How to turn off the Google Drive sync

How to turn off Google Drive sync

Let’s check how to turn off Google Drive sync which can be very useful if you have a Google Drive account and want to disable syncing temporarily. Synchronizing your Google Drive storage is important to keep all your files safely kept in the cloud.

With Google Drive, you can easily gain access to all your files on the go, whether you are on your mobile device or PC, and the only way to ensure that these files remain accessible is to regularly synchronize your Drive.

However, many users have experienced the problem of non-stop syncing. In most cases, the backup process never ends, even if they are backing up only a few items.

So, in those cases, users leave the backup process to continue with the hopes that it will finish after some time, while some look for ways to stop the Google Drive sync altogether.

While turning off Google Drive sync may not be the most recommended option, it is still true that it is pointless to leave a Google Drive sync that continues endlessly.

Thus, turning off sync may be the next best move.

If you wish to learn how to turn off Google Drive Sync, you came to the right place.

Table of Contents

  1. How to turn off the Google Drive sync
    1. Stop Google Drive upload when an error occurs
    2. Quit Backup and Sync
    3. Disconnect Google Account
    4. Uncheck the folders in Backup and Sync
    5. Uninstall “Backup and Sync”
  2. Wrap Up

How to turn off the Google Drive sync

Although many users think of Google Drive as an iPhone or Android phone app and you still can take advantage through a browser like Google Chrome, the Android app also has valuable Windows and macOS versions.

Below are the steps to follow to make sure you disable the Google Drive app:

Stop Google Drive upload when an error occurs

Usually, when backing up to your Google Drive, if an error occurs, you will see some options for you to take action. Choose “Cancel” from those options, and the sync process will stop immediately.

Quit Backup and Sync

Backup and Sync is an application from Google that is used to back up all your local files on your Google Drive folder. This app is also used to auto-sync all your files to Google Drive. If you want to turn off Google Drive sync, one of the ways to do it is to close this program.

Within the application, click on the three vertical dots at the top right corner. Then, click on “Quit Backup and Sync”. Google Drive sync will be stopped immediately. You can also make use of the “Pause” option to temporarily stop the backup process.

Disconnect Google Account

Google Drive Backup and Sync take place when a Google account is logged in on a device. You can sign out of your account completely to turn off Google Drive sync. You may do it from the Backup and Sync application:

  • Go to “Settings” in the Backup and Sync app;
  • Click on “Disconnect Account”;
  • Your Google account will be disconnected from the app, and Google Drive sync will stop.

Uncheck the folders in Backup and Sync

In the Backup and Sync app, you have to select the files that you want to sync to Google Drive. If no file or folder is selected, then there will be nothing to sync, and the process will stop.

  • In the “My Computer” tab, click on “Google Drive” and uncheck all the checked folders. Alternatively, just uncheck the box next to “Sync My Drive to this computer”. Then, click on “Ok” to save settings.

Uninstall “Backup and Sync”

Without Backup and Sync, your computer will not attempt to process a Google Drive sync. And whether it is a MacBook or Windows PC, removing the app completely will turn off Google Drive sync. Uninstalling the app does not delete your files from Google Drive.

Check below for the steps to uninstall Backup and Sync:

For Windows OS

  • Open the app menu by clicking on the Windows logo on the screen (the bottom left corner) and clicking on “Settings”;
  • Click on “Apps”, and from the applications list, locate “Backup and Sync”;
  • Click on it and then on “Uninstall”.

You can also uninstall the app through Control Panel on Windows 10 OS:

  • Navigate to “Control Panel” and click on “Programs”;
  • Go to “Programs and Features”;
  • Click on “Backup and Sync from Google”;
  • Select “Uninstall”.

For macOS

Go to “Finder” and click on “Applications”;

Drag “Backup and Sync” to trash;

Navigate to the top-left area of the screen and click on “Finder”. Then select “Empty Trash”.

Wrap Up

We hope the methods highlighted above worked for you to stop your Google Drive syncing issues.

Also, you can consider other cloud providers that support Google Drive. There are platforms used to manage cloud drives, and you can use any one of these platforms to fix your Google Drive issues.

By the way, if you want to get a better grasp on the differences between Google Drive and Google Photo, check out our article.

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