Due to restrictions placed by Google, SyncBackPro requires the use of a service account in order to be able to connect and utilize a user's Google Cloud Storage. Authorizing SyncBackPro to use this storage via OAuth is not available anymore.


The above is not required if you are already using or planning to use Google Cloud Storage in Amazon S3 compatibility mode, in which case the authentication method remains unchanged.


Following is the outline of the procedure on how to create a service account and its related JSON key file to be used with SyncBackPro.

  • Open the IAM & Admin page in the GCP Console and login with the appropriate account if necessary (https://console.cloud.google.com/project/_/iam-admin).
  • Select your project and click Continue.
  • In the left navigation panel click Service accounts.
  • In the top panel click Create Service Account.
  • Enter the name you want to use for this service account plus a short description for easy identification and then click Create.
  • A new page will be shown in which you need to specify the role of the new service account. Open and locate Storage in the list and then select one for the following:
    • Storage Object Admin for downloading, uploading and deleting objects. Target bucket needs to be manually entered in SyncBackPro since this role doesn’t allow listing the buckets.
    • Storage Admin for full control of your Google Cloud Storage including listing, creation and deletion of buckets.
  • In the next page you need to create the key. Click the Create Key button, select JSON from the pop-up panel on the right side of the page and then click Create. You will be prompted to save the auto-generated key file on your computer. Keep this file at a safe location since it can't be downloaded again (you'll need to re-create the key if you have to).
  • Use the above JSON file in SyncBackPro when prompted during the profile creation or when creating a linked account for your Google Cloud Storage.


More info:
https://cloud.google.com/iam/docs/creating-managing-service-accounts
https://cloud.google.com/iam/docs/creating-managing-service-account-keys