Google Storage for Image Hosting

Owned by Kristy Sherman
Last updated: Jan 29, 2016

Overview

Google Storage is the module within the Google Cloud platform  to store any static files ( images, videos, files etc. ). This article covers how Google storage can be used to host images which can be used in turn for retailcloud  imports.


Signup with Google Cloud Platform using the URL https://cloud.google.com/

You need a google/gmail id to signup and credit card on file .




Click the My Console on top after you sign in and it should lead you to a console as below




Create a Bucket

Choose the Module Google Cloud Storage or click Create a Cloud Storage Bucket



  • Choose a unique name. Google Bucket name is unique across storage. This you may not get the common name. If you are organising by a merchant or for internal use please create different buckets with identifiers.

  • Use Standard for best availability . Here are the details of pricing for these

https://cloud.google.com/storage/docs/storage-classes?hl=en_US&_ga=1.57576298.1584898238.1452117039


Storage class affects performance, cost, and location. All classes offer high availability and low latency.

  • Standard is best for data that requires the highest availability.

  • DRA has a lower cost and slightly lower availability (99%) than Standard (99.9%).

  • Nearline is cost-effective for archival data that you access less than once per month.


  • Use “United states” as location for US Merchants


Upload a File to Google Storage

To upload a file to Google Storage simply click upload and choose your file(s)




Make the Images as Public

To make an image as public click the checkbox next to “public link”. If you have multiple images you may choose all at once and click “Share Publicly”




One you make it public the image url’s will be automatically generated in the below format .. The minimum requirement is to have a file inside a bucket. Subfolders are purely for organization purpose.


Anatomy of a URL



Notes

  1. Create different bucket for different organization ( merchants ) as it will reflect on the url.

  2. You may use a spreadsheet to predefine the common part of url and just have the image name inserted in a column.  




You may use Amazon S3 bucket which is an alternate to Google Storage which has similar capability https://aws.amazon.com/s3/