Child Item

Folders made available offline were not downloaded

Hi,

This weekend I thought I'd test the Dropbox Available Offline feature by storing travel documents there. On my PC I created a new folder and populated it with some PDFs. On the Dropbox app on my Pixel (Android) phone I enabled Available Online for the folder and viewed the PDFs in it with no problem. The next day while in a theater waiting for a show to start I verified that I had no phone connectivity and was not connected to any WiFi. When I tried to view the folder containing the new folder the new folder was marked with an exclamation point in a yellow circle. When I entered the folder all the individual PDFs were similarly marked and could not be viewed. That persisted for some time. Later when I was outside and had phone coverage but not WiFi connectivity I checked the folder again again and saw that the yellow exclamation points were slowing changing to green phone icons, and that PDFs with the green icon could be viewed.

Luckily I had paper documents. If I hadn't carried backups I could have been in trouble.

I thought that folders marked as Available Online could be accessed anytime with no connectivity, but Dropbox doesn't do that. Is my understanding correct? Is phone connectivity required? If not is it common for this feature to be unreliable or malfunction? Can this feature be relied on or should I choose a different mechanism?

Thanks,

Mike

Find more posts tagged with

Setting Up the Apps

Mobile

Spam

Accepted answers

Jane

Hey @MikeA01730, thanks for your cooperation, I’m just updating the thread here with the latest update from our team specialists, so as to have it for future reference.

When Offlining files, you may keep in mind that a yellow icon will appear next to them if they’ve been updated in the meantime, as @Norah mentioned above. Once you click on this, it will then update the file to the most recent version and make the latest version available offline. In the event that the device isn’t connected to wifi/cellular data, you’ll need to wait until you have internet connectivity to download and view these files.

I would suggest making sure that your offline files are up to date when you plan on using the offline files feature.

Once again, thanks again for checking in with us on the Dropbox Forum & don’t hesitate to post away at any time in case you have further questions or you’d like to share your thoughts in the future. Take care!

All comments

Norah

Hi @MikeA01730, welcome to Dropbox Community!

When you see a yellow exclamation point icon it means that there is a newer version of your folder available. Tapping the refresh icon on iOS or Update all button on Android will sync these changes. This may happen sometimes when a newer version of your folder is available trying to sync. It could also mean that your folder might not have been fully downloaded.

Let me know if this helps!

MikeA01730

Noah,

I'm still confused. First, there's only been one version of any of these documents. I viewed several but not all of the documents at home. Also I was home for over 24 hours before leaving on the trip using my phone and connected to a good WiFi connection. When I left I'm sure that some of the documents were available and I'm sure that there was adequate bandwidth and time to have downloaded all of them. When I viewed some of the documents later when traveling the only reasonable explanation I can think of is that I viewed a different document than what I viewed at home and that Dropbox hadn't been trying to download the documents that I had not previously viewed.

If that thinking is correct then it appears that to ensure that this feature works reliably I need to view each document after I mark it as Available Offline. You mention tapping the Update All button on Android, which I assume would do the same thing.

I just Googled and found a description of the feature here: https://help.dropbox.com/sync/access-files-offline . Under the Android section is says:

"Specifically, making a file available offline:

...

Saves the file to your Android device for offline viewing within Dropbox

Attempts to keep the file as up-to-date as possible and gives you the option to update the file manually

Ensures that any changes you make to the file while offline will be synced to your Dropbox account once you have a connection again"

So to me it seems like Dropbox isn't doing these things. Do agree that the documentation and behavior don't agree? If so maybe I'll send Dropbox a problem report, unless you tell me that I'm doing that right now.

Thanks,

Mike

Minato

Hey @MikeA01730,

This issue seem that requires some additional investigation.

Can you create a ticket so we can investigate and ask for information best not shared in a public enviroment?

After you create the ticket, let me know of the ticket number.

Thank you in advance!

