Fix Google Drive Error: Making Files Available Offline issue

Google Drive now has an exciting new feature that lets you access your files on Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides while you are offline. It is a fantastic new feature that would prove to be immensely helpful to people that have an inconsistent internet connection. Having this feature will enable them to take their work offline, and especially in this lockdown scenario, it can prove to be extremely helpful to some.

But drive its importance, and functionally it does have its drawback too. Sometimes you might see a notification that says making files available offline with a progress bar below. There is a known bug with this new feature because of which this notification sometimes end up just staying there. No matter how much longer you wait on it, it will stay there. And if you are also a victim of this, then you might be wondering how do you get rid of this.

Well, there a few things that you can try in this scenario, and undoubtedly one of the fixes will work for you. In this article, we have listed out all the possible fixes that you can try to get rid of this Google Drive issue.

How to fix Google Drive stuck on making files available offline?

Undoubtedly one of the fixes mentioned below will work out for you.

Restart the phone:

Just like how it is with every other issue you face on your phone, sometimes a simple restart is all that you need to fix everything. So, perform a reboot using your phone’s power button, and once the reboot is complete, check whether the issue you were having with Google Drive is fixed or not.

Clear Cache or Storage:

If restarting the phone did not fix your issue with making files available offline issue, then try clearing the cache and storage of the Google apps that are responsible for it.

• Open up settings on your phone and go to Applications or Apps & Notifications.

• From the list of all apps installed on your device, find Google drive or the Google app that is causing you the issue.

• Now tap on the Storage option and then tap on Clear Cache.

• Now restart your phone and check if the issue is resolved. If it is not, then again follow the same procedure to go to the App’s storage, but this time instead of Clear Cache tap on Clear Storage.

• Once the storage is cleared, restart your phone and check if the issue is resolved or not.

If, for some reason, you will still see the same notification, then move on to the next possible fix.

Now iPad or iPhone users won’t see an option like this in their phone’s settings. If you see this error on such devices then,

• Open the App that is causing the issue that is open Google Drive, Sheets, Slides, Docs.
• Then tap on the three horizontal lines in the top left corner of your screen.
• From the list of options that show up, tap on Settings.

• Then under Documents cache, you will find a clear cache. Tap on it.

Once that is done, check if the issue is resolved by restarting the phone. If you still see the making files available offline notification, then try the next potential fix.

Update the Apps:

Bugs on a smartphone are not an alien concept. And Google apps are no exception. From time to time, apps get buggy, and the developers work on it and provide updates regularly to fix the issues. Now Google is also aware that many people are experiencing this error, and they are doing the best from their side to fix it. So one thing that you should try is updating the apps where you see this error. Go to the play store or the App Store and update the apps to the latest versions. After the update, restart your phone and check if the issue is resolved or not. If you still see the making files available offline notification, then try the next probable solution.

Reinstall the Apps:

Sometimes there are issues with App installations too. So if you already have the latest version, then you should try installing the App all over again.

• Open up settings on your phone and go Applications or Apps & Notifications.
• From the list of all apps installed on your find Google drive or the Google app that is causing you the issue.
• Now tap on the Uninstall button and wait till the process is complete.
• Once the process is complete, open up the Play Store or the App Store and install the latest version of the application.
• Once it is installed, restart your phone and check if the issue is resolved or not.

If, for some reason, you still see the making files available offline notification, then try the solution.

Disabling and Enabling Offline Support for Problematic Files:

Google Drive lets you manually choose the files that you want to add for offline support. Sometimes a single file could be the root cause of all your issues with the process. In that case, you should try to disable the offline mode for the problematic files.

• Open the App that is causing the issue that is open Google Drive, Sheets, Slides, Docs.
• Then tap on the three horizontal lines in the top left corner of your screen.
• From the list of options that show up, tap on Offline files.

• Now tap on the three-dot icon next to the problematic file.
• Now tap on the Available offline button with a small green tick to disable it.

After you have disabled it, try enabling it again following the same procedure. Sometimes merely disabling and allowing a file to sort out the issue for some users. But if the problem continues and you see the same making files available offline notification issue with the next file in your drive, then you will have to disable this feature entirely for the recent files to get rid of this error.

Disabling Offline Support for Problematic Files:

If you see this issue after the addition of some new files to your drive, then you should try disabling the offline for these recent files only.

• Open the App that is causing the issue that is open Google Drive, Sheets, Slides, Docs.
• Then tap on the three horizontal lines in the top left corner of your screen.
• From the list of options that show up, tap on Settings.
• Under Offline, turn the toggle off for “Make recent files available offline.”

Now restart your phone, and your issue should be resolved.

Now, this error may show up with the Google Drive app, the Google Sheets app, the Google Slides App, or the Google Docs app. Whatever may be the case for you, one of the fixes mentioned above will work out for you.

So now you know how to fix Google Drive stuck on making files available offline issue. If you have any questions or queries about this guide on Google Drive, then comment down below, and we will get back to you. Also, be sure to check out our other articles on iPhone tips and tricks, Android tips and tricks, PC tips and tricks, and much more for more useful information.