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👁️ Google Drive Watch

Polls a Google Drive folder at intervals and fires a workflow run whenever a new file appears. Requires Google OAuth credentials configured in Settings → Integrations.

Category: Triggers · Type identifier: google_drive_watch

Overview

Many business processes are built around file drops: a partner uploads a report to a shared folder, a team member saves an invoice, or an automated system exports a CSV. The Google Drive Watch trigger turns these manual file drops into automatic workflow triggers — as soon as a new file appears in the watched folder, Flusso kicks off your workflow with the file details ready to use.

Flusso uses polling to detect new files. At the interval you configure (defaulting to every 5 minutes), Flusso checks the folder for files that have appeared since the last check. When one or more new files are found, a separate workflow run is started for each new file. If no new files are found, nothing happens until the next poll.

This trigger requires your Google account to be connected in Flusso. Navigate to Settings → Integrations and connect your Google account before configuring this trigger. Once connected, credentials are stored securely and reused across all Google Drive workflows.

Configuration

Field	Status	Description
Credential	Required	Google account credential from Settings → Integrations.
Folder ID	Required	The Google Drive folder ID to watch. Find it in the URL when browsing to the folder: `https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/{FOLDER_ID}`
Poll Interval	Optional	How often to check for new files, in minutes. Default: 5. Minimum: 1.
File Type Filter	Optional	Comma-separated MIME types to watch for, e.g. `application/pdf,image/jpeg`. Leave blank to watch all file types.

Output Data

Each workflow run triggered by this node receives the following fields describing the newly detected file.

Field	Type	Description
`file.id`	string	Google Drive file ID
`file.name`	string	File name including extension
`file.mime_type`	string	MIME type of the file
`file.size`	number	File size in bytes
`file.created_at`	string	ISO 8601 creation timestamp
`file.web_url`	string	URL to open the file in Google Drive

{{ trigger.output.file.id }} {{ trigger.output.file.name }} {{ trigger.output.file.mime_type }} {{ trigger.output.file.size }} {{ trigger.output.file.created_at }} {{ trigger.output.file.web_url }}

Example Usage

Watch a folder for new PDF invoices, then download and process them.

Add a Google Drive Watch trigger. Set the Folder ID to the ID of your invoices folder, set Poll Interval to 5, and set File Type Filter to application/pdf.
Add a Google Drive read node. Pass {{ trigger.output.file.id }} as the file ID to download the detected PDF.
Add a Schema Extractor node to pull structured data from the invoice: vendor name, invoice number, total amount, and due date.
Add an HTTP Request node to POST the extracted data to your accounting system's API.

Tips & Notes

Polling is not instant. Files are detected at the next poll cycle, not the moment they are uploaded. With the default 5-minute interval, there can be up to a 5-minute delay between upload and workflow execution.
One run per file. If three new files appear between two polls, Flusso starts three separate workflow runs — one for each file.
Shared folders are supported. You can watch folders shared with your Google account as long as your account has read access.
Reconnect if Google access expires. Google OAuth tokens can expire or be revoked. If the trigger stops firing, go to Settings → Integrations and reconnect your account.
Minimum poll interval is 1 minute. Setting a shorter interval may result in hitting Google Drive API rate limits.

Related Nodes

Dropbox Watch — the equivalent trigger for Dropbox folders.
Local File Watch — watch a directory on the server filesystem.
HTTP Request — call external APIs after processing a file.