Pooled storage and shared drives to Business Starter. How to set it up

Google updating the storage model in Business Starter from per-user storage to pooled storage.

Pooled storage provides a more simple and flexible way to manage storage, as all storage is shared across the organization, removing the need to manage it on a per-user basis.

With pooled storage, admins also have more tools to monitor how storage is used across their organization.

i New customers signing up for Business Starter will have pooled storage; existing Business Starter customers will transition to pooled storage over the coming months.

As an added benefit of pooled storage, organizations with Business Starter will soon gain access to shared drives. Users will be able to create shared drives and add members, files, and folders. Please note that certain admin-level and security controls—like the ability to control access to the items in a shared drive—will not be included in shared drives for Business Starter.

Pooled storage. Why it’s important

Pooled storage is a simple and flexible model for sharing storage across an organization, and it enables admins to more easily manage storage across their organization.

Part of empowering Google Workspace customers to do their best work means reducing the friction around file sharing and collaboration. Shared drives are a key tool for collaboration—users can store, search, and access their team's files instantly.

Additionally, they offer benefits such as:

• Easy discoverability: Less time spent requesting access to files and searching for relevant documents with all of your team’s files in one place.
• Files are forever: All content stays put — even when collaborators or team members leave, your content won’t.
• Easy collaboration: Every member of a shared drive can explore and collaborate in the same files. You can also add users outside your team or organization.
• Accessible anywhere: Regardless of location or device, you can always access the files you need most.

This update impacts Google Workspace Business Starter customers.

If you need more storage for your organization, consider purchasing additional pooled storage or upgrading your Google Workspace edition to a plan with more storage.

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