Google is backing down and allowing more than five million files in Google Drive accounts again. Some paying Google Drive customers were suddenly no longer able to use their cloud storage: They had exceeded the “limit for the number of files (…) created by this account” was the surprising error message. Because the contract says nothing about such a limit.
The data company is likely to have secretly introduced the restriction in mid-February to drive away some heavy users. With 5 million files it was over, even if nobody knew about it. The file limit applied regardless of the amount of paid cloud storage; Consumers can book up to 30 TB, companies can even rent unlimited storage.
With 5 million small text files, however, a few gigabytes would be enough – the paid storage space would not be usable at all. In Google’s bug tracker there are even reportsafter which deleting files did not help – Google Drive refused to create new folders or files.
Error wasn’t a mistake, it was intentional
Those affected initially thought it was a misconfiguration on the part of Google, but the company confirmed that it had deliberately drawn the line. Apparently an austerity measure, but at the same time also a breach of contract. Because the border was never disclosed. At the same time, Google offers software interfaces (API, Application Programming Interface) that invite companies to use Google Drive for intensive automated storage operations. So it’s no wonder that millions of small files accumulate in some accounts.
Even if only relatively few users were directly affected, the criticism swelled to a canon in early April. On Monday Google pulled the ripcord: “We are reverting the change while exploring alternative approaches”. So the group is now looking for another way to reduce costs without letting the vast majority of users notice anything.
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Still in effect is the 400,000 file limit that an account can share with third parties. However, this limit is not secret, but publicly documented.
With an addition, Google wants to win back destroyed trust: “If we have to make changes, we will inform users in advance.” Apparently this is no longer a matter of course in the cloud.
(ds)
