Fixed: Google Drive Upload Failure 38 | 8 Useful Solutions

To fix the “Google Drive upload failure 38” error, there are 8 useful solutions in the post. Find the method that can solve your problem after reading.

By @Zoey Last Updated September 30, 2024

How do I fix Google Drive upload failure 38?

 

Upload failure 38 in Google Drive is suddenly being so annoying. I'm hoping this community can help me. I use Drive as a backup for all my written documents and lately Drive has been functionally useless. They're simple .docx Word files, about 1-2 MB in size. Anyone knows what is going on and how to fix it?

- Question from Reddit

Have you met the "Google Drive upload failure 38" issue like the case? It is a common error of Google Drive upload stuck. You may also be plagued by such an issue and unable to upload your files to Google Drive as successfully as you normally would. How to fix it? You can read on to get some effective solutions in the following content.

Why is my Google Drive upload failing?

Before learning how to fix the "upload failure 38" error, you can know some common reasons for it, avoiding the same situation next time:

  • Network connection errors.
  • Google Drive storage is full and insufficient for your files.
  • Files are larger than size limitation in Google Drive.
  • Google Drive application does not work well.

And there are many other reasons that may lead to such a Google Drive error. Next, let’s get started to fix it.

8 solutions to Google Drive upload failure 38

If you encounter the "Google Drive upload failure 38" error on PC, you can refer to the comprehensive guidelines one by one until you fix the issue successfully.

Solution 1. Check your network connection

Most uploading errors are due to unstable network connections. So you can go to check your network connection on your computer first. Here are the easy steps:

1. Go to the Windows Setting page and choose the Network & Internet option.

2. Choose Status to check if the network status is OK. If there is an error, choose Network troubleshooter to fix it right now.

Tip: Also, you can choose to restart the router to have a stable network connection.

Solution 2. Check your Google Drive status

Sometimes, the service status of Google Drive will also affect your uploading process. So, navigate to the G Suite Status Dashboard to check if your Google Drive is ON in the list.

Solution 3. Check storage space of your Google Drive

One of the causes of the "upload failure 38 google drive" issue is insufficient cloud storage space in your Google Drive. To solve it, you can free up Google Drive space, or increase your Google Drive space. Go to check the storage situation first with the guide first:

1. Navigate to the Google Drive website, and log into your Google account.

2. Then you can see the Storage situation of your account on the left menu.

Note: You should notice that there is a limitation of file size in Google Drive. So what is the maximum upload size for Google Drive? The maximum individual file size that you can upload or synchronize is 5 TB.

Solution 4. Use incognito browsing to Google Drive

In some cases, switching to an incognito or private window can solve the "upload failure 38" issue. No matter what browser you are using, you can turn on an incognito window to try uploading files to Google Drive again.

 

Solution 5. Clean up cache and cookies on browser

Clearing cache and cookies can effectively fix the "upload failure 38 in Google Drive" issue because too much cache and cookies will cause the problem as well. Take Google Chrome as an example, you can clean up cache and cookies following the steps below:

1. Choose the three-dot icon on the right top and click on More tools > Clear browsing data...

2. Choose All time under Time range. Then tick Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files. After configuration, choose CLEAR DATA.

Solution 6. Turn off anti-virus and firewall tools

Anti-virus and firewall tools are possible to affect your uploading process in Google Drive. You can go to turn them off and reboot your computer.

1. Go to Windows Setting > Update & Security.

2. Choose Windows Security to click on Firewall & network protection. Choose the network you are using and turn off the firewall here.

Solution 7. Resign into your Google Drive account

Once you met the "upload failure 38 Google Drive" error, you can try resigning your Google account. You can go to Google Drive Settings and choose the Disconnect account option first. Then sign into your account again.

Solution 8. Switch to use Chrome

Some users say they successfully uploaded the file via Chrome instead of other browsers. Maybe you can try switching to use Google Chrome to upload your files to Google Drive as well.

Tip: Upload files to Google Drive in a stable way

If you've been bothered by the "upload failure 38 in Google Drive" problem for too long, you can switch to a more stable way to upload files to Google Drive - a free professional cloud backup service called CBackup.

In CBackup, you are allowed to upload any type of files to Google Drive. For example, you can upload photos to Google Drive, upload folders, programs, hard drives, and even the entire computer to Google Drive. Unlike Google Drive, there is no limitation in CBackup for file uploading. You can upload large files if your cloud drive has enough space.

There are some useful features in CBackup that can make your backups much easier. You can enable the Scheduler feature then your backups will be performed with the certain frequency you choose.

Besides, CBackup provides some highlight features for free:
Combine cloud storage: You can use the feature to merge unlimited cloud drive accounts into a combined cloud with unlimited cloud backup space.
Backup PC to public cloud: CBackup also supports to back up data from computer to cloud.
Cloud to cloud backup/sync: Backup or sync between 2 different cloud drive accounts can be easy and direct in CBackup.
Many mainstream cloud drives are supported as backup or sync destinations like Dropbox, OneDrive, etc.
You will be given 5GB free cloud storage in CBackup Cloud as a backup or sync destination.

Now, let’s see how to upload files to Google Drive without any error:

1. Download and install the CBackup desktop app on your computer. Sign up for a new account and run it to log into your account.

Download CBackupWin 11/10/8.1/8/7/XP
Secure Download

2. Click on the Storage tab. Choose Google Drive > Authorize Now. Then follow the instructions to let CBackup access to your Google Drive account.

3. Click on the Sync tab, then choose Sync PC to Public Cloud.

4. Choose any file from your computer as the sync source. And choose a folder from the Google Drive account as the sync destination. Finally, select Start Sync to upload files to Google Drive directly.

Note: You can click the Settings button on the left bottom to configure more options for your sync task. For example, you can set up Scheduler to make your upload task perform regular and automatic.

Written in the end

This article provides 8 efficient solutions to the "Google Drive upload failure 38" error. If you still cannot fix such a problem or think it is too complex to operate, you can try another cloud backup service called CBackup to upload files to Google Drive safely and successfully.