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How to Download View Only Videos in Google Drive

Download View Only Videos in Google Drive

In this guide, we will show you the steps to download view only videos and files from Google Drive. This file-hosting service from the Silicon Valley giant allows you to easily share files and make them available to general audiences with ease. You can assign the role of Viewer, Commentor, or Editor to your audiences and they will be given the rights accordingly. For example, if you choose a user as an Editor, then they can easily download the file and make changes to it as well.

However, things are a tad bit different with Viewer and Commentor. Although by default they too have been given the option to download the file, but the uploader can easily revoke this permission as and when they require. When that happens, those sets od users can only view that file but will not be able to download it or make changes to it.

This might lead to inconvenience for some users as they usually like to download a file so that they can watch/use it later as and when required, and more importantly in an offline mode. But when the aforementioned restriction is put in place, they are out of luck. Or is that really the case? Well, turns out you can still download the view only videos and files from Google Drive using a nifty method. So without any further ado, let’s make you aware of the steps to get this job done.

How to Download View Only Videos in Google Drive

YouTube video

Do note that this guide and video are only for educational purposes and should not be used for any malicious intent. Droidwin will not be held responsible if this guide and/or video leads to any negative consequences.

  1. First and foremost, make sure that the browser window is set to Allow Cookies.Download View Only Videos in Google Drive
  2. I have uploaded a video file to Google Drive and set it to View Only. The URL of the file is:

    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FuOZCQlhe6UISaXUBLrwjkGuPCgK6aCj/view?usp=sharing
  3. As is evident from the below screenshot, there is no option to download the file. Moreover, I’m browsing as a guest.
  4. Now, open the Console window via Shift+Command+C [Mac] or Ctrl+Shift+C [Windows].
  5. Then go to the Video tab and type mime=video in Filter.
  6. Now play the video for a few seconds. Then right-click on the videoplayback file which is of the maximum size. Download View Only Videos in Google Drive
  7. Then paste that URL in a new browser and delete everything starting from &range. Making the said change in the above URL, it will transform to:Download View Only Videos in Google Drive
  8. As soon as we access this URL, the video will start playing. You just need to click on the overflow icon and select Download. The video will be downloaded locally on our PC.Download View Only Videos in Google Drive
  9. Likewise, change the Filter to mime=audio and copy the URL of the largest playbackfile.Download View Only Videos in Google Drive
  10. Then remove everything after &range and the URL will transform to:Download View Only Videos in Google Drive
  11. Open this link in a new tab, click on the overflow icon, and select Download. This will give us the audio file.Download View Only Videos in Google Drive
  12. We can now easily merge both the video and audio files and get the complete file that was actually uploaded as View Only in Google Drive.

That’s it. These were the steps to download view only videos and files from Google Drive. If you have any queries concerning the aforementioned steps, do let us know in the comments. We will get back to you with a solution as soon as possible.


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