Last checked

Disclosure: we make Ambifold, one of the options below. It is a two-way sync app for Linux, now in a private beta by invitation, with a public beta planned for 1 December 2026. Every step in this guide works without it, and we have tried to describe each option fairly. If something here is wrong or out of date, please tell us at support@ambifold.com.

In short

  • Ubuntu 24.04 LTS: sign in to Google in Settings, Online Accounts, and your Drive appears in Files. It is a network folder: nothing is stored on your computer, and it is slow with big folders.
  • Ubuntu 26.04 LTS: that option is gone. Since 29 September 2026, Ubuntu 24.04 offers the upgrade to 26.04.1, and Drive leaves Files when you take it. Your files in Drive are not touched. An unofficial PPA brings it back for testers.
  • On both releases: rclone can mount your whole Drive as a folder, or keep a local folder in two-way sync (rclone bisync). Sync apps such as Insync, overGrive and Ambifold do two-way sync in the background, with real files that work offline.
  • A work or school account? Your organisation's admin can block every tool here. See section 4 first.

1. Ubuntu 24.04: Drive in Files, with Online Accounts

Ubuntu 24.04 still has the old integration. You don't need to install anything:

  1. Open Settings and choose Online Accounts.
  2. Choose Google. Your web browser opens: sign in, and allow GNOME to access your account.
  3. Back in Settings, keep Files switched on. All services start switched on; turn off the ones you don't want.
  4. Open Files. Your Drive is in the sidebar, under your Google address. Other apps and the terminal find it under /run/user/1000/gvfs/ (1000 is the usual number of the first user).

It is good for browsing and for the odd file. Know its limits:

  • Online only. It is a network folder, not a copy. Files are fetched when you open them, and nothing opens without a connection.
  • Slow with many files. A GVfs bug report, open since March 2024, describes copies to and from Drive at a few kilobytes a second.
  • Odd names in some apps. Drive gives every file an ID, and some apps get the ID instead of the name. Users report that a “Save as” from LibreOffice, or a Drive file attached in Thunderbird, ends up with a long random name.
  • It ends when you upgrade to 26.04. See the next section.

Don't make it the only copy of files that matter, and don't point a sync tool at this folder: you would be syncing Drive with itself.

If this is all you need, you can stay on 24.04: it gets standard updates until 2029. You can decline the upgrade when it is offered, or turn the offer off: in Software & Updates, on the Updates tab, set Notify me of a new Ubuntu version to Never.

2. Ubuntu 26.04: what is gone, and the community PPA

Ubuntu 26.04 LTS, released on 23 April 2026, uses GNOME 50. Its GVfs, the layer that Files uses for network storage, no longer contains the Google Drive backend, and Online Accounts no longer offers Files for a Google account. Google accounts still work there for mail, calendar and contacts. If you connected Drive before you upgraded, Files shows an “Unable to access” error. Our guide to what changed on Ubuntu 26.04 and Linux Mint explains why.

The upgrade deletes nothing. The old integration kept no copies on your computer, so your files are still in Drive. Bookmarks and recent files that pointed to it stop working.

The community backend (an unofficial PPA)

A community developer has rewritten GVfs's Google Drive support from scratch, against Google's current Drive API. It is proposed for GNOME as GVfs merge request !323. When we checked, it was open, last updated on 14 October 2026, and on the milestone for GNOME 52, expected in 2027. A milestone is a plan, not a promise. And a long-term support release like 26.04 usually keeps the GVfs it shipped with, so don't expect it there by default.

For Ubuntu 26.04, test packages are in a PPA, ppa:fluhus/gnome-googledrive: GVfs (built on 14 May 2026) and GNOME Online Accounts (29 April 2026). Testers report that it works, with rough edges, such as files shown by their ID in some apps. Weigh the risks first:

  • It replaces two system parts. Files and other apps use GVfs for every kind of network storage, not only Drive, and Online Accounts also holds your mail, calendar and other accounts. Launchpad calls PPA packages “unsupported”, and Ubuntu does not review them.
  • It can hold back security fixes. On 30 September 2026, Ubuntu published a security update for GVfs on 26.04, with two fixes. The PPA's GVfs has a higher version number, so APT keeps it instead, and it was built in May, before those fixes. When we checked, it had not been rebuilt since.
  • It is still a network folder: online only, with no copies on your computer.

If you want to test it, take a system snapshot first, as its developer advises: Timeshift does this (sudo apt install timeshift). Then:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:fluhus/gnome-googledrive
sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade

Log out and in again. If Drive doesn't appear in Files, remove your Google account in Online Accounts and add it again, with Files switched on. To go back to Ubuntu's own packages, including its security update:

sudo apt install ppa-purge
sudo ppa-purge ppa:fluhus/gnome-googledrive

3. Ways that work on both releases

These work the same on Ubuntu 24.04 and 26.04, and don't depend on GNOME. First decide whether you want to browse Drive or keep its files on your computer. Our guide to mounting or syncing Google Drive explains the difference.

