Storage Usage reported for online-only folders on Finder doesn't match the "User Info".

According to Dropbox team @Jane, if the info about the dropbox folder is close or equal to zero bytes, it means it doesn't take any physical space on the hard disc. The problem I guess that the operating system still sees it as if it is taking that physical space and acts accordingly, i.e., full disc or neat full. I don't know what is the way around that.

All comments

slypapp

Thanks a lot for the tip. I've been fighting with TM a while ago, sending Apple to hell several times that it is not working, and cannot finish the backups.

garczys

Hi

Did you ever get to the bottom of this? as we have a MacPro here and it's doing the same thing.

Any help greatly appreciated

Hey all, thanks for posting on the Dropbox Forum on this syncing-related matter!

You may keep in mind that I’ve moved your posts to a new thread, as the issue reported there has been resolved for the users affected & I’d like to perform some initial troubleshooting, so as to determine if you’re experiencing a similar behavior.

For starters, can you make sure that you’re running a supported version of the OS & the latest version of the Dropbox version of the Dropbox application on your system tray (46.4.65)?

If so, can you also ensure that Dropbox is actively running (eg. are your overlay icons loading correctly on your files)? Also, can you include any screenshots indicating the behavior (&/or any discrepancy) in your next replies here, so as to check back with you in more detail?

Please include any other detail in regards to your configuration that would help identify the behavior & we’ll take it from there.

Thanks in advance & I’ll be awaiting your next posts here!

I don’t use TM to backup my Dropbox folder...again, not sure why you would do that?

However not seeing the true sizes of folders (ie the space they’re taking up on local drive) is rather annoying

Hey @akaraetteh, to have a closer look into discrepancies of the disc usage reported when making files available Online-only, please include a screenshot of the behavior in your next reply, as well as any additional details, so as to check back on the matter together.

Thanks in advance & I’ll be awaiting your next post here!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/4CTpPG8HVFDtzVwd2

Hi Jane

Here's a photo that gives you an indication of all you need to know

MacOS Sierra

Latest stable dropbox build

my folder is 160GB (reported by OS), but "taking up" approx 40GB

Also view the 2 online-only folders: Demig0s...XYZ - both reported as 1.74GB, and the parent folder as 3.5GB...

IMG_4390 - dropbox taking up too much space 2018.04.07.JPG

Walter

Hey @akaraetteh,

Just a quick note on this, keep in mind that 47.4.74 is already out and I would suggest to download it from here as quick as possible as this is always the first step in order to continue troubleshooting if needed.

If possible, could you also let us know what your desktop is reporting ? If syncing is complete, you should see the "Up to date" message.

Thanks!

Hey @akaraetteh, & just to add to @Walter’s comment that, when it comes to the screenshot, I can see that your “Acara” folder is a Mixed state folder, meaning that it contains both local and online-only content, therefore it’s my understanding that the 40 GBs being reported as used are in fact residing on our Mac at the moment.

Following, if it’s not too much trouble for you, could you repeat the same process for your "Demig0s” folder (the one that you’ve already marked as “Online-only” on the screenshot) & send me one more screenshot in your next post here? What do you see on the “User Info”? Does your folder report as taking up space, despite being Smart Synced?

Thanks again for your ongoing cooperation here & I’ll be awaiting your next post on this discussion. Happy Friday!

Hang on. I’m not disputing the 40GB. I (and many others) are frustrated that every folder reports its size as the size of the full folder, as if the OS doesn’t know files are online only

Eg I KNOW my Akara folder is only 40GB on my disk. But I can’t tell from my OS which folders are taking up the most space on my disk because the OS doesn’t report that. So if, for example, I want to free up some space on my disk, I can’t go to MacOS Finder, sort by size, and make the biggest folder online only. Because doing that won’t affect what is the “biggest” folder as reported to the OS.
The BIGGEST folder reported by the OS is only the folder that’s taking up the most space in the cloud, not the one taking up the most space locally

Furthermore I’m away for a week and so won’t be at my work computer. But if the update is available for Sierra I’ll make sure it happens (we’re very careful with upgrades as they often break something critical)

I understand @akaraetteh & thanks for clarifying the specifics of your initial inquiry for me here, now I’m right on the same page with you. I’ve made sure to gather all the info you’ve included here & I’ll send that to the relevant team in form of a question.

Once I have more details on the matter, I’ll update the thread here. I hope you have a great weekend ahead & thanks again for posting your question on the Dropbox Community!

Thanks for the replies and splitting of threads.

Now that you've investigated that Finder reports sizes incorrectly, what are next steps? Do we live with this forever?

Surely the point of Smart Sync is to allow us to save space. And in order to save space, we need to conveniently know how much space is being taken up. Having to individually "Get Info" on files/folders defeats this process.

