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Dropbox notifications popup window is partially off screen; cannot access preferences

Dropbox popup window is partially off screen; cannot quit Dropbox. In Windows 10, in the task bar, I click on Dropbox icon in the task bar notification area and the Dropbox window pops up with the upper half off screen, so I cannot quit Dropbox or access any Dropbox settings, search, open Dropbox folder on local computer or in cloud. Please don't tell me that is a software limitation with Windows display management. Many other programs do not have this problem in Windows. When I increase my resolution through Windows Display settings then Dropbox pops up the window with all the normal icon controls visible. Up until a few weeks ago the Dropbox window would pop up with the menu icons at the top of the window easily accessible. Not anymore. There mus of been a Dropbox update that has screwed up that dialog window. How do I report this recently introduced bug to Dropbox--not that I actually believe they will fix it.

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Iliana-DBX

Hello everyone!

This Dropbox app scaling issue has been brought to my attention. The issue can be resolved by making DPI scaling adjustments directly to the Dropbox application without making the change to your complete system.

Please follow the steps below to make these changes.

Open Windows File Explorer, then copy and paste this file path in the search bar:
C:\Program Files (x86)\Dropbox\Client
Right-click on the Dropbox application in this folder
Select Properties and then click the Compatability tab.
Select Change high DPI settings
Check the box labeled Override High DPI scaling behavior
Then, click the drop down menu and be sure that System (Enhanced) is selected.
Click Apply to save the changes.
Restart your machine and open Dropbox from the system tray.

Sorry for any inconveniences this may have caused. Please let us know if there are any further issues after making these adjustments.

All comments

Hannah

Hey @Don Jensen, thanks for letting us know about this.

Is your screen zoomed in by any chance?

Can you send us a screenshot of how this looks for you, so we can have a visual?

Thanks!

Don Jensen

I don't know what you mean by zoomed in this context. I don't know if Windows 10 has a zoom lens or if the scaling option in Windows suffices for what you mean by zoomed. I am accustomed to zooming in on a Macintosh and that is not what I see with the scaling options in Window's "Scale and layout" option in Display Settings. On the Mac 'zoom' actually zooms into the displayed screen; with one option therein truncates the visual area while zooming, and another zoom option is like a magnifying glass to a portion of the screen. Screen resolution and zooming works on the Mac. On Windows all-too-many applications have windows that are displayed partially or entirely off screen if the resolution isn't set high enough. I have only seen an application do that once while using Macintosh computers for 35+ years.

The takeaway for you is that less than a few weeks ago, whenever I wanted to shut down Dropbox I could click on the icon in the notification area and see the full Dropbox dialog drop down and then choose to quit the application. In addition, when I go to the applications list from the Windows Start menu, I Dropbox doesn't allow me to quit from there either. I suppose I could go into task manager and end the process—but that is really stupid programming on the part of Dropbox programmers to require ending the process just to temporarily quit Dropbox—especially considering that it worked previously! Apparently some update screwed up the notification area access to quit.

Don Jensen

Here are two images of the Dropbox issue:

dialog hiding icon menu off-screendialog showing icon menu at top

Don Jensen

How do I report a Dropbox bug? I have already sought help for my issue on the Community Forum and got no help to solve it. Therefore I am left to assume it is a bug in a recent update to the Dropbox program code.

Megan

Hi @Don Jensen, sorry to jump in here.

I would like for you to locate your Dropbox icon next to your WiFi, and hover your mouse there. That should give you the app's version.

Also, can you let me know how long this has been happening for?

Don Jensen

The version is 152.44880. The pop-up also says "Up to date".

How long has this happened for? I cannot say precisely. I noticed it sometime during the last month or two.

I don't need to shutdown Dropbox every week…probably average 2 or 3 times per month…when I need to stop all Internet communications except for security reasons, a select application. Presently this requires (1) quitting the Dropbox processes because I cannot access the Dropbox menu, then restarting the computer to get Dropbox working again, or (2) changing my display resolution to reach the Dropbox quite menu, then changing it back afterwards; which is a nuisance and sometimes error prone since I have to remember or write down 4 different resolution parameters, e.g. 1600 x 1200 and 1360 x 768. That is a lot of machinations just to temporarily quit Dropbox. Nearly all other applications provide access to "quit".

Nancy

Sorry for jumping in too, @Don Jensen.

Can you please try something else with me and let me know if it works?

What I’d like you to do is to press Ctrl+ left click on the Dropbox icon instead. Do you see an option saying “Exit Dropbox” perhaps?

Don Jensen

Ctrl+ left click on the Dropbox icon does not produce anything different than a single left click on the Dropbox icon; except it then requires another Ctrl+ left click to close the Dropbox pop-up window.

Nancy

Hmm, I see.

In this case, can I log a ticket for you instead, so that we can check this in more detail?

Let me know.

Don Jensen

Yes, please "log a ticket".

FYI, previous versions of Dropbox used to pop-up the configuration menu with the top of it apparently referencing the top of of the displayable area on the screen. It has always worked on my Macintosh with previous and the latest versions of Dropbox on the Mac. However, the latest version for Windows positions the Dropbox pop-up so it is positioned partially off screen and truncated at the top of the visible screen. As a programmer myself, who has created programs that needed to place a window at the top of the visible display area, I have had to read the screen dimensions from the OS and take that into account while coding applications, else the windows would appear partially or wholly off screen. I knew this was the problem from the very beginning. Regrettably it has taken me quite of personal time to convey this to Dropbox, when Dropbox staff could have easily and quickly verified this problem by simply changing the resolution of their monitors—rather than have me go through a variety of machinations in the hopes of finding some workaround.

