G Suite Files in the Dropbox API

Dropbox now supports Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides files through its API, following the integration announcement for creating, opening, and editing these file types within Dropbox. Developers can manage these files using new and extended endpoints. Here is what changed.

Metadata and Download Behavior

G Suite files appear in files/list_folder results and support standard operations like move, rename, delete, previews, and thumbnails. However, since they are online-only documents, they cannot be downloaded directly as binaries.

{
    "entries": [
        {
            ".tag": "file",
            "name": "Prime_Numbers.gsheet",
            "id": "id:a4ayc_80_OEAAAAAAAAAXw",
            "client_modified": "2015-05-12T15:50:38Z",
            "server_modified": "2015-05-12T15:50:38Z",
            "rev": "a1c10ce0dd78",
            "size": 7212,
            "path_lower": "/homework/math/prime_numbers.gsheet",
            "path_display": "/Homework/math/Prime_Numbers.gsheet",
            "is_downloadable": false,
            "export_info": {
                "exports_as": "xlsx"
            },
            ...
        }
    ...
}

The new is_downloadable flag tells you whether files/download will return the binary file. When the flag is false, any attempt to call download-related endpoints produces an unsupported_file exception. Instead, you can use the new files/export endpoint to convert such files into an appropriate format, as specified by the file's export_info metadata.

If you prefer not to get non-downloadable files in files/list_folder responses, set include_non_downloadable_files to false. The parameter defaults to true.

Previously, all shared links granted read-only access. Some file types, starting with G Suite documents, now support link-based editing as well. The shared links API has been updated with a link_access_level parameter that determines whether a link is read-only or editable. It can be returned by /sharing/list_shared_links and configured with /sharing/create_shared_link_with_settings. If not specified, link_access_level defaults to viewer.

{
  ....
  "url": "https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/r0xdzphoh99eef2fazh8q/new%20gsheet.gsheet?dl=0&rlkey=yil8l6grehzwi8tfkg5sbiqoe",
  "id": "id:0uVLZNU2SdAAAAAAAAAQ7w",
  "name": "new gsheet.gsheet",
  "path_lower": "/new gsheet.gsheet",
  "link_permissions": {
    "link_access_level": {
      ".tag": "viewer"
    }
    "effective_audience": {
      ".tag": "public"
    }
  }
}

With editable links, a single file may have multiple links—one for viewing and one for editing. Combining the viewer access level with the audience parameter lets you create a public view-only link while sharing an editable link only with your team.

Several behaviors are worth noting:

  • /sharing/list_shared_links may not return G Suite links if no path is specified.
  • Password and expiration settings are not supported for G Suite shared links; setting them returns an invalid_settings error.
  • These links report effective_audience instead of resolve_visibility to indicate the actual visibility. This parameter will eventually become the standard for all links.
  • Shared links were historically unique per creator and content. With some types of G Suite files, links may become content-specific, meaning all users share the same link to the content.

Testing and Availability

To test G Suite file support, a Dropbox Business admin needs to enable G Suite access in the Dropbox Admin Console. Questions and feedback can be directed to the Dropbox developer team.