Introduction
In July 2023, SFUSD will be implementing storage caps on all SFUSD accounts. Below, you'll find answers to frequently asked questions and some strategies, tips, and recommendations for managing the stuff in your account.
Strategies, tips, & recommendations Link to this section
Five easy tips for a cleaner Google Drive
The biggest files in Google Drive are photos, videos, and PDFs, so those are the ones to focus on first. Files that are shared with you don't count towards your quota, so you really only have to worry about files you personally created or uploaded.
- Use Google's handy Storage tool to see your biggest files in Drive
This tool shows you a list of your files starting with the largest on the top, so you can easily take action on the most impactful files.
- Download personal photos or videos and then delete the files in your SFUSD Drive
Your SFUSD account should be used only for work purposes, so this is a great time to clean up and remove personal files, photos, and videos from your SFUSD Google Drive. After you download them, make sure to delete them and then empty your Google Drive trash so that they don't count towards your total anymore. You can also transfer ownership of personal files to your personal Gmail account.
- Move videos & screen recordings that you want to keep over to YouTube
YouTube storage is unlimited, so it's a great place for your videos and you can even set uploaded videos to private so that others can't see them. You'll need to download the videos from your Drive, upload them to YouTube, go back to Drive to delete the videos, and then empty your Google Drive trash.
- Delete "Untitled" files in your Drive
Many files called "Untitled document" or "Untitled presentation" are either empty or abandoned. Although Google Docs files and Google Slides files aren't taking up a lot of space in your Drive, they can add a lot of clutter. Deleting those files can make the search function work faster and can tidy up your space.
- Need more help? Sign up for an individual coaching appointment to get help with cleaning out your Drive.
Frequently Asked Questions
Link to this section
What will the storage caps be?
- Staff will have 100 GB of storage
- Students will have graduated levels of storage as they move through each major grade band:
- Elementary (K-5) = 5 GB
- Middle (6-8) = 10 GB
- High (9-12) = 15 GB
- Consultants (x.sfusd.edu) will have 5 GB
Why limit high school students to 15 GB?
It makes sense to cap high school students at 15 GB because 12th graders can transfer the stuff in their SFUSD account to a personal Gmail account at the end of their senior year. Personal (non-EDU) Gmail accounts are limited to 15 GB, so this cap ensures the students can take everything with them if they want.
What happens if I go over my cap?
Staff
If an employee goes over the 100 GB cap, they will still be able to sign into their account, view & download files, send & receive emails, and login to digital tools like Clever or EMPowerSF. However, the employee will not be able to edit, upload, or create new files in Google Drive until they delete enough files to be below the cap. If the employee uses Google Classroom, students won’t be able to submit assignments that have file attachments because those files can't be added to the employee's Drive.
Google will notify users who are approaching or exceeding the cap with warning banners in Gmail and Drive. You can always see your current storage total at https://drive.google.com/drive/quota.
Students
If students go over their cap, they can still sign into their account, login to SFUSD Chromebooks, view & download files, send & receive emails, and login to digital learning tools like Clever, Seesaw, and more. However, the student won't be able to edit, upload, or create new files in Google Drive until they delete enough files to be below the cap. Students over their cap also won't be able to create attachments for Google Classroom assignments.
Google will notify users who are approaching or exceeding the cap with warning banners in Gmail and Drive. You can always see your current storage total at https://drive.google.com/drive/quota.
What if I need more storage to do my job?
DoT understands that some roles and jobs, like a digital media teacher, might need more storage space than others. We have a couple different storage solutions for these specific instances.
If you are having issues with the 100 GB cap being too small for the work you do, we recommend submitting a Help Desk ticket so that we can find the best solution for your individual needs. When you submit your ticket, please share with us a brief explanation of your role and your storage needs so that we can pair you with the best solution.
Why are these limits going into effect? / I thought storage was unlimited for EDU accounts.
Google is requiring school districts to put storage caps in place on individual users’ accounts. We know this is a big change from the past because Google used to allow unlimited storage for EDU accounts. However, in July 2022, Google implemented a new storage policy for EDU accounts, and although DoT tried many things to get an exemption or additional free storage for our domain, Google ultimately told us “no”. SFUSD has to implement storage caps.
This page was last updated on April 6, 2023