Google Drive ACTION
Download File
Download one or more files from Google Drive to the
/tmp directory or return their contents as buffers. Select multiple files to download a batch in a single run. Use to fetch a file's contents for processing in downstream steps — e.g., parsing a CSV, extracting text from a PDF, or re-uploading to another service. For Google Workspace files (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drawings, Apps Script), exports to an Office-compatible format by default: Docs → .docx, Sheets → .xlsx, Slides → .pptx, Drawings → PNG, Apps Script → JSON. Pass mimeType to force a specific format. Shortcuts are resolved to their target automatically. Folders, Forms, and My Maps cannot be downloaded via this action. See the documentation- Action
- Writes data
- OAuth
- SDK
- MCP
IMPLEMENTATION
Call this tool
Connect a user's Google Drive account once, then configure and run Download File from your backend or agent.
import { PipedreamClient } from "@pipedream/sdk"
const pd = new PipedreamClient({
projectId: process.env.PIPEDREAM_PROJECT_ID!,
clientId: process.env.PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_ID!,
clientSecret: process.env.PIPEDREAM_CLIENT_SECRET!,
projectEnvironment: "production",
})
const result = await pd.actions.run({
id: "google_drive-download-file",
externalUserId: "{external_user_id}", // any stable ID for this user in your system
configuredProps: {
google_drive: { authProvisionId: "apn_xxxxxxx" },
drive: "Drive",
fileIds: ["Files"],
},
})
console.log(result)curl -X POST https://api.pipedream.com/v1/connect/{project_id}/actions/run \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-H "X-PD-Environment: production" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer {access_token}" \
-d '{
"external_user_id": "{external_user_id}",
"id": "google_drive-download-file",
"configured_props": {
"google_drive": { "authProvisionId": "apn_xxxxxxx" },
"drive": "Drive",
"fileIds": ["Files"]
}
}'// accessToken: mint a short-lived token with the Connect SDK — see the MCP guide
const transport = new StreamableHTTPClientTransport(
new URL("https://remote.mcp.pipedream.net/v3"),
{
requestInit: {
headers: {
Authorization: `Bearer ${accessToken}`,
"x-pd-project-id": "{project_id}",
"x-pd-environment": "production",
"x-pd-external-user-id": "{external_user_id}", // any stable ID for this user in your system
"x-pd-app-slug": "google_drive",
},
},
},
)
const mcp = new Client({ name: "my-agent", version: "1.0.0" })
await mcp.connect(transport)
const { tools } = await mcp.listTools()
// listTools() hands your model this tool's input schema, so it can
// fill the arguments itself:
const result = await mcp.callTool({
name: "google_drive-download-file",
arguments: {
drive: "Drive",
fileIds: ["Files"],
},
})SCHEMA
Inputs
Pipedream supplies the connected account. Your application provides the operation-specific values below. Dynamic inputs are resolved against that user's account.
| Property | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
drive Drive | string | The shared drive the file is in, if any. Leave empty for files in My Drive. Optional Dynamic |
fileIds Files | string[] | The Google Drive file(s) to download. Select one or more files to download a batch in a single run. Accepts file IDs (opaque Drive identifiers). Shortcuts are resolved to their target automatically. Optional Dynamic |
fileId File | string | A single Google Drive file to download. Kept for backwards compatibility — prefer Files for new configurations. If both are set, this file is included alongside the ones in Files. Optional Dynamic |
filePath Destination File Path | string | The destination file name or path in the /tmp directory (e.g., /tmp/myFile.csv). Defaults to /tmp/<file name> if omitted. Note: if you set this for a Google Workspace file, the extension you choose should match the Conversion Format; otherwise the file contents may not match the extension. Optional |
mimeType Conversion Format | string | The format to which to convert the downloaded file if it is a Google Workspace document. If omitted, defaults per source type: Docs → .docx, Sheets → .xlsx, Slides → .pptx, Drawings → PNG, Apps Script → JSON. Optional Dynamic |
syncDir SyncDir | dir | Optional |
getBufferResponse Get Buffer Response | boolean | If true, returns the file content as a buffer in the output (useful for passing directly to another step) instead of writing it to /tmp. Defaults to false. Optional |
REFERENCE
Tool details
Behavior hints are published with the component in the Pipedream registry and surface as MCP tool annotations, so an agent can reason about a tool before it calls it.
- Registry key
- google_drive-download-file
- Version
- 0.2.2
- App
- Google Drive
- Authentication
- OAuth
- Read-only
- No
- Destructive
- No
- Open world
- Yes
- Source
- View on GitHub ↗