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Couldn't Start Dropbox

After latest Dropbox updates I'm keep getting Couldn't Start Dropbox error no matter what I try as per advise(permissions, run as admin, etc...) including reinstalling dropbox. It worked fine for a day or so now I'm getting this error again - frustrating why good working product gets broken by updates.

This is the last line in the log:

_bowbow.hresult_error: 0x80070422: The service cannot be started, either because it is disabled or because it has no enabled devices associated with it.

and when I check Services I can see DbxSvc is actually running - so frustrating.

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Rich

@nenea_nelu wrote:
_bowbow.hresult_error: 0x80070422: The service cannot be started, either because it is disabled or because it has no enabled devices associated with it.

The 0x80070422 error is a Windows error, not Dropbox, and refers to a problem with Windows Update. Do a Google search for 0x80070422 and you'll find a lot of information and possible causes/solutions.

Dave668

I'm getting the same problem which has only started today - windows update is running fine with no errors reported so it's not a windows update error. Re-installing dropbox works until the machine is rebooted when the problem returns.

nenea_nelu

I saw all those prior to posting this message and although I initially thought this issue could have been caused by windows 10 updates...why Dropbox worked fine after the latest MS windows updates for couple of weeks and just started misbehaving only recently.

My version is bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 177.4.5399

And of course I tried all advice related to Code: 0x80070422 with no luck. I'll try one more time uninstalling/reinstalling Dropbox and see how long will work.

nenea_nelu

Strange things happen indeed and sorry for you having the same issue but this just confirms I'm not the only one experiencing this.

And we all know how this "blame game" works and gets fixed especially on free subscriptions...never or miraculously disappears and is all back to normal after some future updates on either side - OS or app...well until then I guess we have to live with the "as-is" free we're getting.

Walter

Hey @nenea_nelu & @Dave668 - just to confirm here, are you still having issues with this after rebooting your computer?

Do you happen to be running any security software on the affected machines perhaps?

Dave668

Yes, it continues after a reboot, and yes, like most people running windows I have security software which hasn't changed in years.

Megan

Hey @Dave668, can you send me a screenshot of the exact error, please?

Dave668

bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 177.4.5399
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 61
bn.is_frozen: True
machine_id: 1d462455-eec1-4e37-888b-19b43b92ec26
pid: 16136
cwd: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
HOME: None
appdata: 'C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\***'
real_path='C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\***'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
dropbox_path: 'C:\\Users\\***\\Dropbox'
real_path='C:\\Users\\**\\Dropbox'
mode=0o40555 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
sys_executable: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\Dropbox.exe'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\Dropbox.exe'
mode=0o100777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
trace.__file__: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\177.4.5399\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\177.4.5399\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
not found
parent not found
TMP: C:\Users\stuar\AppData\Local\Temp
TEMP: C:\Users\stuar\AppData\Local\Temp
tempdir: 'C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Temp'
real_path='C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Temp'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 5272, in _setup_root_for_account
File "desktop/dropbox/client/features/cloud_files_migration/gating.py", line 29, in should_migrate_to_cloud_files
File "desktop/dropbox/client/installer/win_installer_sparse_msix.py", line 156, in is_sparse_msix_registered
_bowbow.hresult_error: 0x80070422: The service cannot be started, either because it is disabled or because it has no enabled devices associated with it.

Megan

Thank you @Dave668!

Can you try to follow these steps, and perform an advanced re-install, please?

Dave668

No difference at all, after re-install it's running OK. After a reboot, Dropbox doesn't start, though the service is showing as running, on then launching Dropbox, the same error is produced.

bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 177.4.5399
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 61
bn.is_frozen: True
machine_id: 1d462455-eec1-4e37-888b-19b43b92ec26
pid: 6756
cwd: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
HOME: None
appdata: 'C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\instance1'
real_path='C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\instance1'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
dropbox_path: 'C:\\Users\\stuar\\Dropbox'
real_path='C:\\Users\\stuar\\Dropbox'
mode=0o40555 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
sys_executable: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\Dropbox.exe'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\Dropbox.exe'
mode=0o100777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
trace.__file__: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\177.4.5399\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\177.4.5399\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
not found
parent not found
TMP: C:\Users\stuar\AppData\Local\Temp
TEMP: C:\Users\stuar\AppData\Local\Temp
tempdir: 'C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Temp'
real_path='C:\\Users\\stuar\\AppData\\Local\\Temp'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 5272, in _setup_root_for_account
File "desktop/dropbox/client/features/cloud_files_migration/gating.py", line 29, in should_migrate_to_cloud_files
File "desktop/dropbox/client/installer/win_installer_sparse_msix.py", line 156, in is_sparse_msix_registered
_bowbow.hresult_error: 0x80070422: The service cannot be started, either because it is disabled or because it has no enabled devices associated with it.

Megan

Hi @Dave668, can I send you an email, in order for us to have a closer look into this?

Dave668

As others are reporting exactly the same issue, I would argue that you have a wider problem than something not working/correct on my machine, I'll be using Google Drive from now on.,

mark234

what does this error mean ? And what is the latest version of the windows app ?

I deleted dropbox and installed it new, then it worked .

Jay

Hi @mark234, I've merged you to this thread to keep similar questions together.

Could you try the previous steps (rebooting, disabling security software, advanced reinstallation) to see if they help on your machine?

aditya50857

Even after reinstalling the App repeated times, I am getting this error. The app is not starting at all.

Screenshot 2023-09-12 211433.png

Getting message to contact Dropbox support :

bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 183.3.6931
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 65
bn.is_frozen: True
machine_id: 81d597da-7af1-4987-aba8-ee658985a154
pid: 10368
cwd: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Update\\1.3.761.1'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Update\\1.3.761.1'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
HOME: None
appdata: 'C:\\Users\\**\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\instance1'
real_path='C:\\Users\\**\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\instance1'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
dropbox_path: 'C:\\Users\\**\\OneDrive\\Documents\\Dropbox'
real_path='C:\\Users\\**\\OneDrive\\Documents\\Dropbox'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40555 uid=0 gid=0
sys_executable: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\Dropbox.exe'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\Dropbox.exe'
mode=0o100777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
trace.__file__: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\183.3.6931\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\183.3.6931\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
not found
parent not found
TMP: C:\Users\sneha\AppData\Local\Temp
TEMP: C:\Users\sneha\AppData\Local\Temp
tempdir: 'C:\\Users\\sneha\\AppData\\Local\\Temp'
real_path='C:\\Users\\sneha\\AppData\\Local\\Temp'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 5410, in _setup_root_for_account
File "desktop/dropbox/foundation/futures/basic.py", line 965, in result
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_root/manager.py", line 330, in convert_root
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_root/handlers/windows/cloud_files.py", line 341, in migrate
OSError: [WinError -2147024520] The file is not a cloud file

Megan

Hi @aditya50857, how are you today?

Can you follow these steps, in order to perform an advanced re-install?

Keep me posted on the results!