--- title: How to Give Each User a Private Google Drive Folder description: "Do you want every client, student or team member to have their own Google Drive folder that only they can see on your website? You can easily do this with **DriveHub**. With **Private Folders**, DriveHub links a Google Drive folder…" url: "https://sovlix.com/docs/how-to-give-each-user-a-private-google-drive-folder/" updated: "2026-10-07" category: DriveHub / Features --- # How to Give Each User a Private Google Drive Folder Do you want every client, student or team member to have their own Google Drive folder that only they can see on your website? You can easily do this with **DriveHub**. With **Private Folders**, DriveHub links a Google Drive folder to each WordPress user. It can create the folders for you when people sign up, or you can link folders by hand. Then one module on one page shows every logged-in user their own files, and nobody else's. **Note:** This needs DriveHub Pro. Here is an easy, step-by-step guide to help you set it all up! ## Step 1: Install DriveHub and Connect Google Drive First, make sure DriveHub and DriveHub Pro are installed and your Google account is connected: - From your WordPress admin, click on **Plugins** > **Add New**. - Search for **DriveHub**, click **Install** and then **Activate**. - Install and activate **DriveHub Pro** as well. Our guide on [how to install and activate DriveHub Pro](https://sovlix.com/docs/how-to-install-and-activate-drivehub-pro/) shows each step. - Follow the setup screen to add your Google account. [![Search for DriveHub in Add Plugins, then click Install Now and Activate](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-00-install-drivehub.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-00-install-drivehub.webp) Read our [step by step setup guide](https://sovlix.com/docs/drivehub-manual-google-drive-connection-setup-guide/) to avoid any confusion. ## Step 2: Open the Private Folders Settings - Go to **DriveHub** > **Settings** from your WP-Admin. - Click on **Private Folders** under **Features** in the settings menu. [![Opening the Private Folders tab in DriveHub settings](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-01-open-private-folders.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-01-open-private-folders.webp) ## Step 3: Create Folders for New Users Automatically If you want DriveHub to make a folder for each person who registers on your site: - Turn on **Auto-Create Folder for New Users**. - Under **Filter User Roles**, click **+ Add Role** and pick the roles that should get a folder, for example **Subscriber**. Click the small **×** on a role to take it off. [![Auto-Create Folder for New Users and Filter User Roles](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-02-auto-create.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-02-auto-create.webp) Nothing else on this screen runs until **Auto-Create Folder for New Users** is on. Leave **Filter User Roles** empty to give a folder to every new user. ## Step 4: Choose the Folder Name and Location In the **Name and location** section, you decide what each folder is called and where it lives in your Drive: - **Folder Name Template:** Type how each folder should be named. Click any tag under **Available dynamic placeholder tags** to add it, for example `%display_name% (%user_email%)`. The **Preview** line shows what a real folder name will look like. - **User Tags:** `%user_login%`, `%user_email%`, `%first_name%`, `%last_name%`, `%display_name%`, `%user_id%`, `%user_role%` and `%user_meta_{key}%`. - **System Tags:** `%date%`, `%time%` and `%unique_id%`. [![The Folder Name Template with its preview and placeholder tags](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-03-name-template.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-03-name-template.webp) - **Parent Folder:** Click **Select Parent Folder**, pick a folder such as **Client Uploads** in the window and click **Confirm Selection**. Every new private folder is created inside it. - **Template Folder:** Click **Select Template Folder** and pick a folder that holds your welcome files, like **Onboarding Pack.pdf**. Its files and subfolders are copied into each new private folder, so everyone starts with the same welcome files. [![The Parent Folder and Template Folder settings](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-04-parent-template.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-04-parent-template.webp) **Tip:** Use a parent folder. Without one, every private folder lands in the top level of your Drive. ## Step 5: Decide on Sharing and Cleanup Here, you set a few last options: - **Share Folder with User:** Turn this on to share each folder with the user's email in Google Drive, so they can open it in their own Drive too. - **Merge Folders:** Keep this on to reuse a folder that already has the same name, instead of making a duplicate. - **Private Folders in Admin Dashboard:** Turn this on to manage private folders from the dashboard. It also adds the **Members' Files** tab you'll use in Step 7. - **Delete Private Folders on User Delete:** Turn this on to delete a user's private Google Drive folder when you delete their WordPress account. Leave it off if you want to keep their files. [![Turning on Private Folders in Admin Dashboard](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-05-access-cleanup.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-05-access-cleanup.webp) ## Step 6: Save Your Changes - Click on **Save changes** in the bar at the bottom of the screen. [![The Save changes button in the bar at the bottom of the screen](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-06-save-changes.