Google Drive Sync Guide

Seamless cross-device syncing is here! With the Google Drive integration, you no longer need to manually manage third-party API accounts, secret keys, or long Bin IDs. Your reading data is stored privately inside your own personal Google Drive account and is never shared.

The Synchronization Logic & Multi-Device Rule

To ensure total control over your reading data and protect your progress from accidental overwrites when hopping between devices, synchronization remains semi-automatic:

Automatic Backup: When turned on, the extension pushes your local markers to your Google Drive in the background every 24 hours.
Manual Sync: Triggered via the dedicated buttons placed directly inside the Archive of Our Own (AO3) interface.

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Multi-Device Golden Rule

If you read on multiple devices (like your PC and a smartphone), enable Automatic Backup ONLY on your primary device (the one you use most often). Keep it disabled on secondary devices. When switching to a secondary device, click Download to sync your local state before reading.

Desktop Setup (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera, Opera GX, Brave)

Setting up your cloud connection on a desktop browser takes just two clicks:

1
Navigate to the extension menu and select the Cloud Settings tab.
2
Under Storage Provider, select Google Drive.
3
Click Log In with Google and complete the authorization prompt.

Google Drive Storage Provider Settings — Figure 1 — Activating Google Drive as your storage provider in Cloud Settings.

Firefox for Android Setup (Manual Token Import)

Firefox for Android restricts extensions from spawning external authentication popups. To bypass this limitation, copy an authentication token generated from any of your desktop browsers.

Step 3.1 — Exporting the Token from Desktop

On your logged-in desktop extension, go to Cloud Settings. Under the active Google Account panel, click Export Sync Token. Copy the long encrypted string that appears in the text area.

Exporting Google Sync Token from Desktop — Figure 2 — Generating and copying your manual cross-device sync token on desktop.

Step 3.2 — Importing the Token into Firefox Mobile

Open the extension settings in your Firefox for Android app. Select Google Drive, then click "Using Firefox for Android? Import Token manually". Paste your copied string and click Import.

Importing Token into Firefox Mobile — Figure 3 — Pasting and importing the token on your Android device to log in automatically.

Using Sync Features Inside AO3

Once connected to your Google account, load any works list or history page on AO3. Look at the top bar labeled Marker Tools:

Upload to Drive: Saves your current local state to your cloud folder. (Hidden when Automatic Backup is active.)
Download from Drive: Pulls your cloud copy to refresh your active device history.

Google Drive Sync Toolbar on AO3 — Figure 4 — Cloud markers tool bar visible above work lists on AO3.

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Privacy Note

The extension only accesses its own dedicated appdata folder inside your Drive. It cannot view, edit, or delete any other files. No data is shared with third parties.