Delete app AND files

Because it is a well-designed no-code platform, AppSheet is relatively easy to learn. If youโ€™re like me, though, that still means a lot of trial and error. Copying sample apps to play with or experimenting by making your own little app to try out an idea is a great way to learn but it can leave you with a โ€œMy Appsโ€ page that starts to seem like a โ€œMy Collection of Junkโ€ page. The solution, of course, is to erase those old apps that you no longer need . . . but thereโ€™s a hitch. Just deleting the apps in AppSheet can leave a different collection of junk in the cloud.

I donโ€™t have any experience working with other cloud services but in this little tip Iโ€™ll explain how to cleanly erase apps and their associated files from Google drive.

STEP 1: Click onf โ€œView Sourceโ€ inside the app you want to delete

STEP 2: The previous step will take you to the associated Google spreadsheet. It will open up in a separate tab, making it easy to return to the AppSheet editor when you need to. In the associated Google spreadsheet, find the location and then copy the text:

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STEP 3: Open up Google Drive and then find the folder (if there is one in this case) for your spreadsheet and associated files:

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STEP 4: Back in the AppSheet editor, delete the app:

STEP 5: Finally, delete the associated files that you located in Google drive in STEP 3. Note that AppSheet has left them in place.

Thatโ€™s it! Not exactly rocket science but I didnโ€™t know how to do it until recently. Hence, I was beginning to feel that my โ€œMy Appsโ€ page was in need of a visit from Mari Kondo. Speaking of Mari Kondo, I understand that her test for whether or not an AppSheet app should be deleted is Does it spark joy?

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Finally, Iโ€™d like to suggest a possible topic of discussion. Donโ€™t you think it would be nice if the AppSheet editor could give us the option of deleting associated files too? Or, is it a matter of permissions and simple impossible? Now that AppSheet is part of Google, I would think that it should be possible at least if one is using Google drive.

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Nice one!

Just yesterday I was looking through the default app folder in my Gdrive - thereโ€™s dozens of leftovers in there. I started going through them, but after 30 minutes Iโ€™m likeโ€ฆ ugh, enough already.

It would be really nice if there was a toggle when deleting an app to delete the data too (like thereโ€™s a toggle to copy the data when copying the app).


An alternative to Step 2

There is another way to get to the folder, just thought I would share it:

Thanks so much for the positive feedback and the improvement to the second step. I tried to take your approach and go just a step further:

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The gif is pretty slow but I the cpu in my legacy model brain is pretty slow so I prefer slow to fast.

My steps are not necessary if you only have a spreadsheet and donโ€™t have a folder that contains other content. With my approach, the containing folder and all of the files inside can be removed together. Empty folders donโ€™t take up much disk space but its confusing nonetheless if those empty shells are mixed in with the folders that have important data.

Thanks again!

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