Google Workspace

Overview

Quick Decision Tree

What do you need?
│
├── Google Drive
│   ├── Search files/folders → references/drive-search.md
│   │   └── Script: scripts/gdrive_search.py
│   │
│   ├── Upload files → references/drive-upload.md
│   │   └── Script: scripts/google_drive_upload.py
│   │
│   ├── Create folder structure → references/folder-structure.md
│   │   └── Script: scripts/gdrive_folder_structure.py
│   │
│   ├── Create client folder → references/create-folder.md
│   │   └── Script: scripts/create_client_folder.py
│   │
│   └── Search transcripts → references/transcript-search.md
│       └── Script: scripts/gdrive_transcript_search.py
│
├── Gmail
│   └── Search emails → references/gmail-search.md
│       └── Script: scripts/gmail_search.py
│
└── Calendar
    └── Search meetings → references/calendar-search.md
        └── Script: scripts/google_calendar_search.py

Environment Setup

Required Files

• client_secrets.json

  - From Google Cloud Console

• settings.yaml

  - PyDrive2 configuration

• mycreds.txt

  - Auto-generated OAuth tokens

First-Time Setup

1. Go to Google Cloud Console
2. Enable APIs: Drive, Gmail, Calendar, Docs
3. Create OAuth 2.0 credentials (Desktop app)
4. Download as

   client_secrets.json

5. Run any script - browser opens for OAuth consent

Common Usage

Search Client Folder

python scripts/gdrive_search.py folder "Microsoft"

Upload Files

python scripts/google_drive_upload.py --files *.png --folder "Clients/Acme/Assets"

Search Emails

python scripts/gmail_search.py --domain "microsoft.com" --days 14

Search Calendar

python scripts/google_calendar_search.py "Microsoft" --days-back 30

OAuth Scopes

drive

spreadsheets

documents

gmail.readonly

calendar.readonly

Cost

Security Notes

Credential Handling

• client_secrets.json

  - OAuth app credentials (never commit to git)

• mycreds.txt

  - User OAuth tokens (never commit to git, add to .gitignore)

• settings.yaml

  - PyDrive2 config (can be committed, no secrets)
• Tokens auto-refresh; revoke via Google Account settings if compromised
• Never share OAuth credentials between users/machines

Data Privacy

• Access to user's personal Google Drive, Gmail, and Calendar
• Files may contain confidential business information
• Email content is highly sensitive - minimize storage
• Calendar events may contain private meeting details
• Shared Drive access respects original permissions

Access Scopes

• Request minimum required scopes:

  • drive

    - Full Drive access (read/write)

  • drive.readonly

    - Read-only Drive access (preferred when possible)

  • spreadsheets

    - Google Sheets access

  • documents

    - Google Docs access

  • gmail.readonly

    - Read-only email access

  • calendar.readonly

    - Read-only calendar access
• Review/revoke access: https://myaccount.google.com/permissions

Compliance Considerations

• OAuth Consent: Users explicitly consent to access scopes
• GDPR: Google Workspace data contains EU user PII
• Data Residency: Google Workspace may have data residency requirements
• Shared Drives: Respect organizational sharing policies
• Audit Trail: Google Admin Console tracks API access
• Credential Security: Store

  client_secrets.json

  securely, not in repos

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue: OAuth token expired

• Delete

  mycreds.txt

  file
• Re-run any script to trigger fresh OAuth flow
• Complete the browser authorization
• New

  mycreds.txt

  will be created automatically

Issue: File not found

• Verify file ID from the Google Drive URL
• Check file sharing permissions
• Ensure OAuth user has access to the file
• Try accessing file directly in browser first

Issue: Quota exceeded

• Wait 24 hours for quota reset
• Create a new Google Cloud project with fresh quota
• Implement exponential backoff in scripts
• Reduce frequency of API calls

Issue: settings.yaml missing

• Copy from template:

  cp settings.yaml.example settings.yaml

• Ensure

  client_secrets.json

  path is correct in settings
• Verify save_credentials_backend is set to "file"
• Check settings.yaml is in the script's working directory

Issue: client_secrets.json invalid

• Re-download from Google Cloud Console
• Ensure "Desktop app" type was selected when creating credentials
• Check JSON format is valid
• Verify redirect URIs are configured for local auth

Issue: Scope access denied

• Delete

  mycreds.txt

  to reset OAuth session
• Re-authenticate and accept all requested scopes
• Verify scopes in

  settings.yaml

  match script requirements
• Check Google Cloud Console for scope restrictions

Resources

• references/drive-search.md - Search files and folders
• references/drive-upload.md - Upload files to Drive
• references/folder-structure.md - Create folder hierarchies
• references/create-folder.md - Create client folders
• references/transcript-search.md - Search transcript files
• references/gmail-search.md - Search Gmail
• references/calendar-search.md - Search calendar meetings

Integration Patterns

Drive to Video Production

1. Search Drive for video folder with lesson files
2. Download videos via video-production scripts
3. Stitch videos with title slides and upload final output

Templates to Content

1. Load template from Drive (proposal, report format)
2. Generate content via content-generation
3. Create new Google Doc with formatted content

Calendar to Transcripts

1. Search calendar for meetings with specific client
2. Get meeting dates and titles
3. Search transcript-search for matching recordings