Can we (as in dropbox) get in touch with Apple and get something about this behaviour updated?

Hey @akaraetteh, thanks for getting back in touch, let me clarify in a bit more detail for you & we’ll take it from there!

As it’s my understanding that you’re referring to my last reply here, where I’ve explained the thread separation, I’d happily elaborate more on my fourth comment:

<SPAN class=" author-d-16z86ztz122z98z81zz82zz85zunv3z82zpqfnl9z76zz78zz77zz85zz65zvz87zz77zz72zcz74z32z85z6z89z7wnxvz90zbvhyz77z">- The Properties</SPAN> <SPAN class=" author-d-16z86ztz122z98z81zz82zz85zunv3z82zpqfnl9z76zz78zz77zz85zz65zvz87zz77zz72zcz74z32z85z6z89z7wnxvz90zbvhyz77z">(Win) and Get Info</SPAN> <SPAN class=" author-d-16z86ztz122z98z81zz82zz85zunv3z82zpqfnl9z76zz78zz77zz85zz65zvz87zz77zz72zcz74z32z85z6z89z7wnxvz90zbvhyz77z">(Mac OS) panel will </SPAN><SPAN class=" author-d-iz88z86z86za0dz67zz78zz78zz74zz68zjz80zz71z9iz90za3lunp2z72z9z75zz81zz79z78z82zz71zz88z9z122zvfn2z89zanz82zo2z74zz67z">indicate </SPAN><SPAN class=" author-d-16z86ztz122z98z81zz82zz85zunv3z82zpqfnl9z76zz78zz77zz85zz65zvz87zz77zz72zcz74z32z85z6z89z7wnxvz90zbvhyz77z">the actual file size </SPAN><SPAN class=" author-d-iz88z86z86za0dz67zz78zz78zz74zz68zjz80zz71z9iz90za3lunp2z72z9z75zz81zz79z78z82zz71zz88z9z122zvfn2z89zanz82zo2z74zz67z">instead of</SPAN><SPAN class=" author-d-16z86ztz122z98z81zz82zz85zunv3z82zpqfnl9z76zz78zz77zz85zz65zvz87zz77zz72zcz74z32z85z6z89z7wnxvz90zbvhyz77z"> the size on disk</SPAN><SPAN class=" author-d-iz88z86z86za0dz67zz78zz78zz74zz68zjz80zz71z9iz90za3lunp2z72z9z75zz81zz79z78z82zz71zz88z9z122zvfn2z89zanz82zo2z74zz67z">, as you may expect</SPAN><SPAN class=" author-d-16z86ztz122z98z81zz82zz85zunv3z82zpqfnl9z76zz78zz77zz85zz65zvz87zz77zz72zcz74z32z85z6z89z7wnxvz90zbvhyz77z">.</SPAN> <SPAN class=" author-d-16z86ztz122z98z81zz82zz85zunv3z82zpqfnl9z76zz78zz77zz85zz65zvz87zz77zz72zcz74z32z85z6z89z7wnxvz90zbvhyz77z">“Size on disk” is the space being taken up by a placeholder file and should be around 0kb.</SPAN>

(i.e. based on our discussion above this is the closest match to what you’ve previously described)

You may keep in mind that there are various places to see the size of a file in Finder. Some of these locations will display the logical size, others the physical size. Let me re-iterate that when you set your files as online-only, there is a file that takes up approximately 0kb & this is the physical size. The logical size of the file is the actual size of the file, if it were downloaded to the device.

That being said, I’ve asked you to include a screenshot of the view you’re getting on the “User Info” screen previously, as this is the most reliable source of info, whereas in other views of Finder, the operating system will report the logical size.

My advice to address the disc space usage inquiry you’re having would be to utilize the du command (& you may find all the relevant details online with a google-search), though I could also discuss the particulars in regards to your feature request via email, so as to make our team specialists aware of your requests & benefits of the feature in your workflow. Once you confirm that you’d like to continue this discussion via email, I’ll message you directly on my end.

Thanks again & I’ll be awaiting your next reply on this discussion!

Email re feature request would be great. [personal info removed by Jane]

And I think you're still missing the point of my posts. Perhaps feature request is the best place.

But if this is a Mac OS problem, I'd rather Dropbox put pressure on Apple than kept going back and forth with me.

FYI here's that same folder's info.

24GB total, but 9GB local. Again - that's cool. But useless for sorting/finding which folders to make online/mixed...it takes faaaaar too long to have to individually query each folder. Making smart sync a "nice to have but not very useful" feature...I'm almost ready to downgrade back to Selective Sync which is much more transparent.

