1. The icons of all files and folders are visible on your computer
2. A file is not downloaded to your device until you double click on its icon to open it
3. This takes up much less storage space on your computer
4. You can select specific files/folders to make available when you're offline (i.e. not connected to the internet)

1. The icons of all files and folders are visible on your computer
2. All files/folders are downloaded during installation and stored on your computer, whether you need them or not
3. This takes up a lot of storage space on your computer

NOTE: Many users have significant amounts of data in their My Drive in the cloud, which can easily fill or exceed the storage capacity of your hard drive and drastically reduce your computer’s performance. For this reason, we strongly recommend that you select the Stream files option.

2.4 Wait for the sync to finish

Whichever option you choose, the app will perform an initial synchronization sync all of the files and folders in your Google Drive to ensure they are all transferred to the Drive for desktop app. The more files and folders that you have, the longer this process will take. Users with a large number of files and folders may see this process run for 2 to 3 days.

NOTE: This initial sync takes much longer if you chose the Mirror Files option, since copies of all files and folders are being downloaded to your computer, not just their icons.

2.5 Remove Backup and Sync

When the installation or upgrade process is complete, you should be automatically prompted to remove Backup and Sync. Please choose agree and follow the uninstall prompts.

If you are not prompted, you may remove the Backup and Sync app manually. To do this, please follow the Uninstall apps instructions in the Install and uninstall apps from the internet or disc on Mac support article.

When the uninstall process is complete, the old Google Drive folder on your computer will be automatically renamed as Google Drive (not syncing):

Review the contents of the Google Drive (not syncing) folder to confirm that all files in it are now available in your My Drive in the cloud. Once you have confirmed this, you must manually delete the Google Drive (not syncing) folder by dragging it to the trash on your computer.