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Syncing problems MAC and iPhone

My dropbox account is not syncing shared folders to the Mac-app or the iPhone-app, but is synced online. I have tried reinstalling and I have checḱed that there is no selective sync-setting. Any solutions?

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Megan

Hey there, @Lars Engseth, I am wishing you a great week ahead!

Have you made sure you're connected to the same Dropbox account on all of your devices?

Also, have you taken a look at this Help center article?

Let me know of any updates.

Lars Engseth

Hi,

I have tried all your suggestions and the help center article.

The problem is that folders that are shared with me by other people are not getting uploaded to my dropbox-app on mac og iPhone. Even-though the sync-history tells me they are synced. In the dropbox-app the sync-icon just shows that the folders are syncing without them doing so.

Any suggestions?

Lars

Walter

Hey @Lars Engseth, sorry to jump in here.

Could you please send us a screenshot of those folders on our website and another one of where they should be in your Dropbox folder on your computer?

Also, if you've ensured that the app is up to date and not still syncing in your menu bar, could you check your selective sync settings through the app's preferences again?

Keep us posted, Lars.

Lars Engseth

Hi,

Screens shots are linked. They show the folders on the website, the syncing history (which shows synced files) and the app (missing documents). The menu bar shows that the app is syncing, but it has been this way for days/ weeks now.

I have checked the selective sync again. I do not have any selective syncing.

I have tried reinstalling the app a number of times.

I hope you are able to help.

Kind regards,

Lars

Skjermbilde 2022-02-12 kl. 20.53.01.png

Walter

Thanks for the additional information @Lars Engseth

How long has it been stuck at
syncing? Is it showing the same number of files or is it changing?

Could you maybe try fixing your hardlinks and permissions as outlined
here and let me know if that helped improve matters?

Lars Engseth

Hi,

It is the same files that are not syncing. These are files shared by others. It has been like this for 1 months, it looks like.

When I try to fix hard links I get an error message saying it could not be fixed. Permissions I was able to fix.

The following pictures shows error messages for som of the problematic files: It says "Could not sync. Remove check from Locked-box in file information. The problem is that these are view-only files and I do not have permission to edit locking-permissions. I have tried the following link: https://help.dropbox.com/files-folders/share/file-locking

Does the admin have to change any settings on the view-only files? They want them to be locked, but my permission is View-only and I should be able to sync this files. Am I right?

Skjermbilde 2022-02-17 kl. 22.54.40.png

Walter

Could you move them out of your Dropbox folder and then back in @Lars Engseth?

Also, if you could send us a screenshot of the error you got when trying to fix your hardlinks, I'd appreciate it.

Lars Engseth

Hi,

I cannot move them out of my dropbox folder, as I cannot see them in the app. And I am not allowed to move anything in to the folders as they are "view only".

Here is a picture of the error when trying to fix hard links. It says "unexpected error. Could not fiks hard links in dropbox. Contact support if this error persists."

Skjermbilde 2022-02-17 kl. 22.45.03.png

Walter

Thanks for the additional information and the screenshot too, Lars.

Our desktop application is unable to
sync some types of files left open by certain applications. When this happens, Dropbox will report that the "file is in use" from the Dropbox desktop application menu in your menu bar/system tray.

Some software, like Microsoft Office, places locks on files while they are being edited. The feature avoids conflicts that can occur if the file is changed by another computer. This lock also prevents Dropbox from accessing and syncing the file.

To allow Dropbox to sync these files, you'll need to save and quit any applications where the file is open. Once you do, Dropbox will fully sync the files.

If you are sharing the data between computers you must NOT run the application on more than one computer at a time. You will generate file conflicts and other problems.

Thus, the pattern needs to be:

Let files sync
Start application
Save files
Quit application
Repeat on different computers.

Let me know if this helps!

Lars Engseth

Hi again,

I have tried the latest suggestions, but the the files are still nok syncing on my MacBook Pro, but the files are syncing on my iPhone now. I tried installing Dropbox-app op an iMac and everything is syning there as well. When accessing older view only files in the same folder, I can see they have not been synced in 2 months. This is right around when my MacBook Air hard drive crashed. It has been to an Apple retailer, and is unfixable. Because of this I got av new MacBook Pro where I installed the Dropbox-app. The view only files added by administrators of these files, have not been syncing after this. I have tried to look at the security settings on my MacBook Pro compared to the iMac, and they seem to be the same, so this does not either seem to be the problem for the syncing issues.

I have also reinstalled the Dropbox-app and logged in with the same user on all 3 devices.

Any more suggestions?

Kind regards,

Lars

Walter

Thanks for keeping me in the loop, Lars.

Have you tried creating a new OS profile on the affected machine and installing the desktop app there?

Also, did you install it with admin privileges in the first place?

If you did and still having issues with this, let me know and I'll reach out via email to investigate further.

Lars Engseth

Hi again,

I have admin privileges. I tried installing the dropbox app on the guest user and it synced instantly. Since I have the basic user profile in Dropbox and already have 3 devices that use the app, I had to deactivate one. I deactivated the one for my user on the MacBook Pro I am using and reactivated it when I logged on the admin-user again, but I am still experiencing the same syncing problems. The syncing problems are therefor user-dependent on the MacBook Pro. How can this be?

Kind regards

Jay

Hi @Lars Engseth, if you're experiencing this issue on a particular account, then you might have some restrictions or other apps or services that are preventing the Dropbox app from working as it should. As to what this could be, we wouldn't be able to tell.

I can only recommend quitting all open apps, including the ones on the menu bar, leaving Dropbox running, and trying to see if the app works normally.