Currently, we have two sync solutions available —Drive File Stream, which was built for business users, and Backup and Sync, which was built for consumer users. To bring all of our customers the best and most used features Google has decided to unify the two existing Drive sync clients into a single sync client called Drive for desktop.
The new client brings the best and most used features from both sync solutions. It enables you to quickly sync and access content directly from Mac or PC, which saves a lot of precious time. All the syncing of local files to the cloud is done automatically in the background.
The rollout
The rollout will come i 3 waves:
- Starting July 19, 2021: Backup and Sync will support a guided flow to help users transition onto Drive for desktop.
- Starting August 18, 2021: Any users still on Backup and Sync will start to receive in-product notifications prompting them to transition to Drive for desktop.
- Starting October 1, 2021: Any users still on Backup and Sync after that point will no longer be able to sign in to Backup and Sync. To continue syncing with Drive and/or Google Photos, users will need to transition to Drive for desktop.
What to do
Important: You should not uninstall Backup and Sync until the transition is complete!
- Find out how many users are still using the Backup and Sync option using this script: https://github.com/lcannatti/bns-user-identify
- Deploy Drive for desktop to your users, see https://support.google.com/a/answer/7491144
- Starting August 18th, users will receive in-product notifications prompting them to transition to Drive for desktop. As of October 2021 the users will no longer be able to sign in to Backup and Sync.
Note: Don't get confused, Drive for desktop was previously called Drive File Stream, and you may see references to Drive File Stream and DriveFS in the settings.
Learn more about this timeline and to access resources to help manage the transition for your organization