📸 ShareX to Google Photos Sync

Automatically sync images uploaded from ShareX (to Google Drive) into your Google Photos library using a lightweight Python script and systemd.

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Features

• Watch a Google Drive folder for new screenshots (uploaded via ShareX)
• Download new files to a temporary folder
• Upload them to Google Photos
• Automatically delete them from Drive and the local temp folder
• Run in the background using a persistent systemd timer

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Prerequisites

• Python 3.8+
• A Google Cloud project with Drive & Photos API enabled
• OAuth 2.0 "Desktop App" credentials (credentials.json file)
• ShareX configured to upload to a specific Google Drive folder

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Setup Instructions

1. Enable APIs in Google Cloud Console

• Visit: Google Cloud Console
• Create a project (if you don’t have one)
• Enable:
  • Google Drive API
  • Google Photos Library API
• Go to Credentials → Create Credentials → OAuth Client ID
  • Application type: Desktop App
• Download the resulting credentials.json

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2. Clone the repo

git clone https://github.com/vcandelario/sharex_sync.git
cd sharex_sync

Place your credentials.json file inside the project folder.

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3. Install and Set Up the Background Service

Run the installer:

python3 install.py

This will:

• Create and install a systemd .service and .timer under your user
• Start the timer (runs every 15 seconds)
• Launch main.py interactively for first-time Google auth & folder ID input

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4. Done!

Now every time you upload an image to your chosen Google Drive folder via ShareX, it will:

• Be automatically uploaded to Google Photos
• Deleted from Drive
• Deleted from your server’s temp folder (/tmp/sharex_photos)

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Troubleshooting

First-time setup didn’t ask for a token or folder ID?

Just run main.py manually once:

python3 main.py

This will trigger the Google OAuth flow and folder ID prompt.

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Stop the service and timer

systemctl --user stop sharex_sync.timer
systemctl --user stop sharex_sync.service

To prevent it from running again:

systemctl --user disable sharex_sync.timer

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FAQ

Why not just use ShareX’s Google Photos support?

Google restricted direct Google Photos API access. ShareX would need to verify their app and undergo a security audit which was not feasible for a volunteer project. This script sidesteps the restriction by using your own credentials and Google Drive.

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Optional Cleanup

If you ever want to reset:

rm token.json folderID.txt

Then rerun main.py.

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License

MIT License.