Google Drive old account ghost folder (file provider)

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Level 1

4 points

Google Drive old account ghost folder (file provider)

Hello everyone,

I am having a problem with an old Google Drive account that keeps coming back - let's call it "myoldaccount@formercompany.com".

I no longer have access to this Google account (former company has disabled it since I don't work for them anymore) so I am unable to log in to the account in order to 'Disconnect' it properly from within the Google Drive app, which appears to be the proper way to de-register accounts.

I removed Google Drive from the Applications folder, then removed all Google references from the root Library and my user Library (Application Support, Caches, CloudStorage, Containers, Group Containers, LaunchAgents, Preferences), and of course removed the "~/Library/CloudStorage/GoogleDrive-myoldaccount@formercompany.com" directory.

When I reinstall Google Drive, the old Google Drive account directory is recreated to ~/Library/CloudStorage before I even log in to any accounts, and without even launching it once !

The Google Drive support could not help since they claim it is a "Cloud Storage" related problem. They highly suggest contacting Apple support to delete it - so here I am :)

I found someone that encountered the same problem here but left without solution : File Provider / Google Drive undeletable … - Apple Community

Best regards,

MacBook Pro 16″

Posted on May 6, 2024 12:23 PM

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Answer 1

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Top-ranking reply

niark567 Author

Level 1

4 points

May 6, 2024 1:06 PM in response to Tesserax

[SOLVED]

Wow, seems I finally found something working :)

The problem was indeed on the FileProvider side.

Steps to get rid of the ghost(s) account(s) :

1. disconnect all Google Drive accounts in the Google Drive app

2. uninstall Google Drive

3. remove Google Drive related folders in ~/Library/CloudStorage/GoogleDrive-{yourgoogleaccount@gmail.com}

4. remove ~/Library/Application Support/FileProvider/com.google.drivefs.fpext

It is this last directory seems to keep track of "ghost" folders... (one "gdrive-{numbers}" per account)

Let me know if it works for someone else :)

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Answer 2

Extrawdw

Level 1

19 points

May 6, 2024 3:17 PM in response to niark567

First uninstall Google Drive, then delete following Google Drive data files/folders:

~/Library/Application Support/Google/DriveFS
~/Library/Group Containers/EQHXZ8M8AV.group.com.google.drivefs
~/Library/Preferences/com.google.drivefs.settings.plist

and then reinstall.

To locate those folders, see Go directly to a specific folder on Mac - Apple Support

It should clear any Google Drive account data.

Note that before doing this, make sure all your important files on Google Drive folder are synced.

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Answer 3

Tesserax

Level 10

155,240 points

May 6, 2024 12:35 PM in response to niark567

niark567 wrote:

The Google Drive support could not help since they claim it is a "Cloud Storage" related problem. They highly suggest contacting Apple support to delete it - so here I am :)

Interesting as Google Drive is a "Cloud Storage" offering from Google. Not sure how Apple can delete a Google account. Sounds like they are "passing the ball" on this one.

Secondly, this is NOT Apple Support. We are just fellow Apple-product users here trying to help others. To contact Apple Support directly, just click on the "Support" link on the lower left-hand side of this forum's web page.

Alternately, if someone else here has a solution for you, you can just wait to see if you get a reply.

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Answer 4

niark567 Author

Level 1

4 points

May 6, 2024 12:43 PM in response to Tesserax

Hi Tesserax, thanks for your clarification,

No Google Drive support didn't told me to ask Apple delete my Google Account, but remove it from the Cloud Storage that seems to refer to the Google Drive account and likely causes the problem.

I did put my issue here since it seems I am not the only one to encounter this one.

I hope someone already has a solution to share and I will contact the Apple Support also.

In any case, I will share one that solves my problem to this community if we found one !

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Answer 5

Tesserax

Level 10

155,240 points

May 6, 2024 12:48 PM in response to niark567

You're very welcome! I'm sorry that I couldn't provide you with a solution ...

... and yes, please do post back the solution when you get it. I'm sure it will help others with this particular issue.

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