WayWhat you getOfflineSetup
rclone mount Your whole Drive as a folder. Files are fetched when you open them. No In the terminal, once
rclone bisync A local folder kept in two-way sync with a Drive folder, each time it runs. Yes In the terminal, plus a schedule you set up
A sync app The folders you choose, kept in two-way sync in the background. Yes A graphical app
Drive in the browser Everything, with nothing to install. No None

Install rclone and connect your Drive

rclone is a free, open-source command-line tool for Drive and many other clouds. Use rclone's own build, not the one in Ubuntu's software. Ubuntu 24.04 and 26.04 both ship rclone 1.60.1, from November 2022. It can mount, but it lacks the bisync options below, which came in rclone 1.64 and 1.66, and rclone's own documentation says distribution packages are “often quite out of date”. The current version is 1.75.2, from 9 October 2026.

sudo apt remove rclone
sudo apt install curl unzip fuse3
sudo -v ; curl https://rclone.org/install.sh | sudo bash
rclone version

The first line removes Ubuntu's rclone, if you have it. The third is rclone's own installer; run it again later to update.

Next, create your own Google client ID. rclone's documentation says its shared one “will stop working during 2026”, and a client of your own also avoids the limits that all rclone users share. Our guide to creating your own Google Drive client ID walks you through Google's console, with pictures (rclone's own page: making your own client ID). Then run rclone config and answer:

  • n for a new remote, named gdrive;
  • drive for the type of storage;
  • your client ID and client secret;
  • drive for the scope (full access), and the defaults for the questions after it;
  • Yes to signing in with your web browser, and No to “Shared Drive”, for your own My Drive.

Check that it works: rclone lsd gdrive: lists the folders at the top of your Drive.

rclone mount: browse your whole Drive

mkdir -p ~/GoogleDrive
rclone mount gdrive: ~/GoogleDrive --vfs-cache-mode full --daemon

Your Drive is now in ~/GoogleDrive. Open it in Files and press Ctrl+D to add it to the sidebar. --vfs-cache-mode full keeps the files you open in a cache on your disk, which many apps need to save files properly; add --vfs-cache-max-size 10G to limit its size. Without a connection, the folder doesn't work.

Keep the mount folder inside your home folder. Ubuntu 26.04 limits where FUSE file systems such as rclone's can be mounted, and your home folder is allowed. To unmount it: fusermount3 -u ~/GoogleDrive.

To mount it at every login, unmount it first, then save this as ~/.config/systemd/user/rclone-gdrive.service:

[Unit]
Description=Google Drive (rclone mount)

[Service]
Type=notify
ExecStart=/usr/bin/rclone mount gdrive: %h/GoogleDrive --vfs-cache-mode full
ExecStop=/usr/bin/fusermount3 -u %h/GoogleDrive
Restart=on-failure

[Install]
WantedBy=default.target
systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable --now rclone-gdrive.service

rclone bisync: a local folder in two-way sync

bisync keeps a folder on your computer and a folder in Drive the same, in both directions. These options need rclone 1.66 or newer: Ubuntu's own 1.60.1 doesn't know them. Start with one folder, ideally one that you also have a copy of elsewhere. Create both sides, then try the first sync as a dry run, which changes nothing:

mkdir -p ~/DriveSync
rclone mkdir gdrive:DriveSync
rclone bisync ~/DriveSync gdrive:DriveSync --resync --resync-mode newer --create-empty-src-dirs --drive-skip-gdocs --dry-run -v

Read what it would copy. If it looks right, run the same line without --dry-run. --resync is for the first run only: it copies files both ways and deletes no file. When a file differs on the two sides, one version overwrites the other, and --resync-mode newer makes sure the newer one wins. --drive-skip-gdocs leaves Google Docs, Sheets and Slides in Drive.

After that, every run is:

rclone bisync ~/DriveSync gdrive:DriveSync --create-empty-src-dirs --drive-skip-gdocs --resilient --recover --max-lock 2m --conflict-resolve newer -v

bisync doesn't watch your files: it syncs only when it runs. So run that line every few minutes, with a systemd timer or cron. Our rclone bisync guide has the timer, a filter file, and what to do when a run fails. Three rules keep it safe:

  • Never put --resync in the scheduled line. Used on every run, it brings deleted files back. After a failure, follow rclone's message rather than resyncing out of habit.
  • Leave the delete limit on. By default, bisync stops when a run would delete more than half of the files on either side (--max-delete). Don't add --force to the schedule: it skips that check.
  • One tool per folder. Don't bisync a folder that another sync app manages, or a folder inside your rclone mount. Our two-way sync safety checklist has the rest.

