DDM HelpGoogle Drive
With the Google Drive system type, DDM fetches the files from one folder in Google Drive – in a person's „My Drive" or in a shared drive – including its sub-folders, and keeps them up to date. Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drawings arrive as PDF.
DDM signs in with a service account – a Google account for programs, not for people. You share the folder with this service account as you would with a colleague, and DDM reads it. Nobody has to sign in to Google in DDM.
1. Create a service account
This is done in the Google Cloud console with an account that may manage projects there.
Choose a project
At the top, choose a project or create one, e.g. ddm-import.
Enable the Google Drive API
Go to APIs & Services › Library, search for Google Drive API and click Enable.
Create the service account
Go to IAM & Admin › Service accounts › Create service account. Give it a name, e.g. ddm-import. It needs no roles in the project – skip those steps and click Done.
Note the service account's e-mail address, e.g. ddm-import@ddm-import.iam.gserviceaccount.com.
Download a key
Open the service account, go to Keys › Add key › Create new key, choose JSON and click Create. Your browser downloads a file – this is the key you will paste into DDM shortly.
2. Share the folder
This is the step most often missed: the service account sees nothing that has not been shared with it.
- A folder in „My Drive": in Google Drive, right-click the folder › Share › enter the service account's e-mail address › role Viewer › Send. You can switch off the notification – the service account does not read e-mails.
- A shared drive: add the service account as a member with the Viewer role (in the shared drive › Manage members).
Then copy the folder's address from the browser's address bar, e.g. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1AbCdEfGh….
3. Add the source in DDM
Under Settings › External sources, add a source with New source, give it a name and choose Google Drive as the System type.
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Folder (id or link) | The folder's address from the browser – or just the ID after it, 1AbCdEfGh…. Either works |
| Service account key (JSON) | The entire content of the downloaded JSON file – open it in a text editor, select everything and paste it. It starts with { "type": "service_account". Stored encrypted, never shown again |
| Act on behalf of (optional) | Leave it empty – unless you use domain-wide delegation |
"installed" or "web") is not a service account key and is refused. It must be the file from Service accounts › Keys.4. Test the connection
Click Test connection. DDM signs in to Google as the service account and opens the folder.
| Message | What to do |
|---|---|
| Connected — “…” is readable. | All good – DDM names the folder it found. |
| The folder or the service account key is still missing. | One of the two has not been entered yet. |
| The service account key cannot be read — please paste the whole content of the JSON file. | The key is incomplete or not a service account key. Paste the whole content of the JSON file again. |
| Google rejected the service account — check the key, whether the Google Drive API is enabled and, with “Act on behalf of”, the domain-wide delegation. | Google refused the service account: the key was deleted in the Cloud console, the Google Drive API is not enabled in the project, or with Act on behalf of the domain-wide delegation is missing. |
| The folder is not readable — is it shared with the service account, and is the ID that of a folder? | The folder is not shared with the service account, the ID is wrong, or it belongs to a file rather than a folder. |
| The address does not answer — check the URL, the port and the firewall. | The DDM server cannot reach Google – allow outgoing connections to oauth2.googleapis.com and www.googleapis.com. |
5. Import scope and sync
Under Import scope, decide how folders become categories and which files count, sync once with Sync now and switch on Source active – see Overview.
What applies to Google Drive:
- DDM takes over all files in the folder and its sub-folders. Files in the bin do not count.
- Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drawings arrive as PDF;
.pdfis added to the name. If somebody changes the document in Google, the next sync brings a new PDF as a new version. - Forms, Sites, Shortcuts and other Google-specific types are skipped.
- A file is recognised by its file ID. If you rename it in Drive or move it within the shared folder, it remains the same document in DDM; the sync does not change its category.
- For the File filter, the name counts as it arrives in DDM – so a Google Doc with
.pdfat the end.
Acting on behalf of a person
Instead of sharing folders one by one, in a Google Workspace organisation the service account can read everything one particular person sees – with domain-wide delegation. This needs a super admin of your Google Workspace.
- Open the key file and note the
client_id– a long number. - In the Google Admin console: Security › Access and data control › API controls › Manage Domain Wide Delegation › Add new.
- Client ID: the
client_id. OAuth scopes:https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.readonly. Authorize. - In DDM, enter the person's e-mail address under Act on behalf of (optional), e.g.
marketing@company.com.
DDM then reads as this person – the folder must be visible to them, not to the service account. It can take a few minutes until the delegation takes effect.