MikeA01730

Minato,

I followed your link, clicked email, and followed the prompts to create a ticket. When I clicked on OK (or Send, or whatever) it paused a while and then returned me to the main screen with no message, no ticket number, no nothing. Also I received no email. Did I sent the ticket or do I need to do this again?

Mike

Minato

Hey @MikeA01730,

I have located the ticket you created and we shall investigate the issue, as soon as possible!

The reply will come the email address of your account.

Let me know how it goes!

Jane

Hey @MikeA01730, thanks for your cooperation, I’m just updating the thread here with the latest update from our team specialists, so as to have it for future reference.

I would suggest making sure that your offline files are up to date when you plan on using the offline files feature.

vagelish

It also happened to me. I downloaded a file and marked as offline. It worked offline for a few days but then later it was not working offline anymore and I had to re-download it.

Jane

Hey there (@vagelish), just in order to make sure I’m following-up with you correctly, can you please clarify if you’re facing the same behavior as the one described by the OP (i.e. was your file marked with an exclamation point in a yellow circle) by any chance? Have you had a chance to see whether the pointers we’ve posted above could be relevant?

Keep me updated on the specifics in regards to your initial inquiry at your earliest convenience & I’ll do my best to check back with you. Until we talk again, I’m wishing you a fruitful & creative week ahead!

Terry P.

I posted about 5 hours ago but it has not appeared in the thread, so I’ll try again.

I have the essentially the same problem, with two distinct questions.

Q1: Many of the hundreds of offline folders and subfolders are now displaying yellow icons, despite having changed very few. Why?

Q2: When I refresh a folder, I then have to refresh its subfolders and so on if there are lower levels. Is the refresh not recursive? It’s almost useless if not.

Terry, East Grinstead, UK

Jane

Hey Terry (@Terry P.), as I can see that you’ve already submitted a ticket via our Official Support channel & you're discussing that with our team specialist, I’ve made sure to include a copy of your comments on that email chain. Since they've got more advanced tools at their disposal, they could best address your concerns on that discussion.

I hope that get this squared away soon & please do let me know here in case you need further assistance in any way & I’ll check back with you asap. Thanks!

HarishM

I think Dropbox has had an issue as I’ve just had to show all files offline never had to do this before!

Harish

Jane

Hey Harish (@HarishM), following your last post here, I’ve sent you a brief message on the email connected to your Community profile, in order to have a closer look on the issue you’ve described us. You may have a look at your inbox at your earliest convenience if you’d like us to work on that together. Thanks in advance!

Safespace

I'm not understanding when you say a newer version of the folder I have the same files did I use all the time I never change them sometimes they are available other places that I use them you're not available and I don't do anything to my iPad

Jane

Hey @Safespace, following-up from the OP’s description, can you confirm that you’re also seeing the yellow exclamation marks for Offline files?

If so, can you let me know whether you’re having any pending OS updates? Also, are you running the latest version of our mobile app (150.2.4) on your iPad?

If you’re still facing an issue with that, would you mind checking if these files were located in a shared folder & a colleague has updated them since the last time you were connected to a Wi-Fi network? Please let me know of your findings & I’ll do my best to further advise. Thanks!

Terry P.

Hi Jane,

How do I find the current iPad Dropbox version running? I see no indication here...

Terry, East Grinstead, UK

Jane

Thanks for pinging me back here again @Terry P., you should be able to see that once you click on the Account tab 👤 on the bottom-right hand corner on your iPad→:gear: Gear icon (top- left) & you scroll a bit further down. Please let me know how you get on with this suggestion once you get a chance or if you have any follow-up questions!

Terry P.

Thanks Jane, got it.

IMO that Settings window should fill the screen in either landscape or portrait mode, and if that still doesn’t include all content it should add a clearly visible indication or scroll bar.