Sync apps: two-way sync in the background

A sync app keeps the folders you choose in sync on its own, with a tray icon and settings you click rather than type. These three have packages for Ubuntu (checked on 16 October 2026):

AppGood forKeep in mind
Insync A mature, polished app with downloads for Ubuntu up to 26.04. Several Google accounts, shared drives, and OneDrive and Dropbox too. Commercial and closed source, with a licence for each cloud account.
overGrive A long-standing Linux sync client. Its installation page lists Ubuntu 18.04 to 26.04, and it has a 14-day trial. One Google account syncs at a time, with a licence for each. You create your own Google API client during setup. Closed source.
Ambifold (our app, beta) Always-on two-way sync of the folders you choose, with a preview before the first sync, a stop before mass deletes and backups. A free edition for one Google account and up to three folders. In a private beta by invitation until the public beta, planned for 1 December 2026. My Drive only. Google Docs skipped by default. Changes made in Drive arrive in about 1 to 5 minutes. The free edition needs your own Google client.

About Ambifold, in more detail. It runs on Ubuntu 24.04 or newer, and Ubuntu's own desktop shows its tray icon. It runs rclone's bisync inside, and adds what you would otherwise script: it watches your folders, shows a preview before the first sync, never resyncs on its own, stops before a sync that would delete more than half of the files on either side, and keeps a backup of local files it replaces or deletes for 30 days. Your files go only between your computer and Google, never through us. It refuses a folder inside an rclone mount or inside the Online Accounts Drive folder, so it never syncs Drive with itself.

Its limits, honestly. It syncs My Drive only: shared drives and “Shared with me” are not supported yet. Google Docs, Sheets and Slides stay in Drive by default. It checks Drive for changes every 30 seconds while you are active, and every 2 to 5 minutes when things are quiet, so a change made on the web or your phone arrives in about 1 to 5 minutes. A change on your computer starts a sync within seconds, but each sync re-reads every folder of the pair, so on a large Drive it can take a couple of minutes before the file goes up. The free edition connects through your own Google client, which the app walks you through once; more accounts and folders need Pro (see pricing). It is beta software, so keep your usual backups.

Our comparison of Google Drive clients for Linux also covers FreeFileSync, ExpanDrive and google-drive-ocamlfuse.

4. Work and school accounts

With a Google Workspace account, your organisation's administrator decides which apps may reach its Drive. Every tool in this guide asks Google for full access to your Drive, so any of them can be blocked:

  • The admin can block apps they haven't reviewed, or allow them only to sign you in.
  • They can mark Drive as Restricted, so only apps they trust get access. They can also restrict high-risk Drive permissions, such as deleting files, on their own.
  • These rules apply to a client ID that you created yourself, too.

When that happens, Google's sign-in page tells you that the app is blocked, or shows your admin's own message. Changes to these settings can take up to 24 hours.

What you can do: ask your admin to trust the app. They do it in the Admin console's API controls, by the app's name or its client ID; for rclone and Ambifold's free edition, that is your own client ID. Some organisations let you request access from the sign-in page. Please don't work around your organisation's rules: Drive in the browser still works.

Advanced Protection. If your Google account uses Google's Advanced Protection Program, Google says that “only verified third-party apps” can reach sensitive data such as your Drive. A client you created yourself is not verified, and Google has not finished verifying Ambifold's own sign-in yet either. So expect Google to block rclone with your own client, overGrive and Ambifold.

5. FAQ

Is there an official Google Drive app for Ubuntu?

No. Google has never made a Drive app for Linux. Use Drive in the browser, or one of the tools above.

Why did Google Drive disappear from Files after I upgraded to Ubuntu 26.04?

GNOME 50 removed GVfs's Google Drive backend, because the library behind it had gone unmaintained. Your files are still in Drive. Our explainer has the details.

Can I get Google Drive back in Files on Ubuntu 26.04?

Yes, two ways: the unofficial community PPA, or an rclone mount added to the sidebar. A fix in GNOME itself may come with GNOME 52, but Ubuntu 26.04 isn't expected to get it by default.

How do I keep my Drive files offline on Ubuntu?

Use a sync tool, rclone bisync or a sync app, which keeps real copies of the folders you choose. A mount, including Online Accounts, needs a connection.

Can I use the rclone from Ubuntu's software?

For a mount, yes. For bisync, install rclone's own build: Ubuntu's 1.60.1 is from 2022, and lacks the options that make bisync recover safely.

Can I mount and sync at the same time?

Yes, if they never share a folder. Mount your whole Drive to browse it, and sync the folders you work in to a separate folder on your computer. Edit synced files in the synced folder, not through the mount.

What about Linux Mint?

Mint 22.x is built on Ubuntu 24.04, and still has Drive in its file manager, Nemo. Linux Mint 27 “Adrien” is based on Ubuntu 26.04 and planned for Christmas 2026. Our Linux Mint guide has the steps.

6. Sources

All checked on 16 October 2026.

7. Changes to this guide

  • : first published.

Private beta

Want your Drive folders as real files on Ubuntu?

Ambifold keeps the folders you choose in two-way sync with Google Drive, in the background, on Ubuntu 24.04 and newer. We are inviting small groups of Linux Mint and Ubuntu users now, and the public beta is planned for 1 December 2026.

Ask for an invite See its limits first