Child Item

Improving Uploads

Hi everyone!

My name is Kevin and I lead a team that's looking to make it easier to upload files to Dropbox. We are looking at the Dropbox website and mobile apps (both iOS and Android) to try and make uploading better in the following ways:

Reliability: less likely to fail
Performance: speed things up so you wait less
Usability: give more information during upload so you know how it's going
And much more.

I'd love to hear from all of you about your experiences with uploading content. What is working well and what is not working well? What are some of the features you wish were available to make uploading easier? What frustrates you? Don't hold back. Here to listen and engage.

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Mobile

Web

Sync

Closed - Not for right now

Closed - Partially Delivered

Comments

ShanaLynn

It would be really nice to FINALLY have the accessibility option to increase the thumbnail size in the iOS app. After uploading files, it's nearly impossible to organize them without this functionality. People have been asking for this forEVER! It's really a simple ask!!

KevinAtDropbox

Hi ShanaLynn. Thanks for your comment.

Can you tell me a bit more about thumbnail sizes and in your ideal world how this would work? Are you talking about Dropbox providing more mobile layouts you can toggle between? Or referring to specific screens where thumbnails are bigger? Or is it about being able to embiggen certain small thumbnails by long-pressing?

alitchfi

Uploading is fine, I have no issues with it and Dropbox is used seamlessly across various platforms. I often need to take photos with my Android phone device and make them available for sending or embedding in files on several computers.

However, my Android Camera Uploads process is erratic and often only triggered when I manually upload an image via the Dropbox app from my Gallery container on the phone. Only then are the photo and video files uploaded to the folder, which can then be quite slow, even on a fast wifi network and with fibre (Gigabit speeds).

Also, I use WhatsApp a lot and images that are downloaded from there are automatically uploaded to the Camera Uploads folder on Dropbox and I would prefer to stop that from happening. I am guessing that WhatsApp is putting them into the Android Gallery containers, and that may be triggering Dropbox to automatically upload them.

Android version is SKQ1.211006.001 on a POCO F2 Pro. Android Dropbox version is 316.2.2.

As an aside, it is quite hard to update the Dropbox apps on the computers. Sometimes a message comes up that an update is available but then I cannot find anywhere to select to update Dropbox (the issue, of course, may be between my seat and the keyboard).

KevinAtDropbox

Good flag on the Android camera uploads. I'll see what turns up.

On the issue of your WhatsApp downloaded images getting backed up as photos when you don't intend them to, can you verify for me what folder those images are being saved into? If you're saving them into the same folder as the rest of your mobile photos, then that's why they're being uploaded. But if you're saving them into a completely separate downloads folder, maybe we can introduce some kind of option for you to designate what folder contains your camera roll. Anyway, can you confirm for me?

alitchfi

Yes, WhatsApp defaults to the Gallery and so far as I can see, Dropbox will only upload the whole Gallery.

ShanaLynn

I'm sorry, I responded in the context of improving usability in general, not in improving uploads specifically. In searching for an answer to my problem, it seems that there have been requests for an option for larger thumbnail view specifically in the app for over 7 years.

JeffHolden

Hello. I would like to be able to upload files to a folder and allow chat GTP to be able to access them to be able to extract information. Is that possible?

Cubicle23

Deselecting a folder in selective sync should mark it as ignored first, not remove it from windows explorer. This breaks functionality in many programs.

Ru 1971

This is what’s big working well if you are on a Mac. Nothing else really matters compared to the current disaster

https://www.dropboxforum.com/t5/Storage-Space/Disaster-Dropbox-removing-external-disk-support-for-Mac-users/m-p/664098#M10719

mwallison

After installing Dropbox for Mac (beta) on my MacBook Air, it's not syncing the files that I've added from my destop Mac (that doesn't have the beta). I can see that they are there and if I double click on the file (from my MacBook Air) it does open but after a very long wait. Why is it not sync'ing??

sharonf1952

Kevin, I see that a video that I recorded on my MacAir is now in my “desktop” file on Dropbox on my iPhone. I don’t want my desktop files in Dropbox on my iPhone, so how do I take that file out of dropbox on my iPhone?

