---

name: google-drive description: List and download files from Google Drive. Use this skill when you need to access files stored in Google Drive, list folder contents, search for files, or download file content.

Google Drive File Access

This skill enables listing and downloading files from Google Drive using the google-api-python-client library.

Authentication

Google Drive uses OAuth2 tokens for authentication. The GOOGLE_DRIVE_TOKENS environment variable must point to a JSON file containing the OAuth2 credentials.

Copyimport os
from google.oauth2.credentials import Credentials
from googleapiclient.discovery import build

def get_drive_client():
    """Get authenticated Google Drive client."""
    tokens_path = os.environ.get("GOOGLE_DRIVE_TOKENS")
    if not tokens_path or not os.path.exists(tokens_path):
        raise ValueError("GOOGLE_DRIVE_TOKENS not set or file not found")

    creds = Credentials.from_authorized_user_file(tokens_path)
    return build("drive", "v3", credentials=creds)

drive = get_drive_client()

Listing Files

List All Files

Copy# List files the user has access to
results = drive.files().list(
    pageSize=100,
    fields="nextPageToken, files(id, name, mimeType, size, createdTime, modifiedTime)"
).execute()

files = results.get("files", [])
for file in files:
    print(f"{file['name']} ({file['mimeType']})")

List Files in a Folder

Copy# List files in a specific folder
folder_id = "your-folder-id"
results = drive.files().list(
    q=f"'{folder_id}' in parents",
    pageSize=100,
    fields="nextPageToken, files(id, name, mimeType, size)"
).execute()

Search for Files

Copy# Search by name
results = drive.files().list(
    q="name contains 'report'",
    fields="files(id, name, mimeType)"
).execute()

# Search by type
results = drive.files().list(
    q="mimeType='application/pdf'",
    fields="files(id, name)"
).execute()

# Combined search
results = drive.files().list(
    q="name contains 'invoice' and mimeType='application/pdf'",
    fields="files(id, name, mimeType)"
).execute()

Downloading Files

Download File Content

Copyfrom googleapiclient.http import MediaIoBaseDownload
import io

def download_file(file_id, output_path):
    """Download a file from Google Drive."""
    request = drive.files().get_media(fileId=file_id)

    with open(output_path, "wb") as f:
        downloader = MediaIoBaseDownload(f, request)
        done = False
        while not done:
            status, done = downloader.next_chunk()
            print(f"Download progress: {int(status.progress() * 100)}%")

# Usage
download_file("file-id", "output.pdf")

Download to Memory

Copydef download_to_bytes(file_id):
    """Download file content to memory."""
    request = drive.files().get_media(fileId=file_id)
    buffer = io.BytesIO()
    downloader = MediaIoBaseDownload(buffer, request)

    done = False
    while not done:
        _, done = downloader.next_chunk()

    buffer.seek(0)
    return buffer.read()

# Usage
content = download_to_bytes("file-id")

Export Google Docs/Sheets

Google Docs and Sheets must be exported to a standard format:

Copydef export_google_doc(file_id, mime_type="text/plain"):
    """Export a Google Doc to specified format."""
    content = drive.files().export(
        fileId=file_id,
        mimeType=mime_type
    ).execute()
    return content

# Export as plain text
text = export_google_doc("doc-id", "text/plain")

# Export as PDF
pdf_bytes = export_google_doc("doc-id", "application/pdf")

# Export Sheet as CSV
csv_content = export_google_doc("sheet-id", "text/csv")

Common MIME Types

Pagination

Handle large file lists with pagination:

Copydef list_all_files(folder_id=None):
    """List all files, handling pagination."""
    all_files = []
    page_token = None

    query = f"'{folder_id}' in parents" if folder_id else None

    while True:
        results = drive.files().list(
            q=query,
            pageSize=100,
            pageToken=page_token,
            fields="nextPageToken, files(id, name, mimeType, size)"
        ).execute()

        all_files.extend(results.get("files", []))
        page_token = results.get("nextPageToken")

        if not page_token:
            break

    return all_files

Get File Metadata

Copy# Get detailed file information
file = drive.files().get(
    fileId="file-id",
    fields="id, name, mimeType, size, createdTime, modifiedTime, parents, webViewLink"
).execute()

print(f"Name: {file['name']}")
print(f"Size: {file.get('size', 'N/A')} bytes")
print(f"Modified: {file['modifiedTime']}")

Error Handling

Copyfrom googleapiclient.errors import HttpError

try:
    file = drive.files().get(fileId="file-id").execute()
except HttpError as e:
    if e.resp.status == 404:
        print("File not found")
    elif e.resp.status == 403:
        print("Access denied - check sharing permissions")
    else:
        print(f"API error: {e}")

Important Notes

• OAuth2 tokens authenticate as the user who authorized the app
• Folder IDs can be extracted from Google Drive URLs
• Google Docs/Sheets/Slides must be exported - they can't be downloaded directly
• Large files may require chunked downloads