Google Drive Connector only returns Google Docs — Office files (XLSX, PPTX, PDF, HTML) invisible to search despite Drive API support

Preflight Checklist

• [x] I have searched existing issues and this hasn't been reported yet
• [x] This is a single bug report (please file separate reports for different bugs)
• [x] I am using the latest version of Claude Code

What's Wrong?

Claude's Google Drive connector (native MCP integration in claude.ai) only searches and returns Google-native format files (Google Docs, Sheets, Slides). It does not surface uploaded or synced Office files (XLSX, PPTX, DOCX, PDF, HTML) in search results — even though Google Drive's API fully supports full-text search inside these file types.

Context: While using Claude's Google Drive connector to access a synced "Agribusiness Library" containing 99+ files (XLSX market data, PPTX presentations, PDF reports, HTML dashboards):

• Folder browsing works: Claude can navigate folder structures using 'folderID' in parents queries. All subfolders are visible.
• Google Docs search works: Queries filtered to mimeType = 'application/vnd.google-apps.document' return results.
• Office file search fails silently: Queries using name contains 'filename' or fullText contains 'keyword' return zero results for known-existing XLSX, PPTX, PDF, and HTML files confirmed present in Google Drive.

Anthropic's own support page (https://support.claude.com/en/articles/10166901) confirms the limitation: "Google Docs (text extraction only, up to 10MB)" with no mention of Office file support.

Related issues: #33590 (user reports connector "only works with native Google Docs files"), #32450 (Drive connector not loading).

Discovered by: Julio C. Negreli — Independent Agribusiness Consultant, Claude Pro subscriber, heavy Google Drive + Claude integration user.

Note on prior reports: Related issues #33590 and #32450 have reported symptoms of this same limitation ("only works with native Google Docs files" and connector failing to load). This report adds the root cause diagnosis: Google Drive's API fully supports fullText contains search inside XLSX, PPTX, PDF, and HTML files — the capability exists at the API level, but Claude's connector does not query or return non-Google-native file types. This report also consolidates evidence from Anthropic's own documentation, third-party reviews, and independent user reports to provide a complete picture of the gap.

What Should Happen?

Google Drive's API (v3) files.list method with fullText contains queries supports searching inside XLSX, PPTX, DOCX, PDF, HTML, and dozens more formats. Per Google's developer blog: "When a file of a common type is uploaded to Google Drive, it is automatically indexed."

The connector should:

1. Expand mimeType scope in Drive API queries to include common Office formats (application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.*, application/pdf, text/html, etc.)
2. Enable fullText search across all indexed file types (Google already indexes these)
3. Surface file metadata (name, modified date, mimeType) even when full content extraction isn't supported — users should at minimum be able to find files by name
4. Document the limitation clearly in the connector setup flow

Error Messages/Logs

No error messages are returned. The search simply returns zero results silently. This is particularly problematic because the user has no indication that file types are being filtered — it appears as though the files don't exist in Drive.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Upload several Office files (.xlsx, .pptx, .pdf, .html) to Google Drive (or sync them via Google Drive for Desktop)
2. Connect the Google Drive connector in claude.ai (Settings → Connectors)
3. In a Claude chat with Google Drive enabled, ask Claude to search for a file by name — e.g., "Search Google Drive for files named 'EPA'" or use the google_drive_search tool with name contains 'EPA'
4. Observe: zero results returned for Office files, even though they exist in Drive
5. Now search with mimeType = 'application/vnd.google-apps.document' — Google Docs files return correctly
6. Try fullText contains 'keyword' where keyword exists inside an XLSX or PDF — zero results
7. Verify the same search works in the Google Drive web UI (drive.google.com) — the files appear correctly there

The gap: Google Drive indexes Office files and the API supports searching them. The Claude connector does not query or return them.

Claude Model

None

Is this a regression?

No, this never worked

Last Working Version

_No response_

Claude Code Version

N/A — issue is in claude.ai web connector, not CLI

Platform

Anthropic API

Operating System

macOS

Terminal/Shell

Terminal.app (macOS)

Additional Information

Business Impact: This affects every Claude user who stores business files in Drive in standard Office formats — the vast majority of business users. Users with synced libraries (e.g., via Google Drive for Desktop mirror mode) are particularly impacted because their entire file system is in Drive but invisible to Claude.

Corroborating evidence:

• Anthropic support docs confirm: "Google Docs (text extraction only, up to 10MB)" — https://support.claude.com/en/articles/10166901
• GitHub Issue #33590: User reports "appears to only work with native Google Docs files" — filed as business workflow blocker
• GitHub Issue #32450: Drive connector not loading in VS Code extension
• Third-party review (eesel.ai): "The native integration is currently limited to Google Docs only"
• Google's own API docs confirm fullText search works for XLSX, PPTX, PDF, HTML: https://developers.google.com/workspace/drive/api/guides/ref-search-terms

Platform: claude.ai web interface (Pro plan). This is about the native Google Drive connector in claude.ai, not Claude Code CLI — but filing here as the most active Anthropic issue tracker. The connector limitation applies across claude.ai and Claude Code.

Discovered by: Julio C. Negreli (jcnegreli) — Chester County, PA