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-06-save-changes.webp) Don't forget to save; the new settings only apply after you click **Save changes**. ## Step 7: Link Folders to Existing Users (Members' Files Tab) Users who signed up before you turned this on don't have a folder yet. You can link one by hand: - Go to **DriveHub** > **File Browser**. - Click on the **Members' Files** tab. - Find the person with the **Search name or email…** box. You can also filter the list by folder status (**Everyone**, **Assigned**, **No folder**) or by role, and sort it. [![The Members' Files tab in the File Browser](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-07-members-files-tab.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-07-members-files-tab.webp) - Click on **Assign folder** next to their name. - Tick their folder in the **Select folder** window and click **Confirm Selection**. [![Choosing a folder in the Select folder window](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-08-assign-folder.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-08-assign-folder.webp) The folder name now shows in the **Assigned folder** column. To change it later, click the three-dot menu at the end of the row and choose **Open in Drive**, **Change folder** or **Remove folder**. Removing only unlinks the folder; nothing is deleted from Google Drive. **Many users at once?** Tick the boxes next to their names and click **Create N folders** in the bar that appears. DriveHub makes a folder for each of them using your settings from Step 4. With a mix of people selected, you'll also see **Remove N folders**. [![Creating folders for three selected members at once](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-09-bulk-create.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-09-bulk-create.webp) **Note:** If someone else should link folders for you, give them the **Members' Files tab** in **Settings** > **User Access**. Our guide on [how to let other users use DriveHub in the dashboard](https://sovlix.com/docs/how-to-let-other-users-use-drivehub-in-the-dashboard/) shows how. ## Step 8: Show Each User Their Own Folder on Your Site Now let's put the private folders on a page. Any module type works, for example a [File Browser](https://sovlix.com/docs/how-to-add-a-google-drive-file-browser-to-your-website/), a [List](https://sovlix.com/docs/how-to-show-a-list-of-google-drive-files-with-download-buttons/) or a [File Uploader](https://sovlix.com/docs/how-to-let-visitors-upload-files-to-google-drive/): - Go to **DriveHub** > **Modules** and open your module, or click on **Add module** to make a new one. - On the **Source** step, turn on **Use Private Files**. - Turn on **Create Private Folder** if you want DriveHub to make a folder for anyone who opens the page and doesn't have one yet. You can give this module its own folder settings, or leave them empty to use the ones from Step 4: - **Folder Name Template:** type a name such as `%user_login% (%user_email%)`, or leave it empty. - **Parent Folder:** click **Select Parent Folder**. Your Google Drive opens in a window. Tick a folder, for example **Client Uploads**, and click **Confirm Selection**. [![Choosing Client Uploads in the Select Parent Folder window](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-13-module-pick-parent.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-13-module-pick-parent.webp) - **Template Folder:** click **Select Template Folder** and pick a folder with your welcome files the same way. The folder you picked now shows next to the button, which changes to **Change Parent Folder**. Click the small **x** on the folder to clear it again. [![Use Private Files and Create Private Folder with Client Uploads as the parent folder](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-10-module-use-private.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-10-module-use-private.webp) Sharing, merging and which roles get a folder still come from your settings in Steps 3 and 5. - Click on **Permissions** on the left and set **Display For** to **Logged In**, so visitors who aren't signed in see a login screen instead of an empty module. - Click on **Save module** (or **Save changes**), then add the module to a page with **Embed** > **Copy shortcode**. [![Display For set to Logged In](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-11-display-logged-in.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-11-display-logged-in.webp) And that's it! When a user logs in and opens the page, they see only the files in their own private folder: [![A logged-in member seeing only the files in their own private folder](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-12-front-end-private.webp)](https://sovlix.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/drivehub-private-folders-12-front-end-private.webp) If a brand-new folder doesn't show its files right away, refreshing the page shows them. ## Benefits of Private Folders - **One page for everyone:** A single module shows each user their own files. - **Hands-free setup:** Folders are made and named for new users when they register. - **Same start for all:** A template folder gives everyone the same welcome files. - **Safe by design:** Users never see each other's folders. - **Easy to manage:** Link, change or remove folders from the Members' Files tab. With **DriveHub**, giving every user their own private Google Drive space takes just a few minutes.