Dan159

So far It's been going well. I have no issues at all.😀

KevinAtDropbox

Thanks for all the comments so far. We are reading each of them and discussing them on the team. Just to clarify, this thread was created specifically to focus on improving file uploads on the website, as well as iOS and Android mobile apps. I'd really appreciate if we can keep the discussion to those platforms for now.

Your feedback about our desktop client is important to us, and we'll be collecting them separately. But I'd like for us to stay focused on web and mobile.

KevinAtDropbox

@JeffHolden wrote:
Hello. I would like to be able to upload files to a folder and allow chat GTP to be able to access them to be able to extract information. Is that possible?

Hi Jeff. Currently, this is not possible. But we want to better understand your use case so we can explore this. Can you say a bit more about the type of work you're doing so we can better understand what you're trying to achieve with ChatGPT?

jwisser

The new Mac app, with its limitation on where the Dropbox folder is located (among other unwanted limitations), will make it impossible for many of us to use Dropbox on Macs.

Can you confirm that those of us who do not want the new limitations will be able to continue using the current version of Dropbox for Mac indefinitely?

If you can't provide information about this, how can we reach decision-making members of the Dropbox team about this, given that questions about this here on the forums (e.g., @discofuel's) are being ignored or moved into "already-solved" threads?

Chippyme

Dropbox will not empty, I have used all the delete instructions, no change the storage is still full.

I tried uninstalling drobox & reinstalling still not change box still showing full.

How do I delete all my old unwanted files in my drobox???

DRBO22

I have been trying for some days to load the following [Removed as per Community Guidelines] without success! Any advice as to what I may be doing incorrectly?

Thank you

Christine06

Hi Kevin
I would like to upload a Recorder pro audio file, though I keep getting an error msg. Thanks for your help!

Tomi Jk

Hello, I just downgraded after the free trial. That was no problem, but the amount they refunded is wrong. And, now that they've downgraded my account, I can't "chat" with anyone about it . They charged me $207.96 for a year (when I thought I was only agreeing to a month subscription), but only credited me $124.03. Do you have any suggestions as to resolving this issue? Thank you, Tomi

Fourwinds

Hi Kevin,

I mainly use Dropbox to create backups of all my data stored on the PC. Occasionally I delete memory-intensive image and audio files on my PC to free up hard disk space - but I know the original files are still on my Dropbox.

Over time, new and updated files will accumulate on my PC. Which settings do I have to choose for the next upload so that only these (new and updated) files (and not the entire content of the hard disk) are uploaded? Is there something like an upstream comparison, as it is offered by the program "Total Commander" under the command "Synchronize directories"? TIA.

Best regards, Chris

Rlynn71

The transcription hub link won't load and says error.

jonsno

Hi Kevin! As a user who utilizes api and automation heavily I keep running into file name length issues a lot and have to modify a lot of my scripts to handle it upfront. Will it be possible to achieve parity with google drive in terms of file name length in the subsequent improvements

Brain Toomer

Hello Kevin,

Uploading the documents folder from laptop containing 14000 plus files in 20 plus folders, at the conclusion of the upload there were over 500 errors (files that failed to upload). I saw "try again" next to each failed file but can't find any option to re-attempt an upload of the failed files specifically. Then the box showing the upload details, including the failed uploads, disappeared and now I can't even try to determine exactly which files failed or why, much less attempt to upload them again. And I don't want to re-upload the entire documents folder. For one thing, it took hours. And I don't know what caused the files that failed to upload and it seems almost certain the same thing would happen again.

Any help much appreciated!!

Chippyme

Rather than Improving Uploads how about deleting a Dropbox of files? As the name indicates Dropbox is for files to drop in & take out not a permanent backup. If that was the case the name should be Backupbox. , I have used all the delete instructions to remove the contents of my Dropbox, with no change, the storage is still full. I tried uninstalling dropbox & reinstalling still not change box still showing full. I have deleted the backup file still no change How do I delete all my old unwanted files in my dropbox???

Fourwinds

Hi Kevin,

rather than receiving all these silly Dropbox badges (newcomer badge, conversation starter badge, joining in badge, supportive badge) and rankings (new member / level 2, explorer / level 3) I'd like to get an answer to my question. Or does my request sound too complex?

Brgds, Chris