Attaching files using the web-mail interface can be, and surely is, a painful task especially if you have an obsession of keeping files in deep multiple levels of hierarchy. The most arduous part is extracting the file from that tenth level deep folder while browsing and selecting file to upload. It is especially redundant when that particular folder is already open in your Windows Explorer with the file starting in your face, but you can’t attach by clicking on the file.

As a user of Gmail, one should believe with conviction that there exists all sorts of add-ons to grease the skids and make our lives as easy as possible. With that in mind, I googled the web looking for some sort of software using which I could just right click on the desired file to be attached and the rest be taken care of. I easily found gAttach! which did everything I was yearning for except that it didn’t work for me. (Do let me know if it works for someone) [Update] gAttach! works wonders!! The developer of this gem, Chris, was kind enough to work with me to pinpoint my problem which was resolved after I cleaned up my registry!

So the quest continued. As with any problem, there are always two solutions: the simple and neat straightforward one, and the workaround.

It is this workaround (I’d rather call it improvisation) that I present here to do exactly the same thing – attach files in Gmail with a right-click file option.

Gmail space can be used as online drive (yeah!), that can be accessible just like any other ordinary drive on your computer. This is neatly done by installing this little piece of gem called Gmail Drive. This software makes use of the vast space allotted to every Gmail user and makes it a virtual online drive. The files that are copied to this drive appear as a new mail message with the file attached in your Inbox. From the inbox, you can just forward that e-mail to the desired address. Pretty simple, isn’t it? The Gmail Drive shows up in My Computer. Files can be sent to this drive (and hence attached) with a right click option Send To > Gmail Drive. This solution in fact kills two birds with one stone. Easy attachments and online drive, with just one software! If you just want to use it as an online drive, then create a filter to apply some label on mails with subject GMAILFS to avoid cluttering the Inbox. (This is shown below.)

Here is the step-by-step solution with visual aid:

1) Download and install Gmail Drive. This should not take more than a few seconds. Verify installation by looking for a drive named Gmail Drive in My Computer. Open the drive and save your login details.

2) An option to send a file to this drive by right clicking should also appear. Test it out on any file as shown below.

3) To attach a file, move the file to this Gmail drive using either the right click option or dragging it to the drive.The file will now be posted on to the web.

4) As soon as the posting completes, a new email pops up in the Inbox with the desired file as an attachment.

5) Forward this e-mail, with the file already attached, l to your desired recipient! (and that’s it)
CREATING A FILTER (AND LABEL)

Most of the Gmail users already know about this. Those who don’t should either use it, or stop using Gmail because this is one of those fundamental edges of Gmail over all other e-mail providers (okay, I can never control myself when it comes to labels and filters).

So to create a filter to keep the inbox neat, follow the steps below:

1) Log in to your Gmail and go to Settings on top right.

2) Now go to the Filters tab and click on Create New Filter at the bottom.

3) Enter GMAILFS in the Subject field and hit Next Step>.

4) Select the options as required (shown below) and create a label if necessary. Click on Create Filter button.

5) If you selected the option to skip the inbox (and apply the settings to current converstaions), the next thing you will notice is the e-mail disappearing from Inbox and appearing in the label (Gmail Drive, as I call it).

6) Henceforth, all files attached/moved using this method will appear in the new label and can then be forwarded as required.