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If you are getting ready to leave your university or school district, you no longer have to resort to clunky, manual downloads to save the pictures and videos tied to your educational account. Google is officially expanding its Google Takeout Transfer tool to include Google Photos.
This update allows users to seamlessly migrate their entire photo library, including photos, videos, and albums directly from their school-issued Workspace account to a personal Google account in one streamlined process.
How it works (and the one catch)
To start migrating your data, simply navigate to takeout.google.com/transfer. You will now see a new toggle specifically for Google Photos alongside the existing options for Drive and Gmail.
However, there is one very important detail to keep in mind: Storage limits apply. You must have sufficient storage space available on your personal Google account to accommodate the incoming transfer. If you’ve accumulated years of high-resolution photos and videos on an unlimited school account, you might need to upgrade your personal Google One storage plan before initiating the transfer.
A heads-up for Workspace Admins
If you are an IT administrator managing a Google Workspace For Education domain, note that this feature is OFF by default. You will need to explicitly enable it at the Organizational Unit (OU) level to allow your students to transfer their data out.
Additionally, Google noted that later this year, they will be introducing new Photos management and bulk-deletion capabilities within the admin console. These upcoming tools will give administrators better visibility into who has migrated their data and make it easier to proactively clear out old Photos content, freeing up critical pooled Drive storage for the institution.
The new transfer capability is available now for Education Fundamentals, Standard, and Plus domains.
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