Brief Google Drive server errors that made Google Docs inaccessible have been fixed

Google users are experiencing problems with accessing their Google Docs files on Google Drive as of around 2:45 PM EST on Friday. It’s currently unclear how widespread the issue is, though TNW staff can’t access documents on multiple accounts, both personal and via Google Apps.

It appears that the actual documents are still available if you access them from mobile or via direct link. The problem appears to be on the main Drive homepage: the documents are simply not being listed.

Here’s what we’re seeing:

As you can see, there’s an error at the top that simply says “The server encountered an error. Please try again later.” followed by a “Dismiss” link. Clicking it doesn’t do much as the message simply comes back when you reload the page.

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There are no additional details given, which is rather frustrating as users aren’t sure where to go to find out more. Google thus has two problems on its hands here: a broken Drive service and a rather useless error message.

At about 3:00 PM EST, Google updated its Apps Status page to confirm the problem. No further details are given beyond the fact that Drive is experiencing a “partial service disruption”:

We have contacted Google about the issue. We will update this article if we hear back.

Update at 3:15 PM EST: The problem has been resolved.

Hat tip: Gabe Rivera

Top Image credit: Pawel Kryj