How to Transfer your Google Drive to a Personal Account

This guide explains how to move Google Drive files from your school account to a personal Google account. This is essential for teachers and students exiting Conroe ISD who wish to keep their work.

Important: You can only transfer items that you are the OWNER of. Any files shared with you by others will not be transferred.

Before You Begin:

Time Sensitive: This process can take hours or even days depending on the amount of data. Please start this well ahead of your last day.
Storage Check: If using Option 1, ensure your personal account has enough free storage space to accept the transferred files.

Option 1: The Transfer Tool (Automated)

This is the best method for moving large amounts of data. It copies your content directly to another Google account.

Step 1: Start the Transfer

Click the link to Start Transfer (typically accessed via your Google Account settings or takeout.google.com/transfer).

Step 2: Enter Destination

Enter the email address of your Destination Google Account (must be a personal @gmail.com account).
Select Send Code.

Step 3: Verify Your Account

Check your personal email inbox for a confirmation code.
Enter the confirmation code into the school account window to verify your identity.

Step 4: Select Content

Toggle the switch to select Drive (and Email if desired).
Select Start Transfer.

Option 2: Download (Manual Selection)

Use this method if you do not want to take everything, but prefer to "pick and choose" specific files or folders.

Note: This is not recommended for transferring very large amounts of data.

Step 1: Download the Files

Log in to your school Google Drive.
Select the specific file or folder you wish to keep.
Right-click on the item and select Download.
Save the file to your personal computer or a USB flash drive.

Step 2: Unzip and Restore

When you download folders, Google compresses them into a .zip file. You must unzip them to use them.

Locate the downloaded file on your computer.
Right-click the file and select Extract All or Unzip.
The folder will open, and your files will be accessible.

Tip: If you upload these files back into a personal Google Drive, they will convert back into editable Google formats (Docs, Sheets, Slides, etc.).

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