This article explains how to resolve the "Request Too Large [413]" error that can occur when migrating files to Google Drive with document conversion enabled.
1. Symptom
During a migration to Google Drive, certain files fail to upload. When you inspect the migration logs or item failure reports, you see a warning message similar to the following:
[GoogleDriveFileImporter] [Warn] ...Unable to upload item example.xlsx. Google.Apis.Requests.RequestError Request Too Large [413] Errors [ Message[Request Too Large] Location[ - ] Reason[uploadTooLarge] Domain[global]
This error indicates that the file was rejected by Google's servers because it exceeds the maximum allowed size for the requested operation.
2. Cause
This error occurs when the Convert to Google Docs feature is enabled in your CloudM Migrate project configuration, and a source file is larger than Google's limit for conversion.
Google imposes specific size limits for files that can be converted into Google Docs, Sheets, or Slides format. For example:
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Documents: Up to 50 MB
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Spreadsheets: Up to 100 MB (with limits on the number of cells)
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Presentations: Up to 100 MB
When CloudM Migrate attempts to upload a file (e.g., a 120 MB Microsoft Excel file, example.xlsx) and requests conversion, the Google Drive API rejects the file because it is too large to be converted into a Google Sheet.
For the most current size limits, please refer to Google's official documentation: Files you can store in Google Drive.
3. Resolution
To resolve this issue, you have two options: you can either disable document conversion for all files or apply a size filter to exclude large files from the conversion process.
Option 1: Disable Document Conversion (Recommended)
This is the most direct solution. By disabling conversion, files will be migrated in their original format (e.g., .docx, .xlsx), and the size limitations for conversion will no longer apply.
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In your CloudM Migrate project, navigate to Destination Settings in the Configuration step settings page.
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Select the Document Conversion tab or section.
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Locate the setting for the type of file you are experiencing issues with.
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Uncheck this option to disable it.
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Save your configuration.
Once disabled, you can re-run the migration for the failed items. They will now be uploaded in their native format.
Option 2: Exclude Large Files from Migration
If you still wish to convert smaller files, you can set up exclusion filters in your configuration to skip migrating files over a certain size. This is a more advanced option and should be used carefully.