How to bypass Google Drive download limit for shared files

If the download has been stopped by Google Drive saying Sorry you can’t view or download this file at this time, you can bypass Google Drive download limit for shared files, which stays 24 hours computing the recent activity. When you try to download a file, shared by someone, from Google Drive, you may come across this error message. It appears because of the Google Drive sharing limit, which is still not disclosed by the officials. However, it is possible to circumvent this download or sharing quota and we will walk you through the steps in this article.

Google Drive may show two similar error messages and they are almost the same. First, it may display something related to Google Drive quota exceeded. Second, Sorry, you can’t view or download this file at this time. The solution is the same for either error message.

But, do you know why Google Drive shows such a message instead of giving you the option to download files directly? No? Okay, you are not alone in this case.

What Google Drive download limit means

Let’s assume that you need to share a file online with some people and the file is quite big in size (most probably in GB). Or, you are sharing a file on your website or social media account. For obvious reasons, people are downloading your file from your Google Drive storage. But, the catch is that Google Drive doesn’t offer unlimited data transfer.

Whenever it detects an unusual amount of bandwidth consumption in your Google Drive account, it puts a stopper on the download limit. As a result, users get the error message saying “Too many users have viewed or downloaded this file recently.” and ask them to try after 24 hours.

Although the door gets opened after 24 hours, it is quite risky for you to download the file from the respective account. Since it already got caught in Google’s eye, you, as the owner, also should remove the file from your account as well. Otherwise, it may lead you to the permanent ban as well.

For your information, this download limit for Google Drive file sharing is applied to every user irrespective of being a regular, Google GSuite or Google Apps subscriber. The bottom line is that Google doesn’t like to have favoritism on any user. Although there is no public statement on this sharing quota of Google Drive, the best guess is that it is happening to prevent piracy.

How to bypass Google Drive download limit

Steps to bypass Google Drive download limit for shared files:

1. Sign in to Google Drive account after opening the file link.
2. Replace the “uc” with “open” in the file URL.
3. Reload the page and bypass download limit.
4. Click the Add to My Drive icon.
5. Select the same option again to confirm.
6. Open your Google Drive account and right-click on the added file.
7. Select Make a copy option from the context menu.
8. Select the Download option to download the file to your PC.

It will make a copy of the file in your Google Drive storage, and then, you can download the file from your account to your PC. Now, let’s delve into the steps in detail so that you can comprehend them from top to bottom.

At first, you need to sign in to your Google Drive account in your browser and open the file link that you want to download. The default file URL should look something like this-

https://drive.google.com/uc?id=123456789abcd

You need to replace the “uc” with “open” in the file URL. It will give you more options. However, the URL depends on the file you are about to download. In case, you are getting an “open” text in the URL, there is no need to make any change.

Once, you reload the page in your browser, it will show you a preview of the file with some options on the top. From there, click the “Add to My Drive” icon, which looks like a Google Drive logo.

Now, you should find the file in the root directory of your Google Drive storage. Although it is linked to your Google Drive account, it is still not saved in your storage. For that, right-click on the file, and select the “Make a copy” option in the context menu.

There is another option called “Download,” which lets you download the file to your local storage or computer.

After doing the last step, you would be able to access the file separately. For your information, these steps will also allow you to download large files from Google Drive when the Google Drive download limit is exceeded.

How do I fix error exceeded quota in Google Drive

If you are the owner of a file and people are reporting to you about the quota exceeded issue, here is a simple workaround that might fix your problem.

At first, you need to stop sharing the file that is causing all the problems. After that, right-click on the file, and select the “Make a copy” option, which will create a duplicate file in your storage. Now, rename it and select a completely different name. After that, create a sharable link, and share it with your followers or recipients.

From now onwards, you should not get any issue. However, this solution is temporary since Google has already caught you red-handed. Therefore, you should use this trick only when it is very urgent to share an important file with someone for educational purposes.

Final word

If you are getting Download quota exceeded for this file, si you can’t download it at this time or any other error message, you can bypass the Google Drive download limit and get the file on your computer using these aforementioned steps.

Hope they will help!