Nancy

Hi again, I’ve logged a ticket for you, so you can reply back to me when you’ve got some free time.

Cheers.

awfulapp

I have the same issue. The top of the menu appears off screen so the controls are inaccessible! I saw no solution here other than shutting the app down with task menu or ctrl+ left click on dropbox icon. Really annoying bug. Dropbox saps so much memory it needs to be closed regularly but the app fights back with bad UX to stay alive. Die **bleep** you dieeee!

Jackson

Hello there @awfulapp, sorry to hear that you are having this issue.

Can you check the version of the Dropbox app, by hovering over the icon, and share it with me?

In addition, can you please send me a screenshot of how the window looks on your desktop?

Thank you!

awfulapp

It looks the same as the original poster. The top of the menu bar is off the screen.

awfulapp

Jackson

Hi @awfulapp, thank you for the screenshot.

Have you tried to reinstall the app?

If you have already, please try the advanced reinstall.

Make sure to use the last stable version when you do.

Let me know if that helps.

cm2036

I have the same issue and no idea how to fix it. The dropbox desktop app window is partially offscreen. It's a problem on two different laptops, both have windows 10. The issue is that I cannot see the preferences and I cannot sync new folders or files. I have tried changing the resolution of the screens, adding external monitors, removing them, changing the resolution on those monitors. Nothing works. What is the solution, please?

Walter

Hey @cm2036, sorry to hear about this.

Could you try installing the latest, stable version of the desktop app from this page and let us know if this persists?

Thanks!

JS27

I have the same exact problem, the dropbox pop up opens so that the top of the app is cut off the top of the screen and is not accessible. This is a clean install on a brand new laptop. I can't access any of my preferences and set up which of my folders I want to sync. This is a huge problem as our company has an insane amount of folders and data stored and the default setting is just sync the entirety to my laptop. What a terrible bug. It's for reasons like this I'm recommending my company to move away from Dropbox.

Jay

Hi @JS27, as a workaround, could you try Ctrl-Click on the Dropbox icon in the preferences to view the context menu, in order to access Preferences and other options?

Do you have any custom zoom or DPI settings for your screen resolution?

JS27

I have a new XPS13 Plus 9320 default settings out of the box. It's set to scale 300%. If I adjust to 100% the laptop becomes unusually, but the dropbox pop up displays properly. So, it seems like Dropbox does not adjust properly to scaling display on high resolution screens.

JS27

Becomes unusable*

Jay

Thanks for the info, we appreciate the feedback on this matter on how to improve the Dropbox desktop application.

Don Jensen

I've been waiting for a fix of this Dropbox bug since June of 2022. Earlier this week (01/05/2023) I downloaded and installed the latest version of Dropbox for my Windows 10 computer. The display issue I reported which fostered this thread, has yet be corrected.

Please...all of you who make suggestions to remedy this problem...you're probably wasting your time and mine. There is a workaround for this problem, as I have previously reported. I can adjust my Windows 10 display resolution so that it will display the configuration dialog window and therefore allow me to perform any normal Dropbox activity. Nevertheless, that is not a practical fix for this bug. I've been using Dropbox for many years. I know how Dropbox has worked in the past—prior to last year. It does not work well for me anymore, as this thread identifies, to some other users as well. I cannot access the Dropbox preferences nor even quit Dropbox—which I need to do once or twice a week, without a lot of machinations & workarounds.

jdbisbey

I am having the same issue, each time I open the dropbox icon, it has shifted further to the right, off the screen and the desired controls are unavailable.

version 165.4.4300

Changing the screen resolution doesn't affect the problem.

I can however, and to those who also have this, and as stated before, I can ctrl+left click the icon and pull up a menu of choices that give me access to the desired commands.

I find it oddly amusing that every time I cause the standard window to open, it has shifted a little bit more and more. eventually there will be nothing left! I would attach an image, but snipping tool, win+shift+S doesnt work either. The screen dims with the offending dropbox popup there ready to be imaged, I make a rectangle. Nothing happens. Snip won't snip for me unless I click "new" and that scares dropbox away. What a world of frustrating apps we have today.

jdbisbey

I reinstalled the app, and the popup position is reset, however, the problem persists; each time I open the popup, it is shifted offscreen a little more.

Hannah

Hey @jdbisbey and everyone else that is having this issue.

If you're still having trouble, can we reach out to you via email, to investigate further?

adgorn

Same problem here.

Walter

Hey @adgorn, sorry to hear you're also having issues with this.

Can you please clarify your device's exact OS and the version and status of the desktop app as shown in your system tray/menu bar?

Did you reboot your computer since you first noticed this by the way?

DbxUser

Same issue here...just some tech info...

Dbx 167.4.4719

Wdws 11 HP 17" Didn't matter if I made the smallest resolution, still moved this time to the right and not just up off the screen.

Made sure Dbx icon in sys tray was visible which saved some room on the pop-up, but then it moved right.....no longer could access the up/down bar to drag through if I wanted to see activity.

I have 3 of these laptops..all Wdws 11 up to date version 22h2 OS Build 22621.1105 64bit 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1135G7 @ 2.40GHz 2.42 GHz and latest dropbox. This is the only one with this problem.

I do, however, thank the thread for the Ctrl+Left Click option on the Dbx Sys Tray icon. That does work to get to the options to pause or quick or change preferences.

I have not uninstalled and reinstalled Dbx.