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Photo uploads on Android not working unless I open the app

Hi, I have the photo uploader feature turned on on my Samsung Galaxy S7, which I believe works overall. Although I have noticed that if I need it to upload a photo that I have recently taken, I need to open up the app on my phone before it will upload. I took a photo this morning; 4 hours later it still hadn't uploaded by itself. Once I opened up the app, it uploaded immediately. Older photos have been uploaded eventually, although I don't know how long it took.

Any ideas on how to get this to happen immediately, without intervention?

Thanks! Al

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Accepted answers

Joseph D.11

Ok, so this appears to fix the issue. Turn off battery optimization for Dropbox.

There may be a more direct route, but here are the steps on my Pixel 3 with Pie"

Settings
->Apps and Notifications
->Dropbox
->Advanced
->Battery
->Battery Optimization
->All Apps
->Dropbox
->Don't optimize
->Done

All comments

Lusil

Hi there Al!

Initially, could you please have a look at this Help Center article which proposes some suggestions on how to tackle issues with camera uploads?

If you’re still having trouble with this, could you please send me a screenshot of the error that you’re seeing (omitting any personal info)?

Thanks in advance!

Joseph D.11

Hey Al, any luck with this?

It worked fine with my old phone, but now I have this problem with my Pixel 3. Pain in the ass. Opening the app doesn't do it for me. I have to open the Camera Uploads folder, then it immediately adds the photo and syncs.

Thanks, Joe

Lusil

Sorry to hear that, Joe.

Did you by any chance check the article that I mention above? It may provide some ideas on how to resolve this. If not, could you please check your settings under your Camera Uploads on your mobile app, which could give us some further insight?

Let me know how it goes!

Joseph D.11

Yes, I've checked everything.

As others with the problem mention, once you open the app it will keep working properly for a while (I didn't need to open the folder this time).

I don't have Battery Saver on and no background restriction.

Adaptive Battery is on though and "Optimizing Battery" so I'll try changing that.

Lusil

Take as much time as you need, @Joseph D.11! :slight_smile:

Joseph D.11

Ok, so this appears to fix the issue. Turn off battery optimization for Dropbox.

There may be a more direct route, but here are the steps on my Pixel 3 with Pie"

Settings
->Apps and Notifications
->Dropbox
->Advanced
->Battery
->Battery Optimization
->All Apps
->Dropbox
->Don't optimize
->Done

Lusil

Thanks for letting me know what worked for you, @Joseph D.11, awesome work on the troubleshooting!

If the issue persists or you have any other questions, just give me a shout. In the meantime, have a wonderful day ahead!

Kevin B.13

Same issue here on my OnePlus 6.
Dropbox app is excluded from battery management.
Only when you open the app, the upload starts. After closing the app, it keeps working automatically for a few minutes. After that... it just stops working. Untill you open the app again.
Already unistalled the application and re-installed again. Doesn't solve the issue.

Please advise.

Lusil

Sorry to hear that, @Kevin B.13.

Have you tried some of the suggestions in this article?

If you’re still having trouble with this, could you please try toggling the camera uploads option on your mobile app off and then back on again?

Could you also send me a screenshot of any error that you may be seeing (omitting personal info) so as to have a better understanding of what your concern?

Thanks in advance!

Joseph D.11

Please, try the accepted solution. As mentioned, it is separate from battery saver and new in Pie.

Kevin B.13

@Joseph D.11
I'm not sure what your pointing at? The accepted solution involves turning off battery optimization for the application, which i did. Still the images taken on the phone are not uploaded until I open the app. Turning toggling the camera uploads on/off, fixes it for a little while, but not permanently. After a few minutes/hours the images don't automatically upload towards DB camera uploads folder.
It used to work flawlessly, but I presume some update (dropbox or OnePlus) ruined this great functionality.

Joseph D.11

Adaptive Battery is new in Pie. Your first comment appeared to say you excluded the app from the old Battery Saver.

abbaroo

I also just got a Pixel 3. I removed Dropbox, restarted phone, reinstalled Dropbox, turned off battery optimization. It doesn't even work for me while running the app. When I select Photos, I see my photos from last week, and above it, is indicated "Camera uploads (44 left)". The progress bar shows that it's trying, but it gets about half way, then appears to restart the upload. Sometimes the small image in the display changes, and other times its just the same image.

Lusil

Hey there, @abbaroo.

Hmm. :thinking: Could you please ensure that while the upload is ongoing, the device is also connected to either a Wi-Fi or using data? Also, could you please check if you have available space on your Dropbox account, as well as your device?

Let me know what you find!

abbaroo

I've tried it both ways, via wi-fi and using the 4G data. Neither one worked for me. I also had dropbox at 86% full, so I reduced to 79% and that didn't matter either. I've tried turning camera uploads on and off, and reset the phone a few times, but nothing seems to help. I also tried uploading individual files, which seemed to work via 4G, but on wi-fi, it goes part way, and then says "waiting to upload...".

Lusil

Thanks for the additional info, @abbaroo

Could you try connecting to a different Wi-Fi as well? Also, just to ensure troubleshooting, could you please check that background uploading is enabled?

Spoiler

To do this, you can follow the steps below:

Open the mobile app.
Tap the menu.
Tap Settings.
Then under Camera uploads tap When to upload.
Check it is not set to Only while phone is charging.

If you’re still experiencing trouble with this, we’d have to take this discussion to email due to account-specific info required to further investigate (in which case, I can contact you to your email address associated with your Forum profile).

Let me know how it goes!

abbaroo

OK, I took my phone to a different wi-fi location, and I got it to upload the photos. For the videos, I had to turn the camera uploads off and back on a couple times to get them done. I did get it to work, but I'm not sure why it worked there but not at my home wi-fi. The new phone has done everything else just fine at home, and my old phone worked fine with dropbox uploads.

Lusil

Great to hear that you were able to upload the photos in the end, @abbaroo! However, as far as your connection goes, I’d kindly recommend reaching out to your internet provider directly to investigate further.

If you have any other questions in the future, don’t hesitate to give us a shout or contact our Support team. Thanks!

[This thread is now closed by moderators due to inactivity. If you're experiencing a similar behavior, feel free to start a new discussion in the Dropbox Community here.]