Many users sharing files with my application using dropbox api

john g.79

I have a web application where users can upload their files read/only to my application. Call this user_file_i.

My application then creates a new file for each file the user uploaded. Call this output_file_i.

My application can asynchronously update the output_file_i.

 

I love the dropbox user experience, so would like to investigate if I can use dropbox api
as a replacement for my web application file upload.  I have not used the dropbox API, so have 
no idea if this is a good or bad idea.  Would love some guidance.

 

Some Questions:

Q1: Does the API allow a user of dropbox allow a user to say "share this directory and the files below with application_x" where application_x is my application.

Q2: Does the API allow my application to get notifications when files are added and removed from the above shared folder?

Q3: Does the API allow my application to download the modified file from dropbox where my application is a linux application?

        My desire is not to persist the file on my application but rather just down load the file when modified, process it, create an output then forget about the file.  So my application is more for a transaction rather then long term storage of the file.  My application has many replicas, so do not want to persist locally the user files.

Q4: When my application has created output_file_i, can the API deliver the file to a registered user? Again, without persisting the file in my web application.  So if file produced today, my app shares it with user+i and forgets the file, then later the user download the file?

Q5: Since my application is more of a transaction processor, how would my application be billed by dropbox.

 

Greg-DB

1. Dropbox and the Dropbox API don't offer a concept of sharing with an application exactly; sharing takes place across accounts. For example, a user can share a folder with another user. A user can authorize an app to access their account though, which would give the app (as long as it has the "Full Dropbox" access type) the ability to access all folders (shared or not) that happen to be in the user's account. You may want to check out the Getting Started Guide and Sharing Guide.

 

2. Yes, the Dropbox API offers ways of detecting changes in connected accounts. Check out the Detecting Changes Guide for information on doing so.

 

3. Yes, the Dropbox API offers the ability to download file data from connected account(s) on demand. Check out the File Access Guide, and the /2/files/download endpoint in particular. (By the way, that's a link to the documentation for the HTTPS endpoints themselves, but we recommend using one of the official SDKs if possible. Those have corresponding native methods for the HTTPS endpoints.)

 

4. Yes, you could then pass the data directly to the user through your app's interface, or if the user has connected their own Dropbox account, upload it their Dropbox account, e.g., using /2/files/upload.

 

5. Use of the Dropbox API itself is free. The API is built such that developers can create apps that any kind of Dropbox account can connect to. It is only if the owners of any individual (or group of) Dropbox accounts want to upgrade is there cost involved. You can see more information on pricing and plans here.