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How upload external HD content without download the files on the PC

Hello,

before purchasing a space on DropBox I used for years some external Hard Disks. Now I'd like to upload those files (1 or 2 TBytes) on my DropBox space, but directly on the account by the browser to avoid to copy them on the PC first. Last but not least I'd like to set them directly with "online" view, to avoid that DropBox app will download automatically the files on my computer.

Is it possible?

I'm just planning this action now, I wanted be sure that I'm going in the right way.

Thanks a lot.

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Rich

@cloudres wrote:
Now I'd like to upload those files (1 or 2 TBytes) on my DropBox space, but directly on the account by the browser to avoid to copy them on the PC first.

Create a new folder and use Selective Sync to remove it from your local computer. Then use the Dropbox website to upload files into that folder. Since the folder doesn't sync to your computer, anything uploaded to it won't take up space on the computer.

Later, if you want the files to appear on your local computer without taking up space, add the folder back to your computer (again using Selective Sync) and it will be synced back down as an Online-only folder.

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Rich

@cloudres wrote:
Now I'd like to upload those files (1 or 2 TBytes) on my DropBox space, but directly on the account by the browser to avoid to copy them on the PC first.

hello_box11

It sounds like you can use the dropbox backup feature which should upload the external drive content to dropbox without consuming any disk space. When you plug in the drive, there is a prompt showing up which can instructs how to set it up. Otherwise, you can find it from the Preference -> Backups -> Manage Backup to set it up.

Rich

@hello_box11 wrote:
It sounds like you can use the dropbox backup feature ...

Yes, that is an option as well, but that also prevents you from interacting with those files in certain ways. You can't modify them through Dropbox (unless you modify the originals and let the backup sync them again) and you can't share those files either. The Backup feature is just that; a backup, and you shouldn't interact with the backup copy of your files.

cloudres

I finally had the occasion to try @Rich. Unfortunately it didn't work as expected. Trying moving only 1 GB by browser in the way suggested, after 400 MB the upload stopped.

I necessarily have to move the files into the directory (already setup as cloud) on the hard disk to avoid any problem. It will be a little bit annoying considering that I would like to move more than one TB.

😢

Nancy

Hi @cloudres, I hope it’s OK to jump in.

In general, it may be better to upload files of a larger size directly via the desktop app, since the website has an upload limit of 50GB.

However, since you mention you had trouble uploading even 1GB via www.dropbox.com, can you test this further and let me know if the same thing happens on another browser, too?

cloudres

I think it's necessary to specify that it was actually 1 GB transferred with Safari, but it wasn't a single file. There were about 200 files. The problem probably arose because I think Safari works in a way that puts unused tabs on standby after a certain amount of time. In any case, I think I've given up on the idea of proceeding the way I hoped. I don't have a great upload speed, and so to transfer the hundreds of GB I need, it could theoretically take several days. Something I think is impossible through a browser. That's why I'm proceeding as I hoped to avoid, by copying the folders locally, then setting them as "online only" and waiting for the upload times before moving on to the next folder. Patience...