Child Item

Dropbox folder moved and renamed after team downgrade - it doesn't sync most of my files now

Hello,

I upgraded to a Dropbox business trial from Dropbox Plus, and then downgraded. After downgrading, my dropbox folder was moved and renamed. It used to be "Dropbox", but after the downgrade my files were in "[My Name] Dropbox (Old)" (moved elsewhere on my C drive), with a new folder appearing called "Dropbox (1)" located where "Dropbox" used to be. However, "Dropbox (1)" is not simply a copy of "[My Name] Dropbox (Old)", it is out of date by a few days and has size of about 30GB locally relative to 700+ GB in "[My Name] Dropbox (Old)". The only folder which is synced is "Dropbox (1)". I have been unable to sync the folder "[My Name] Dropbox (Old)".

I would like to revert back to how my dropbox was as of 1 week ago before the upgrade/downgrade, so that I can sync the folder with my current files in it.

I have not been able to get it resolved with Dropbox Support - the general advice was to wait to hear from an 'advanced specialist', who did get back but with a solution that does not apply in my case. However, it was also mentioned this renaming of folders when downgrading is a known issue dropbox is working to resolve. So, I mustn't be the only person having the problem?

Any suggestions much appreciated. All my files are backed up to dropbox, including my dissertation which I need to submit very soon so I'm pretty desperate for help. The option I thought of was to create a new dropbox account and back up my local files there, but dropbox support was adamant that doing so would cause further problems. So, I am really stuck...

Thank you!

Find more posts tagged with

Desktop

Sync

Folders

Insightful

Closed - Partially Delivered

Comments

Nancy

Hi @sha4, and I’m sorry to hear about this issue.

When checking your web Home page, do you see all of your files there or is there content missing (given that the local Dropbox folder only contains about 30GBs now)?

What's the syncing status of your Dropbox app now?

Have you checked your selective sync settings here, and there are no large folders that have been unselected?

I was also able to locate your support ticket in the meantime, and I’ve left an internal note on your behalf to our advanced agent.

Let me know once you have more info.

sha4

Hi Nancy,

Thank you for your reply. It was not a selective sync issue as far as I understand, rather Dropbox renamed and unlinked my folder when I downgraded, and created a new one.

I will share the current solution from Dropbox support in case it helps anyone else.

As I understand, I cannot reconnect my folder as it was prior to the upgrade/downgrade. I need to unlink/relink my account and make a new local dropbox folder, which will then sync with my online drobox.

Now, since what is online is not up-to-date with my local folder (which was automatically moved and renamed 9 days ago with the downgrade), I need to manually go through each file to see what is missing (or not up-to-date) and move those files. In my case, it will be a lot and it is not feasible to go folder by folder and file by file. I proposed cutting-and-pasting the contents of my entire old folder but I was told:

"At this point, I can see that you are using 2,77 TB out of your total 3 TB. The easiest way to proceed would be to manually check the files that you will have in the new Dropbox folder to see if something is missing. In case you have multiple files in the Dropbox folder, it may not be able to automatically locate the duplicates and delete them."

My total files will not exceed 3TB, but it sounds like I will face an issue in moving the files because of the duplicates Dropbox created. At this point, it is my only option and Dropbox support only replies once every 24 hours so after 9 days of this issue I need to proceed and hope for the best.

Just sharing this for anyone else who would face the same problem - hopefully you have only half your Dropbox space used when you downgrade, or -- better yet -- avoid upgrading all together as this hassle will have cost me 10+ days of work (depending on how long moving the files takes).

Rich

@sha4 wrote:
... I need to manually go through each file to see what is missing (or not up-to-date) and move those files. In my case, it will be a lot and it is not feasible to go folder by folder and file by file.

Get a copy of Beyond Compare. I'm pretty sure the trial is full-function for a time. Use it to compare the old and new Dropbox folders. It has a feature to only show the differences or orphans between two locations and you can copy files from one side to another or use it to make both sides identical. It will make this task A LOT easier. It's one of the best pieces of software I own.

sha4

Hi Rich,

This is brilliant! I have use this software in the past for comparing file contents, but I didn't realize it could also compare/sync folders. Thank you so much for sharing your insight. You have saved me a lot of headache.

Have a wonderful day,

Shannon

sha4

Hi again Rich,

I realized the problem is I will not be able to have two copies of my dropbox files on my device (hard drive is 1 TB, and I'm almost at that with my original dropbox folder). Thus I cannot sync the same folders from dropbox online as in my original dropbox folder on my hard drive.

I can think of two solutions:

1. Get an external hard drive, cut all the files from my original dropbox folder to the external hard drive. Sync the online hard drive. Do the folder comparison via Beyond compare, and move files selectively (or via the merge option). However, I am wary of data loss with an external hard drive as I have had them become corrupted before.

2. Link my online dropbox to my computer, creating a new folder as per the support's instructions. But instead of syncing any folders leave it all 'online only'. Cut-and-paste my entire original folder to the new dropbox folder and, once it has entirely moved, sync it with dropbox online. I asked support about this but they only indicated I should do the manual check, so I am not sure if there is a reason this is a bad idea.

Grateful for any advice you have,

Shannon

Rich

@sha4 wrote:
2. ... But instead of syncing any folders leave it all 'online only'. Cut-and-paste my entire original folder to the new dropbox folder ...

3. Leave everything as Online-only and set one folder at a time as Available Offline. Compare that one folder (or a selection of folders if you can sync a few at a time). Once you know the files match, remove them from the old folder and set a few more as Available Offline. Rinse and repeat.

sha4

Ah, of course:) Thank you for your time! You've saved me a lot!