Transferring Ownership of GU Box Content to a Personal Box Account

You may need to transfer content from your GU Box account to a personal (non-GU) Box account if you’re leaving GU and will no longer be affiliated with GU.

Before You Transfer Your Content

  • Unsync any folders in your GU Box account are currently synced.
  • Create a personal (non-GU) Box account. To create a personal Box account, perform the steps outlined in “Creating a Personal Box Account” below.

Creating a Personal Box Account

To create a personal Box account (if you don’t have one already), perform the following steps:  

  1. Go to the Box account signup page.
  2. Complete the form and follow the on-screen steps. (Note: Make sure to use a non-GU email address for your personal Box account.)
  3. Click Get Started.
  4. Check the email address you entered for a confirmation email. Click the link in the confirmation email message to activate your personal Box account.

Transferring Your Content

Transferring Ownership of Your GU Box Folders

Note: If any folder you own contains university data, make sure to transfer ownership of that data to the appropriate faculty or staff member, or to a GU Box departmental account.

  1. From your GU Box account, select the folder for which you want to transfer ownership.
  2. Click on the Share button next to the folder you selected.
  3. Add your personal Box account as a collaborator (enter the email address of your personal Box account to search for the account).
  4. From your GU Box account, change your personal Box account’s collaborator level to Folder Owner by performing the following:
    1. Select the folder.
    2. From the Sharing tab (located on the right-hand side of your Box screen), click on the three horizontal dots next to your personal Box account listing, and then select Owner from the drop-down.
    3. Click Okay in the confirmation pop-up window to complete the change of collaborator level.
  5. From your personal Box account, remove your GU Box account as a collaborator on the folder.

Transferring Ownership of Your GU Box Files

Perform the following to transfer ownership of any files in your GU Box account that are not currently in any existing folders in your account.

  1. Create a new folder in your GU Box account for your files.
  2. Move all your files into that folder.
  3. Transfer ownership of that folder to your GU Box account.

Transferring Folders on Which You Want to Remain a Collaborator

Perform the following to transfer any folders shared with you on which you want to remain a collaborator on your personal (non-GU) Box account, but on which don’t have sufficient permissions to invite your personal account as a collaborator.

  1. Send a message to the folder owner requesting that your personal Box account be added as a collaborator at the appropriate level. In the message, include the email address associated with your Personal Box account. (The owner will need to know your email address so they can send an invite to your personal Box account.)
  2. Accept the collaboration invite from your personal Box account.
  3. Remove your GU Box account as a collaborator. If your personal Box account does not have sufficient permissions to permit you to do so, you can remove yourself as a collaborator from your GU Box account.

Note: If the folder owner has set the folder to restrict collaboration to within GU only, this setting will need to be changed, if appropriate to do so, to invite a personal Box account as a collaborator.  

Limitations of a Personal Box Account

  • The version history of files owned by a personal Box account will not be accessible.
  • If a folder’s collaborator hierarchy includes a co-owner, and that folder is transferred, the co-owner will be changed to an editor. All other collaborators will maintain their current collaborator level.
  • Custom shared links will no longer direct the link user to the file or folder.
  • Features available only to GU Box accounts will be lost. (Click here to find out the features available with a personal Box account. If you want, you can also sign up for an enhanced personal Box account for a monthly fee.)