Send PDF from Email to Google drive

[Dennis_Schneider]

Describe the problem/error/question

I want to download a pdf from an email and upload it to Google drive.

I tested several workflows, directly to drive, read binary, writer binary to disk → upload to google
and don’t know what else i should try.

What is the error message (if any)?

All of them show → ERROR: Item has no binary property called “data”

Information on your n8n setup

• n8n version:
  0.224.0

• Database (default: SQLite):
  SQLite

• n8n EXECUTIONS_PROCESS setting (default: own, main):

• Running n8n via (Docker, npm, n8n cloud, desktop app):
  Docker on synology

• Operating system:
  Win10

[MutedJam]

Hi @Dennis_Schneider, I am sorry to hear you’re having trouble.

How far did you get so far (do you already have the PDF file in n8n, or do you struggle with getting the email in the first place) and which error exactly are you seeing?

[Dennis_Schneider]

Sadly, i’m still getting this error:

The Email is received perfectly.

Even if this one would work, could you tell me how to insert a variable for the name? Because the filename will be different every time.

Thanks

[maxT]

@Dennis_Schneider for the “Binary Property” field, try writing “attachment_0”. That’s the property of your binary file at the moment, it’s conveyed at the top of the binary file card in input pane.

Let me know if that works!

[Dennis_Schneider]

@maxT this works, thanks. Now, is there a way to get the original filename?

And i would like to put it into a specific path.

Thanks

[maxT]

Great to hear, and yes you can with expressions

When in a parameter (with expressions activated), typing a $ inside a pair of {{ }} will open an autocomplete list:

• $binary is the global where you can access incoming binary data (file data)
• It has a child called data, it’s an object that contains all the various metadata for the file
• Inside data, we have fileName

For future, if you just remember $binary, autocomplete should help you drill down into whichever properties you need next time

Happy flowgrammin’ !

[Dennis_Schneider]

@maxT Thank you, i’m way to new to this haha.

Can you tell me how to upload to a specific folder? That would be awesome.

I was trying to replicate this:

Upload invoices from Gmail to Google Drive | n8n workflow template

But it’s not working for me, seems like its outdated?

Thanks

[maxT]

@Dennis_Schneider no problem. From a quick check, looks like you need to specify an ID in the optional “Parents” section (i.e. parent folder of the file)

You can see the IDs of a file in Google Drive with the “File”>“List” (if you’re trying to upload dynamically to different folders each time). If it’s a static folder that doesn’t change, you can find it’s ID via the URL of the folder (i.e. when viewing it in browser): https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Bdg82ht4crAor5x_XpIexH5CX15SzWjE, everything after folders/ is the ID.

Hope that helps. If another question crops up as you build out the flow, please post a new thread. It helps make the solutions we post more discoverable for new users in future

[Dennis_Schneider]

Thank you, will do.

[maxT]

No problem @Dennis_Schneider - if my post above solved your problem, please do mark it as a “Solution” to similarly help others find that answer in future