Safespace

Hi files were not in shared folder. Her is the thing. Sometimes the offline files worth the exclamation mark work and sometimes they dont. Honestly I NEVER had issues in the past until u instituted the upgrade option to view folders offline. I never upgraded and I think that dropbox sabotaging basic memberships.

Jane

Thanks to both for getting back in touch with all these observations @Safespace & @Terry P.!

While I can make sure to add your voice to the feedback we’re gathering on the Community on my end, I’m wondering if Offlining content is now working as expected for you. If you notice that something isn’t performing as it should or you have any additional concerns, please let me know here, as it’s my understanding that you’re no longer facing the issue previously discussed.

That said, kindly note that the feature should work regardless of your subscription when it comes to files, however only paid users should be able to save folders for offline viewing @Safespace.

I’m always here, let me know if you have any follow-up inquiries & I'll make sure to check back soon!

Terry P.

Hi Jane,

I'm not sure if it is working 'correctly' in your terms. It's not in mine!

Perhaps the following will help you to give me a definitive answer please.

Two days ago I opened one of the ten 'offline' folders (green arrow icon) in my (up to date) iPad Dropbox app. This large folder called \User Guides had the yellow exclamation icon. I then scrolled down through its sub-folders, looking for those yellow 'Refresh to update' icons. I successively opened these (and any sub-folders within them) and opened (refreshed) all files with the yellow icon. That tedious exercise took me about two hours!

Was that the correct procedure in your view? IOW, do I (a Pro user) have to refresh every single yellow icon file in every single yellow icon folder, at all levels? I would expect that I should to be able to refresh an entire folder automatically, i.e. the program should recursively find and refresh the offline status of all necessary files when the top level yellow icon folder is opened.

This lack of recursive processing is a major issue for me, and I assume for many users with large folders. (\User Guides is 1.1 GB, 4,149 files in 177 folders.)

There is another reason why I think the offline facility is not "... performing as it should." Why did I have to refresh all these files anyway? I had never manually changed them! All had been under \Dropbox for years or many months. And the Dropbox app has been opened many times in the days, weeks and months before that exercise yesterday, on both my PC and my iPad. So they should have been automatically updated.

Terry, East Grinstead, UK

Jane

Thanks for detailing me your thoughts on this discussion @Terry P. & apologies for the tardy reply on my end; I’ve now made sure to include your follow-up observations on the open ticket you have with our team specialist!

David F.83

Has this question of sub folders not refreshing when the parent folder is refreshed been resolved? Its happening to me and it's incredibly frustrating.

Fiona

Hi @David F.83. Sorry to hear you are having trouble.

I understand some folders are not syncing properly. Let me know more about this. Do you see the updates on the web? Or are the updates showing only on one of your devices?

Have you tried any steps offered in this discussion? If so, please list the steps you've taken and I will provide the rest.

Thank you!

Troybrant

This issue remains unsolved, correct. I have had the problem for years. I sync files for offline use. They are accessible offline for a few days and then suddenly I get the yellow exclamation point and they are no longer accessbile until I get internet access again and the "green" down arrow icon replaces the yellow exclamation point, meaning that the files are accessible offline again.

These are picture files that have remained untouched in folders on Dropbox FOR YEARS. I don't understand why I keep losing the ability to access them offline.

Help?

Terry P.

The Dropbox team's failure to fix this problem over the last few years is nothing short of disgraceful. If anyone in development is actually listening, you should be ashamed.

P.S. Please don't send me yet another banal reply assuring me how much you appreciate my input, etc, etc. Just get the problem escalated to the right manager and fix it.

Terry, UK

Chris payne

I have constantly had this issue. What is really annoying is that Dropbox support has done nothing to answer the same issue for months. I pay a lot for this service and if it doesn't work then I am canceling. We obviously all have the same issue. Files were uploaded and available OFFLINE, they HAVE NOT CHANGED then the entire folder needs reuploading and isn't available.

I only used dropbox and paid because it was easy and it worked offline now I may as well just use my google drive.