GWS Drive Instant

Quick Google Drive file operations for searching, downloading, uploading, and sharing files.

When to Use This Command

Run this command when you need to:

• Search for files across your Google Drive by name, type, owner, or modification date
• Upload local files to Drive or download Drive files to your local machine quickly
• Manage file sharing permissions and generate shareable links from the terminal

Consider alternatives when:

• You need to browse folder hierarchies visually which the Drive web interface handles better
• You are performing complex file transformations that require Google Drive API batch operations

Quick Start

Configuration

Copy
name: gws-drive-instant
type: command
category: google-workspace

Example Invocation

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claude command:run gws-drive-instant --action search --query "type:spreadsheet modified:last-week"

Example Output

Searching Google Drive...
  Query: type:spreadsheet modified:last-week
  Scope: My Drive + Shared Drives

Results: 6 files found

  Name                          Size     Modified         Owner
  Q1 Budget Tracker.xlsx        245 KB   Mar 14, 2026     [email protected]
  Sprint Metrics.gsheet         --       Mar 13, 2026     [email protected]
  Customer Data Export.xlsx      1.2 MB   Mar 12, 2026     [email protected]
  Inventory Report.gsheet       --       Mar 11, 2026     [email protected]
  Team OKRs 2026.gsheet        --       Mar 10, 2026     [email protected]
  Release Notes Draft.xlsx      89 KB    Mar 09, 2026     [email protected]

Use --download <file-id> to download any file.

Core Concepts

Drive Operations Overview

Aspect	Details
Search	Full-text search with filters for type, owner, date, shared status
Upload	Push local files to Drive with automatic MIME type detection
Download	Pull Drive files to local filesystem with format conversion options
Share	Set permissions: viewer, commenter, editor for users, groups, or domain
Organize	Move files between folders, create folders, manage starred items

File Operation Workflow

Authenticate
      |
      v
Select Operation
  |      |       |       |
  v      v       v       v
Search Upload Download Share
  |      |       |       |
  v      v       v       v
Apply Filters   Convert  Set Perms
  |      |     Format     |
  v      v       |       v
Return Results   v    Confirm
              Save Local

Configuration

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
action	string	(required)	Operation: search, upload, download, share, list
query	string	(none)	Search query with filters for type, date, owner
file-id	string	(none)	Specific file ID for download or share operations
path	string	./	Local path for upload source or download destination
permission	string	viewer	Share permission level: viewer, commenter, editor

Best Practices

1. Use typed search queries - Prefix searches with type filters like type:document, type:spreadsheet, or type:presentation to narrow results and find files faster.

2. Download in the right format - Google native formats (Docs, Sheets) need export conversion. Specify the desired format like xlsx, pdf, or csv to get usable local files.

3. Set expiration on shared links - When sharing files externally, set an expiration date so access is automatically revoked after the collaboration period ends.

4. Organize uploads into folders - Specify a target folder ID when uploading to keep Drive organized. Files uploaded without a folder go to the root which becomes cluttered quickly.

Common Issues

1. Search returns no results for shared files - By default search may only cover My Drive. Include --scope shared to search Shared Drives and files shared with you.

2. Download fails for large files - Files over 10MB may require chunked download. The command handles this automatically but network timeouts can interrupt the transfer. Retry on failure.

3. Permission denied on shared drive - Shared Drive permissions are managed at the drive level, not per file. Contact the Shared Drive manager to get appropriate access.