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Downloading and opening Scrivener files backed up to DropBox

mylafantastik

I write almost exclusively in Scrivener and have been using DropBox to back up my files for years. Knowing it was in synch, I assumed this was fine when I dropped off my laptop at the Mac store to have it repaired. Today I signed onto DB to download my backup so I could work on it while the other computer was away, but the files don't open. Instead I get this error:

"The project at "[x]" seems to be of an older format, but no binder.scrivproj file could be found inside it. It may be missing or corrupt, possibly because of a problem with the device on which it is stored, or because of a synchronisation problem.

Try ctrl-clicking on the project in the Finder and selecting "Show Package Contents", then look for a file entitled 'binder.scrivproj'. Ensure it has not been renamed by a backup routine. If it does not exist, try restoring from a backup."

I've also tried downloading the Data files, but when I try to open them it says they're empty. I know the Scrivener version on both computers is up to date so that's not the issue.

Any thoughts? It will be a moot point if I get my laptop back and everything went fine, but they asked me twice if I'd backed up and made me sign a waiver about the hard drive accidentally being wiped and now I'm panicking...

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Jay

Hi @mylafantastik, thanks for joining the Community!

I use Scrivener so I understand how it backs up to Dropbox.

It sounds like it was corrupted in some way, maybe the files were already deleted from the Mac in repair?

Are you able to recover an old version of the file from the Dropbox site, or if it was deleted, try this page?

Keep me updated with any progress!

mylafantastik

Thanks for your insight, but the file shouldn't have been deleted (I never delete anything and almost never log in to DropBox) unless someone went in and deleted it after I dropped the computer off. It only shipped out for repairs this morning. It seems like all of the .scriv files I try to download give me the same error message. Old .docs from years ago are downloading and opening fine.

I see on my DB dashboard that I have recent data files that synched with long alphanumeric names that I thought would be for the .scriv files I've been using lately, but when I try to open them there's nothing.

Jay

Do you see any recent events which could indicate if the files were moved elsewhere for some reason?

mylafantastik

No, the most recent event is the creation of a folder.

I guess it's moot for now, I was able to nab my laptop before they sent it out for repairs and get everything on my external hard drive. I'd still like to have a backup system I don't need to think about though. Maybe there are settings for Scrivener files I need to adjust?

Thanks for the help though!

Jay

Even if you choose not to keep Scrivener in your Dropbox folder, there's a useful feature within that app to make a zip copy of your current project every time you quit it.

It saves the last few versions of the same project, and I have those zip files automatically stored in a different Dropbox folder, so at the very least, you'll have a full backup in zip format if the worst happens.

mylafantastik

Thanks! That's a great idea. I'll have to get mine set up the same way.

Jay

Glad to have helped out a fellow writer, @mylafantastik!

Enjoy the remainder of your week!

LilyMuseic

All Dropbox replies always sound like bots, by which I mean, they often can't assess what the real issue is I am facing. I spent over a year on the most expensive version of Dropbox and had so many issues. Every reply I received from Dropbox forum, blew off the fact that i had already tried everything their published articles indicated to do. It really helped to discover that the simple answer to why so many things on Dropbox didn't work for me is that they do not provide support for ALL the different versions of Mac OS, which is understandable for many reasons starting with the fact that Dropbox is very corporate-centric which means the world of Windows operating systems is their realm. Mac users, just be aware of this. 🙂