Screen Shot 2018-05-11 at 21.png

The "du" command I'm familiar with...and it doesn't SORT, so again, du -d 1 will give me a 100 entries (the number of entries in my dropbox root folder) to parse [this being the next closest thing to what I need].

Alternatively, dropbox could introduce a browser that shows "physical usage" based on the UNIX command du, and we'd not have this problem. However at the moment, because of how dropbox presents its online-only files to the kernel/OS, no browser we know of is useful for determining physical usage.

I appreciate your ongoing cooperation & thanks for reaching back out to me on this discussion, I hope you’re doing well today!

Initially, you may keep in mind that I’ve slightly modified your photo (& re-uploaded here), as it included some sensitive personal info.

Following, because I understand your concern, I’ve made sure to reach out to you directly via email (on the email address connected to your Forum profile), so as to further address your inquiries via our Official Support channel.

At your convenience, please check your inbox for my latest message and let me know here if you have any issues locating it.

Thanks again & I’ll be awaiting your next email, so as to move forward on the matter together!

MikeWinters

Jane,

You are asking for a lot of information from users, and your "solutions" are not solutions, just more questions. This behavior is disappointing and should be fixed. Only a true solution should be marked as such. Nothing here so far has been "Solved."

Doesn't Dropbox have a development team that can run MacOSX 10.13.4 and replicate this issue themselves (The answer is yes). Please ask them to figure it out. And please stop this madness of "Solved" replies when no solutions yet exists.

Many thanks,

Mike

MikeWinters

Jane,

I've read through all of these posts, and still have not found a solution. Will you please refrain from marking your post as a "Solution" when you only ask more questions? It is very confusing to newcomers, and is also just misleading. As far as I can tell nothing here has been "solved."

Let me ask you this, doesn't Dropbox have a development team that can run MacOSX 10.13.4 and replicate this issue themselves? The answer is yes, and I think it would be a better use of time for them to replicate it rather than continually asking users to post more information and marking your further questions as "Solutions."

Many thanks,

Mike

Sorry to hear that the post marked as a Solution doesn’t address your inquiries @MikeWinters & thanks for your honest feedback here!

You may keep in mind that I surely haven’t accepted my post as a Solution, as I’m of the same opinion as you that this would be misleading to other users visiting the thread with the same question & I aim to create an inviting environment to anyone visiting our Community. Based on your comments though, it’s my understanding that you are concerned in regards to the storage usage reported for online-only folders on your Finder window. Am I right in my assumption?

If so, please note that I’ve included some details in regards to the physical vs logical size above & I’ve also made sure to pass all the points made on this discussion to our higher level technicians, when it comes to the feature request. Of course I remain at your entire disposal should you need to discuss it in more detail, so please don’t hesitate to share any thoughts you may have in your next post & I’ll do my best to check back with you.

Thanks & welcome to the Dropbox Forum Mike!

alevroub

Hi Jane,

I have to say I also find myself frustrated reading these comments, and other threads about this issue. I think it's very clear for everyone the difference between physical vs logical size. The point I and many others are trying to get at is that Dropbox is breaking the default, and expected behaviour of the operative system. The du command may be useful for single folders. However, Disk Utility and System Information report the nominal size of Dropbox files (online and offline) under Documents in High Sierra (10.13.4), which gives a very skewed overview of actual disk usage. The size column in Finder is more or less useless too. Clearing the Dropbox cache doesn't fix this issue, and so far there has not been a single real solution to this problem.

Hello again to all (& welcome aboard

@alevroub)

, I’m just updating this thread here, as I received some feedback on the progress that I’d like to share with you. I’ve collected all your feedback & comments posted here & I’ve passed on to our team specialists, who are working towards a solution. Once I have an update, I’ll make sure to get back in touch here with more info.

I hope that this is helpful to you & thanks a lot to everyone who reached out on the Forum on this matter!

edwincar

Hi,

Any further news? It has been 2 weeks since last communication by Jane.

I have 95G in my Dropbox and I just installed Dropbox on a new iMac (10.13.5) and the "About This Mac" Storage tab shows that I am using 95G of storage on my harddrive for document inspite that all foders and files in Dropbox are marke "online only" with Smart Sync and display the cloud icon.

Also I have dropbox on my Macbook Pro and the cloud or green tick icon are not showing in the dropbox folder.

Thank you in advance.

Regards.... Edwin

Hey @edwincar,

Thanks for checking in on our Community in regards to the progress of this matter, I’d happily discuss that with you in a bit more detail below!

You may keep in mind that the behavior described on this thread has now been acknowledged on our “Known Issues” report, therefore @Ed (our Community Manager) will make sure to post an update when our engineers release a fix.

Following, as I’d like to follow-up on your request as closely as possible, can you please check the following for me?

