How the Zapier automation works
Each Datamolino folder has a unique email address you can use to send files for processing. Zapier connects that email address to your cloud storage so that any new file you drop into a watched folder is forwarded to Datamolino automatically.
The automation is built from three steps:
Zapier watches a folder in your cloud storage for new files.
When a new file appears, Gmail sends it as an attachment to your folder's Datamolino email address.
Zapier moves the file to a 'sent' folder so you can see at a glance which files have been processed.
You can copy a ready-made template from this shared Zapier recipe. It uses Dropbox and Gmail, but you can swap Dropbox for OneDrive, Box, or Google Drive without changing the rest of the flow.
What you need before you start
Before you build the Zap, make sure you have:
A Zapier account. A free plan is enough to get started - it covers the trigger and the Gmail send. If you want to add the optional move step, you'll need a paid plan.
An account with the cloud service you want to use (Dropbox, OneDrive, Box, or Google Drive).
A Gmail account that Zapier can send from.
The email address of the Datamolino folder you want the files to arrive in.
👉 Where do I find my folder's email address?
The email address of the folder appears underneath the name of the folder.
Setting up the Zap
You can either open the shared recipe and adapt it, or build the three steps from scratch in Zapier.
👉 Step 1: watch a folder in your cloud storage
In Zapier, set the trigger to "New File in Folder" for your cloud service. Choose the folder that should be watched. Make sure "Include file contents?" is set to Yes - without this, the file won't be available to attach in Step 2.
If you organise your documents into subfolders, enable the option to look into subfolders. You can then use Zapier paths to route files from different subfolders to different Datamolino folder addresses.
👉 Step 2: send the file to your Datamolino folder by email
Add a Gmail action to send an email to your folder's Datamolino address. In the Gmail step, scroll down to the Attachment field and select the file from Step 1. The file must be included as an attachment - not as a link in the body - or Datamolino will not receive it.
👉 Step 3: move the file so you can see it has been sent
Add a final step that moves the file to a different folder in your cloud storage, for example a "Sent to Datamolino" folder. In the File field, select "1. Path" from Step 1.
This step is optional, but it makes it easy to tell at a glance which files have already been forwarded to Datamolino and which are still waiting.
Using OneDrive, Box, or Google Drive instead of Dropbox
The three-step pattern is the same for Box and Google Drive. In Step 1, choose the trigger app that matches your service and pick the folder you want watched. Step 2 (Gmail) and Step 3 (move file) work the same way.
If you use OneDrive, Steps 1 and 2 work the same way, but the move file action is not available. You can still run the two-step version - the trigger and the Gmail send - without the move step.
What happens after the file reaches Datamolino
Once the email lands in your Datamolino folder, the file is imported just like any other email upload. Standard processing rules apply:
The file must be a supported type. Learn more about supported file types.
Duplicate detection applies. If the same file has already been imported into the folder, the new upload is flagged as a duplicate.
Folder and account limits apply in the usual way - for example, suspended accounts or archived folders will not process the upload.
Learn more about email import and how Datamolino processes attachments.