How does dropbox sync work

You can make an exact copy a duplicate of a Dropbox file or folder on dropbox. Find out how to download files and folders to your computer from dropbox. Learn how to find and unzip your downloads. Help center. Team admins Team members. Fix syncing problems in Dropbox. Use this article to fix the following issues: Dropbox is not syncing, updating, or refreshing files, folders, or shared folders.

Dropbox appears to have stopped syncing, is no longer syncing, or is stuck indexing. Files are taking a long time to sync, are syncing slowly, or appear to always be syncing. Wait a few minutes and check back There are a lot of reasons why syncing could be temporarily delayed.

Close other applications that are open on your device If Dropbox files are open in another application, they might not sync. Follow our filename recommendations Certain special characters in filenames may not be compatible with certain devices.

If the Dropbox desktop app is on an external hard drive, check your connection If you have your Dropbox folder on an external hard drive, make sure the external hard drive is connected and recognized by your computer. Uninstall and reinstall the Dropbox desktop app Uninstall and reinstall the Dropbox desktop app on your computer. Certain types of files and metadata like symlinks symbolic links , aliases, shortcuts, junction points, resource forks, networked folders, and extended attributes.

Learn what types of extended attributes Dropbox can sync. If this is the case, you might see an error message that says that permission has been denied or that your file has been rejected by the server. If you suspect this is the problem, contact support. How helpful was this article? Let us know how we can improve: Thanks for your feedback! Let us know how this article helped: Submit Thanks for your feedback! Mac OS Monterey 12 dropbox not syncing My files are syncing to Dropbox, but aren't anywhere else on my computer.

Learn how to choose a default setting for new content with Smart Sync. Smart Sync and system extensions. With selective sync, you can free up hard-drive space by moving content off your computer and into the cloud only.

Selective sync is a feature available on all Dropbox plans that allows you to choose which files to remove from your hard drive. Selective sync helps you save space on your computer without deleting anything from your Dropbox account. Click the Dropbox icon in the taskbar Windows or menu bar Mac. Click your avatar profile picture or initials. Select Preferences. Click Sync. Uncheck the boxes of any folders that you don't need on your computer's hard drive. Note : Any folders with a check are currently saved on your computer 8.

When you're done, click Update. How to troubleshoot issues with selective sync. Even when you open and edit a file on your phone, you are still interacting with the file in the cloud rather than downloading it directly to your device. To access your files without Wi-Fi or data service, you can make files available offline by turning on the Available offline option.

Need to go a step further? Tag an entire folder to have its contents available offline on your phone or tablet. Tap " Tap the Available offline toggle. With c omputer backup , you can automatically back up certain key folders to your Dropbox account.

Find out how to download files and folders to your computer from dropbox. Learn how to find and unzip your downloads. Help center. Team admins Team members. How to check if your Dropbox files are syncing.

Check the sync status of files in the Dropbox desktop app To check the sync status of all files and folders: Click the Dropbox icon in your taskbar Windows or menu bar Mac. Locate the file or folder you'd like to check. Note: You can use the search bar in the top right to find the file or folder.

Look at the sync icon next to the file or folder. Learn about the different sync icons and what they mean.