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Can you selectively sync only selected folders and leave the other folders alone?

Can you change Dropbox to Selectively sync only selected folders AND a switch to give an option to leave the other folders alone, still on the local PC under folder Dropbox.

At present unticked folders in Selective sync are DELETED locally.

The reason for this request is to reduce computer CPU & memory use which is excessive if are syncing 1.5Tb and 1,000s of files. I need all folders present all the time and a fast computer without having to disable Antivirus.

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Rich

Brian286 wrote:
... a switch to give an option to leave the other folders alone, still on the local PC under folder Dropbox.

If you mean that you want to leave a folder in the Dropbox folder and NOT have Dropbox sync it, then you can already do this by telling Dropbox to ignore the folder.

https://help.dropbox.com/sync/ignored-files

Brian286

To set a file or folder to be ignored:

Navigate to the file or folder you wish to set to be ignored.
Right-click on that file or folder to pull up the context menu.
Hover over Dropbox.
Click Don’t sync to Dropbox.com.

In 3. I cannot see a option just "Dropbox" Plenty of eg Dropbox Icon & eg Share...

And cannot see any reference to

Don’t sync to Dropbox.com. except in

https://help.dropbox.com/sync/ignored-files

So I wonder if that help.dropbox.com/sync/ignored-files is out of date.

Walter

Hey @Brian286 - could you send us a screenshot of the options you get so that we can have a visual too?

Also, what is your computer's OS version and the Dropbox desktop app's status and version as shown in your system tray?

Brian286

ntel(R) Core(TM) i5-6500 CPU @ 3.20GHz 3.20 GHz 8Gb RAM

Windows 10 Pro Version 22H2 OS build 19045.5247

Dropbox Preference, General shows V215.4.7202

Walter

Did you try using the PowerShell application on your computer instead of the right click option @Brian286?

As for not getting the 'Don't sync to Dropbox.com' option, there might be a 3rd party app that's interfering. In that case, you could try quitting your 3rd party apps and trying again.

Keep us posted anyhow!

PS: Have you considered using the option to keep some of your files and folders online-only, instead of available offline?

Brian286

Just seen in help ignored-files FAQ's- Will the commands to ignore files and folders work on my operating system.

If you’re using Windows, Linux, or macOS earlier than 12.5 and have moved the Dropbox folder to a location other than the default one, the commands above won't work. You’ll need to update it manually.

Well I moved my Dropbox to R: Dropbox Not impressed if Dropbox cannot handle that. And what does it mean - to update it manually.

Nancy

Hi @Brian286! Hope you don’t mind if I jump in here.

Since the Dropbox folder is no longer in its default location, you’d need to manually update the directory that appears in the code of the PowerShell script here; this way, you should be able to ignore files in your Dropbox folder, even after being moved.