The number of files that can be stored in Google Drive is currently capped at 5 million for each user. This limit applies to users who pay for additional storage space, as Google justifies the new restriction as a “preventative measure against system misuse” that could put the service’s reliability and security at risk. However, the company assured users that this limitation would only affect a small number of users and “not impact the ability of most users to utilise their Google storage.” The newly imposed limit restricts the number of items a user can create within any Drive account. This limit is not organization-wide.
Despite this, users have already begun to experience this constraint, as evidenced by the fact that Google Drive has begun sending alerts to customers telling them to remove millions of files in order to conform to the new requirement (more info about the case was posted on Reddit).
The error message “Error 403: This account has exceeded the creation limit of 5 million items” appears when this occurs, instructing users to move files to the trash and delete them permanently to make room for new uploads. Some users of the service have even found that they are unable to upload files to Drive for no apparent reason.
In spite of these problems, the documentation that Google provides for Drive still does not include any reference of the newly imposed limit. As a result, it is difficult for customers to remain informed of this change that was not communicated in advance. This new development underlines the necessity of effective communication between firms and consumers, and also serves as a reminder to users that Microsoft is not the only corporation that is experiencing difficulties with communication.
In the meanwhile, let’s keep an eye out for any updates regarding this issue that may come from Google, and here’s hoping that we’ll have something to share with you in the coming days.