Following this change, users will need to use the Google Photos interface to continue automatically backing up photos and videos. This means that if a new photo or video is saved to your computer and you want it automatically backed up to Google Photos, you’ll need to enable this feature through Google Photos’ settings. Users relying on the old Google Drive for desktop backup option will need to adjust their settings. Google began implementing this change on June 15, 2026. The company began providing notifications and information about this change to Google Drive for desktop users. A transition period was then established to allow users time to adapt to the new system. This old support will now end completely from August 10.
This change is especially important for those who store a large number of photos and videos on their laptops or desktops. Many users save photos taken with cameras or other devices other than their smartphones to their computers and then back them up to Google Photos. These users will now need to ensure that their important folders are correctly selected in Google Photos’ backup system. Importantly, this change does not mean that your old photos or videos in Google Drive will be suddenly deleted. Files already backed up to Google Photos will remain safe. The main impact of this change will be the automatic backup of new photos and videos. Therefore, users need not panic, but if they want continuous backup, they will need to switch to the new method.
Users will now need to back up photos and videos from their computers via the Google Photos website or its available desktop options. Go to the backup settings and select the required folders so that new photos and videos can be saved to Google Photos. If you back up photos using Google Drive for desktop, be sure to check your settings before August 10th. It’s best to shift the backup settings for the required folders to Google Photos. This way, you’ll be able to continue backing up your new photos and videos without interruption. There’s also no need to worry about old backups, as files already saved to Google Photos will not be affected by this change.