Child Item

My desktop app isn't syncing to my account online on Linux.

My Linux is not syncing. Is there a way for it to sync automatically? If not automatically then manually?

I have had a Dropbox account for many years but I have not used it much. Now I want to uplaod files to Dropbox and then have them available in a Linux VM. I have installed the Dropbox applications in Windows and Linux. I have a Dropbox folder in both systems. I have changed files and folders in my Windows system and I see the changes in the online Dropbox. The Linux Dropbox does not change.

I found the article Check if your Dropbox files are syncing - Dropbox Help but it says nothing about Linux. I found the article Solved: Syncing is stuck on my Linux devices, what can I d... - Dropbox Community and similar articles and I either do not understand or the articles do not apply to me or they do not work for me.

Find more posts tagged with

Setting Up the Apps

Desktop

Sync

Linux

Spam

Insightful

Closed - Partially Delivered

Comments

Здравко

Hi @SoCalSam,

When you want to just share something between VM and host (whatever they are; including VM Linux & host Windows, but not only) sharing a local folder using the virtualization system (in use) capabilities is much simpler and safer way that use of any external sync system (including Dropbox) and engages less space. You may think about this opportunity. In such a case you don't need any additional install (like Dropbox application install).

@SoCalSam wrote:
...
I found the article Check if your Dropbox files are syncing - Dropbox Help but it says nothing about Linux. ...

What about using following command:

dropbox status

This command is installed with any official package. If you have used neither deb nor rpm official packed to install, you will need to download the command (script actually) by hands and set it up.

When you say "Linux is not syncing", did you make sure the application is running at that moment and have you linked both application (Windows and Linux) to the same Dropbox account or different accounts are in use? 🧐

Hope this gives direction.

SoCalSam

What about using following command:
dropbox status
This command is installed with any official package. If you have used neither deb nor rpm official packed to install, you will need to download the command (script actually) by hands and set it up.
When you say "Linux is not syncing", did you make sure the application is running at that moment and have you linked both application (Windows and Linux) to the same Dropbox account or different accounts are in use? 🧐
Hope this gives direction.

That command was not installed. I used the instructions in Install - Dropbox to install Dropbox. Using those instructions, a Dropbox directory was created with the contents of my Dropbox as it existed when I did the installation.

I installed nautilus-dropbox and the status shows that Dropbox is not running. The instructions do not say that we need to execute the daemon more than once and when I do execute it I cannot do anything else. I do not understand how to run the daemon and use the rest of the system at the same time.

Здравко

@SoCalSam wrote:
...
That command was not installed. I used the instructions in Install - Dropbox to install Dropbox. ...

@SoCalSam, On the page you linked to are different instructions (2 groups actually). If you have followed the first group, then you should have the command installed (it's internal part of the package). If you have followed the second group (as seems to be), then you have installed ( by hands, not a package) just the daemon without anything else (including without the control script 'dropbox'). In the second case you need to download and install the control script independently (as noted in the same page) again by hands or install some package (you probably installed rpm).

@SoCalSam wrote:
... the status shows that Dropbox is not running. The instructions do not say that we need to execute the daemon more than once and when I do execute it I cannot do anything else. I do not understand how to run the daemon and use the rest of the system at the same time.

The daemon can run just once per user context. If you have one running already, you cannot run another (not in the same user context at least). Take in mind that when you run 'dropbox status' in some context you're checking the status of instance running in the same context, if any. If you have ran Dropbox in another/different user context, that left inaccessible for 'dropbox status' and it reports not running!

To avoid mistakes don't run Dropbox application (the daemon - more precisely) using '~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd', but use 'dropbox start'. 😉 To see other possible command variants use 'dropbox help'.

Hope this helps.

SoCalSam

Those instructions are very unclear to me. It was totally unclear that I could and should do the top part and not the bottom part.

You say cannot run another but I cannot run anything when the daemon is executing.

Здравко

What I said:

@Здравко wrote:
...
The daemon can run just once per user context. If you have one running already, you cannot run another ...

...and what you're saying:

@SoCalSam wrote:
... but I cannot run anything when the daemon is executing.

Hm...🤔 Yes, 🙋 different words order, but the same meaning, I think. Don't you agree? Why at all are you trying it? 🧐 The only thing you can try run is one more application, something that's impossible. 🤷 What lefts unclear? Despite running Dropbox application shouldn't affect to run of any other application (different than Dropbox).

Add: Ok, to be certain everything starts from "Zero", restart your machine and after login try the following commands one by one (before starting anything else):

dropbox status
dropbox start -i
dropbox status

Post the terminal' output as is (all together) if there's something strange and you are not aware what's it.

SoCalSam

@Здравко wrote:
What I said:
@Здравко wrote:
...
The daemon can run just once per user context. If you have one running already, you cannot run another ...
...and what you're saying:
@SoCalSam wrote:
... but I cannot run anything when the daemon is executing.
Hm...🤔 Yes, 🙋 different words order, but the same meaning, I think. Don't you agree?

No. Very different meaning. I am trying to say that when I use ~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd I cannot do anything else and you are saying that I just cannot execute another daemon. Very different meanings. When I issue that command I get the following in my command window:

And then the command window does not accept any more input. I cannot issue any more commands.

Add: Ok, to be certain everything starts from "Zero", restart your machine and after login try the following commands one by one (before starting anything else):
dropbox status
dropbox start -i
dropbox status
Post the terminal' output as is (all together) if there's something strange and you are not aware what's it.

Refer to what I was said previously. When I posted my question, I did not have the dropbox command installed.

Здравко

@SoCalSam wrote:
...
No. Very different meaning. I am trying to say that when I use ~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd I cannot do anything else and you are saying that I just cannot execute another daemon. Very different meanings. When I issue that command I get the following in my command window:
...

Ahh... I didn't suppose you miss basic console work knowledge. 🤷
Ok. In terminal, by default, when some command is run, the shell passes control there and wait for command end. Once the command ends, the shell continue its regular work (usually shows command prompt). In above screenshot you're running Dropbox daemon directly!!! It will keep running until you stop it; so new prompt will not show again until daemon stop. As I said this is by default. You can detach particular command and let it run without shell waits for it using ending ampersand (&); so the shell will show command prompt immediately after run (keep in mind that the command outputs will still dup to the terminal if you don't detach them too). In this context your command from the screenshot can change to something like:

~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd &

Hope this fast lesson helps you, but better jump into more deep meets with console in general and the shell you're using too. 😉 You will likely need this! So again it's the same meaning.

@SoCalSam wrote:
...
I installed nautilus-dropbox and the status shows that Dropbox is not running. ...

@SoCalSam wrote:
...
Refer to what I was said previously. When I posted my question, I did not have the dropbox command installed.

Hm...🤔 Do you understand that you contradict to yourself? The 'dropbox' command is part of the package you state that have installed! What's the truth?

Ok. If there is some mistake on install, you can do it by hands too. Run following commands:

sudo wget -O /usr/bin/dropbox https://www.dropbox.com/download?dl=packages/dropbox.py
sudo chmod a+x /usr/bin/dropbox

After that you have 'dropbox' command installed already. Using this control script you don't need to detach (add ampersand at the end) anything explicitly (it's done by the script automatic). Try repeat the advices from my previous post now. 🙂

Good luck.