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Unable to make all my files available offline onto new Mac

I've got a new iMac after the old one has just given up the ghost. All my files are fortunately backed up on Dropbox. My back-up drive was unfortunately corrupted. I've installed Dropbox on the new computer and all my files now appear but with "zero bytes".

But there's a problem. I can download each file onto the hard drive one at a time by opening and closing it, but this is impossibly time consuming to do for every single file!

I have gone to Dropbox Preferences, then clicked Sync and then checked Available Offline - but still all my "zero bytes" files remain on line and don't download until I click on them.

I'm sure there's a simple solution. Please can someone advise me how to find it? Thanks.

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Comments

Walter

Hey there @stuartcalder - sorry to hear you're having issues with this.

Did you try selecting your whole Dropbox folder and making it available offline and/or online-only and vice-versa to see if it makes any difference?

Otherwise, you can try copying or moving those zero-bytes files to another location and then back into your Dropbox folder.

In any case, please keep us posted, Stuart.

stuartcalder

I selected the whole Dropbox folder and made it available off line. I have now deselected it and pressed update, then later gone back and reselected it and pressed update but my files are still reading zero bytes.
With your second recommendation, I don't quite understand how moving these zero-bytes files to another location on my computer and then back into the Dropbox folder will download them. Please can you explain? Thanks.

Nancy

Hey @stuartcalder! Hope you don’t mind if I jump in.

Can you clarify what you mean when saying that you’ve deselected the Dropbox folder and pressed “Update”?

If you can send me a screenshot of where you’re clicking exactly, that’d be great so that I can have a visual, too.

stuartcalder

Under Preferences I clicked Selective sync to select all the folders. Then I clicked Available offline. Here are the screenshots -

Jay

Hi @stuartcalder, could you locate the Dropbox folder in Finder itself, and then right click it and choose the option to make the files local?

stuartcalder

Eureka! Thanks for the tip.

janicetaylor

Hi Jay @ Dropbox Staff

May jump in with a question, since I am having the same problem? I am setting up a new iMac 2024, Sequoia 15.2, Dropbox version 216.4.7292. The Dropbox folder on my old Mac didn't have this problem. I also have selected the same options on the Dropbox Preferences folder.

When you said, "locate the Dropbox folder in Finder itself, and then right click it and choose the option to make the files local," do you mean the Dropbox in the left sidebar of a Finder window? After right clicking, I don't see the option to make all the files local.

This Dropbox app was "restored" from a Time Machine backup from the old iMac. I wonder if I uninstalled this "restored" Dropbox app and started from scratch if that would help?

I would appreciate your help in making a global change since there are thousands of folders and files to have to switch individually to offline. Thank you!

Hannah

Hey @janicetaylor, thanks for the nudge here and sorry to see you're also having trouble.

If the Dropbox app was restored from a time machine backup, I'm wondering if perhaps it's not running at all.

Do you have a small Dropbox icon in your menu bar?

What do you see when you hover over it with your mouse?

janicetaylor

Thank you for your reply. I see "Dropbox 216.4.7292 Up to Date" when I hover on the icon in the menu bar

Jay

Hi @janicetaylor, are you able to right right a file or folder in the Dropbox folder, to see if the Dropbox context menu items appear there?

stuartcalder

All sorted. The advice I got did the trick, thanks.

janicetaylor

Yes, the context menu items appear on right-clicking a file or folder, as in the attached screenshot. The file has zero bytes unless opened, after which it posts the file size.

Megan

Hey @janicetaylor, let me also jump in here!

I'm thinking that instead of clicking directly on your entire Dropbox folder, you could maybe access the folder, then select all of your items using Command-A and see if you can them make the folders available-offline.

Can you give it a go?

janicetaylor

That sounded promising, but unfortunately it didn't make any files or folders available offline.

janicetaylor

Update: That action may have triggered a delayed response as it looks like files are syncing and downloading. It started out at over 127,000 files and is decreasing, now at just over 116,000 files. I will report back when the syncing/downloading is complete.

Thank you.

Megan

Sure thing @janicetaylor! 😀

Take your time, and let us know of any updates!

janicetaylor

Success! Thank you. All files are available offline after this process. Since they total around 170 GB, is it possible to move Dropbox files and folders to a dedicated external hard drive to free up space on my Mac?

Thank you so much for your help!

Megan

Fantastic @janicetaylor!

Sure you can. You could either copy them over to your external drive, or move them there.

Keep in mind that if you choose to move them to your external drive, they would need to be available offline (in order for them to preview without an issue) and they will get removed your Dropbox account.

Or you could copy them to the external drive, and then make them online-only locally on the device. The choice is yours, and I'm here if you have any questions. 😄

janicetaylor

As I think about it, the ideal situation would be to have a "live" external folder where files are synced as they are added by our team, not just me.

I am not sure how the DB app could be configured on the Desktop to sync with an external targeted drive for the file and folders, if at all.

Hannah

Essentially, you want to move the Dropbox folder to an external drive, and continue syncing from that drive, right @janicetaylor?

That is actually possible with these steps, although, you need to keep in mind that having the Dropbox folder on an external drive hides a risk of file deletions, if the drive gets disconnected while the app is running.

I hope this helps.

janicetaylor

This is great information. I will keep it in my "back pocket" until the need presents to free up storage on my Mac. It is comforting to know, thank you!

janicetaylor

I will definitely save this information till the time when/if my storage capacity becomes limited. It's comforting to know there is a good alternative option.

Thank you!