Quick Access and Google Drive for Desktop

Download Link: https://dl.google.com/drive-file-stream/GoogleDriveSetup.exe

You’re not alone—this is a known quirk with Google Drive for Desktop and Windows Quick Access (Quick Launch) in File Explorer. When you pin Google Drive to Quick Access, it may not persist after a reboot. This is often due to how Google Drive mounts the virtual drive and how Windows handles Quick Access pins.

Here’s how to make it stick reliably:


✅ METHOD 1: Use the Real Path Instead of the Mounted Drive

  1. Don’t pin the mounted “G:” drive (or whatever letter Google Drive uses).
  2. Instead, navigate to the real path, which is usually: C:\Users\<YourUsername>\Google Drive or sometimes: C:\Users\<YourUsername>\My Drive
  3. Right-click that folder and choose “Pin to Quick Access”.
  4. Reboot and check.

Why this works:

The mounted drive (like G:) may not be initialized early enough during boot for Quick Access to persist the pin. The local folder path is stable and initializes earlier.


✅ METHOD 2: Use a Symbolic Link (if Method 1 doesn’t work)

  1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator.
  2. Run: mklink /D "%USERPROFILE%\GoogleDriveLink" "G:\My Drive" (Adjust "G:\My Drive" if your drive letter or path is different.)
  3. This creates a symlink folder inside your user folder.
  4. Now pin the GoogleDriveLink folder to Quick Access.

This makes Windows think it’s a local folder, so it retains the Quick Access pin across reboots.


✅ METHOD 3: Re-pin After Boot with Script (Less Ideal)

If all else fails, you can write a small PowerShell script to re-pin the folder after boot. This is more of a workaround than a fix.


📌 Extra Tips

  • Avoid pinning network/mounted drives directly.
  • Make sure Google Drive loads at startup, or pins may fail silently.
  • Try unpinning any broken Google Drive links before repinning.