I have a "ghost" folder which keeps re-appearing no matter how many times it is deleted. Any clues?
Hey, is the folder you are trying to delete empty or does it contain any files? Usually this happens because a piece of software on a computer that the folder is shared on is trying to access it, and is recreating it when someone else deletes it.If there is a file in there, looking at the 'previous versions' will tell you which machine the culprit is. If you don't have a file in there, add a test one, delete the folder again and when it reappears, you'll be able to solve the mystery! Deleting the folder on the rogue machine will fix it permanently.
I have had the same issue.
The problem was that the folder on Dropbox (web) contained a file that not existed in the folder on my pc (because of an old selective sync).
I have manually deleted that file from the web and then I have succesfully deleted the folder from the pc (without it being reappeared).
P.S.: you could argue that selective sync doesn't work on single files, but it is not completely true...
I think I finally figured this out for my situation. My folders had brackets [ ] around it so it appeared at the top of my folders list on my PC. Once I removed the brackets and had no special characters in the folder name it deleted fine. Hopefully it sticks.
@maxfactor's solution solved it for me:
The problem was that the folder on Dropbox (web) contained a file that not existed in the folder on my pc (because of an old selective sync).I have manually deleted that file from the web and then I have succesfully deleted the folder from the pc (without it being reappeared).
I installed dropbox earlier tonight and I allowed it to do a full sync with my local folder. When I checked it out as it was close to finishing I found 2 extra folders in there. They are so old I initially didn't even recognize them. Took me a couple of minutes to realize they're a couple of folders with project files from about 6-7 years ago, so extremely old.I checked the event viewer and it tells me that I added those 2 folders 47 minutes ago ( about the time when I started dropbox after I installed it ).Has this happened to anyone else ? I assume there's nothing to worry about but the whole thing just seemed somewhat surreal initially to be honest.
They were either on the computer or still in your account. There's no way for old files to just reappear unless they still existed on a device that was linked back to your account.
Look at the previous version information for one of the files and it will tell you the account and computer that it originated from.
Suddenly this morning very old folders I deleted ages ago are back in my dropbox folder both online as on my computer. Hoew did this happen en can I just delete them? My newest folders seem to be fine.
Best, Femke
I just received a new folder in my DropBox - it is called "Shared".
It contains a single zero-byte text file named "Shared with Matt.txt"
Dropbox's desktop agent did *not* show any notification that this had happened. Neither did it prompt me to accept the share (normally you get to accept a share by clicking "Add To Dropbox"???)
Windows 10 Action Centre (the alerts pane that appears on the bottom-right *did* give me a notification. That notification was:"DropBox Server (DS) has shared a folder with you". Again there was no option to accept this, it just happened.
Finally, the new folder that has appeared does not appear to be shared with anyone else, and the text file inside it is dated from 2010.
I have a (very!) dim recollection I *might* have created this file myself (but 6 years ago??) so I'm wondering:
a - is this some DropBox bug that's recreating old deleted stuff from years ago (and if so why does my notification come from "DropBox Server?)
b - this is the prelude to some kind of hack / attack (maybe tomorrow someone will "share" a malicious executable with me expecting me to run it?
I'm using dropbox for quite some time. Never had problems.
All of a sudden it starts syncing old maps.
When I remove them from dropbox (for example by putting them on my computer or even in the trash), they return automatically.
Something very weird just happened with my dropbox account. Out of nowhere, a folder which was deletec about 2 years ago re appeared on my dropbox. It has the files as they were, which makes me wonder why the ****** dropbox is still keeping these files after a few years that they have been deleted?
First I thought it was a hack, but then I checked all my devices and what was accessing my account and indeed, everything was as it was before.
It makes me think this is a serious bug and on another note, why the ****** is dropbox keeping data that was deleted 2 years ago?
I'll surprised, scared and angry at the same time. I'm not even sure where to begin! I'm now wondering about several of my clients that use dropbox in their business if the same happens.
tijsboom wrote:When I remove them from dropbox (for example by putting them on my computer or even in the trash), they return automatically.
If a file or folder returns when you delete it, it's usually because it was unable to be deleted on one of your connected devices.
You delete a file on computer A. Dropbox is informed that it has been deleted and syncs that change to your account. Dropbox on your other devices is notified that the file has been deleted, so they also remove the file. On computer B, Dropbox is unable to remove that file for whatever reason (permission, locked, read-only, etc.). The result is that the file remains in place. Dropbox sees the file is still there, thinks it's been added and uploads it back to your account. All your other devices are notified of the "new" file and they sync it back down.
So the problem is that the file or folder in question on one of your devices is unable to be deleted. Figure out which (use Previous Versions to see which computer is adding it back) and fix what is holding it there, and you'll be able to delete it.
clumsybiker wrote: I have a (very!) dim recollection I *might* have created this file myself (but 6 years ago??) so I'm wondering:
There are a couple of other people that reported old folders returning after being deleted previously (in at least one case, years ago), so it's likely that the same has happened to you.
Best guess, yes, and probably because the Dropbox servers are adding the files back. Again... best guess.
Highly unlikely.
@tijsboom wrote: I'm using dropbox for quite some time. Never had problems. All of a sudden it starts syncing old maps. When I remove them from dropbox (for example by putting them on my computer or even in the trash), they return automatically.
Hi there,
I've sent you an email to follow up on this, we'll get to the bottom of it!
Many thanks in advance.
I'm actually having this exact issue: files I deleted about 5 to 6 years ago are appearing back in my Dropbox. When I go to view their prior history, I get an error and it says none is available. Can someone please contact me about this? Thank you.
Hi! I have the same issue with my account, my Mac is downloading a lot of folders which are deleted 2 or 3 years ago and I don't know why I am downloading it again (and I don't know why Dropbox is still saving this files on his servers)...
I have checked my Activity History and I haven't any kind of "weird" activity. Also I had changed my passwords on my account.
Same issue! 400+ folders and files that were deleted long ago started downloading to all my devices today. What gives? Also isn't this stuff supposed to be purged after 30 days? Is DropBox really keeping our files forever? Scary.
I have the very same problem. Almost 10 GB of files I've deleted 6 years ago appeared in my Dropbox today. This is very weird for me since I have never had a single problem before with Dropbox. It is kind of creepy...I can't find the right contact email as well
I'm having similar issues this morning with dozens of files. There have been no changes of files from my employees listed under Events. From reading threads below it's obvious that it's a Dropbox system issue. My concen is rolling back to correct this issue. I don't want to spend time having to refile. Yikes!
I just received an automated email from Dropbox Support outlining that the issue can be resolved using their self-serve help tools on the website. Furthermore, they then closed the help ticket. It's actually kind of insulting that the help request was even flagged for something like this, rather than reviewed by a human. What recourse do we have to obtain assistance on this? Do I have to spam Twitter with help messages?
Spamming in Twitter doesn't seem to be working either...
No good Rich. The reappearing files are throwing error 400 when trying to check the version history.
A788286432 wrote: What recourse do we have to obtain assistance on this?
What recourse do we have to obtain assistance on this?
Dropbox is already aware of the issue and is looking into it. Reply back to your ticket and include a link to this thread.
This has happened to me too - a load of files and folders from 2011 and then some from about 5 years ago. All just appeared in my dropbox today. Tried to do the version history but getting an error.
Really concerning that I didn't even know these files still existed. They are personell data of old clients etc.
Have manually deleted but really want to know what is going on. Could someone update asap as this is very worrying.