As an initial step, can you make sure that you’re running the latest stable version of the application on your iMac (52.4.58) & it’s syncing correctly on your system tray :arrows_counterclockwise:/ :white_check_mark:?
If it’s not too much trouble for you, could you include a screenshot of your Dropbox folder’s “User Info”? Do your files take up any hard disc space, despite being marked as online-only?

Secondly, when it comes to your Macbook Pro, I’d like to point you towards third party apps that may be obstructing our updates in the background (eg. some users have reported that the application "Boxifier" blocks the installation from being carried correctly). To bypass this, could you disable any Security/Antivirus programs & give our offline installer a try?

https://www.dropbox.com/downloading?plat=mac&type=full (Mac)

Once you do, please let me know of the outcome in your next post, so that we work on that as closely as possible. Thanks again & enjoy your weekend!

Juunas

Hi @Jane,

I stumbled upon this thread trying to troubleshoot the same issue. Your latest post from June says it's a known issue and being investigated, however I couldn't find a post mentioning it having been resolved. What's the current situation? I found a newer thread about the same problem and submitted a ticket with screenshots (ticket id

#8217407).

Joonas

Hey @Juunas, you may keep in mind that each individual case should be best addressed on a private discussion (i.e. via our Official Support channel), as we'd need to access sensitive account-specific info in order to get a clearer picture of the space usage (& that’s mostly the main reason why we have a few active discussions on the Forum, though each one is- usually- separate from the others).

If I had to briefly wrap up this thread, I’d have to say that the request concerns the space reported on the Finder Window, which doesn’t match the “Get Info” & how that affects the sorting options on the OS. As I haven’t got an update on the progress to share with you at the moment, I can make sure to ask our higher-level technicians & circle back here once I have more info.

Following, because I’d like to address your concerns in the best possible way & I appreciate all the time you took to write in to us, I’ve made sure to forward your request to a specialized colleague, who’ll clarify matters in more detail for you on your email communication.

I hope my reply is - even slightly- helpful to you & I hope that you sort this out soon. Thanks for posting us on our Forum & enjoy the rest of your day!

Dear @Jane, I have the same problem. Has it been solved yet? I've been going thru the forum and don't seem to find a final answer / solution. Thank you

mikkokan

Still not working, using latest update and OSX Mojave.

Hey @HGohar & @mikkokan, can you please share the relevant info with me in regards to your concern, in order to follow-up with you in a bit more detail? Thanks in advance!

Thank you Jane for coming back to me. My dropbox shows that my files are synced to the cloud, however, the hard disc on my mac shows that these files still exist and occupying the same space. Therefore smart sync isn't freeing any space on the hard disc. The sync is complete and I can access it from other devices.

Hey @HGohar, thanks for reaching back out to me on this discussion elaborating a bit on your initial post!

Your best course of action to determine how much space your your Dropbox folder is currently taking up on your device would be to refer to the Get Info on your Mac (or Properties on a pc).

As there are various places to see the size of a file in Finder, some of these locations will display the logical size, while others will show you the physical size. (Note: Smart Sync placeholders takes up approximately 0kb, which is the physical size. The logical size of the file is the actual size of the file, if it were downloaded to the device.)

To see both the logical and physical file size:

- Right click on a file/folder

- Select 'Get info'

- In the properties window you will see the original file size, followed by the actual on-disk size

<SPAN class=" author-d-iz88z86z86za0dz67zz78zz78zz74zz68zjz80zz71z9iz90za3z66zsz65z7gz85zz86zz70zz79zz80z3z85z6z87ziz78zz83zigfz86zz80z5z80zblcz70zz86z">For example:428,510 bytes (0 KB on disk)</SPAN>

It is important to be able to view both sizes, not just to reassure you that the file is not taking up space, but also to understand the space and speed implications of returning the file(s).

In other views of Finder, the operating system will report the logical size. For this reason you shouldn't be concerned if it initially appears that the placeholder is taking up space. To confirm the file or folder is not taking up space, please check via the above steps. Files that are not taking up space on disk will have an icon overlay that changes from the usual green tick to the grey cloud icon, denoting that the file isn't locally present.

Please do let me know how these pointers apply in your current setup & I’ll do my best to check back what’s happening. In order to follow-up more closely with you, I’d appreciate a screenshot of what you're seeing in your next post as well; I’ll be awaiting your next reply!

Thanks @Jane, I followed the steps you mentioned. The Dropbox info shows it occupies 840kb (physical size 35 GB) however when comparing it with the "About this mac" ----> Storage---->Documents---->file browser it shows that it occupies 35 GB of the hard disc. So I'm not sure if my mac sees it at 840KB cause it is calculating the available space based on the physical rather than the logical size. I've tried to include a screenshot but I get an unexpected error message.