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I need to re-link to an existing Dropbox folder when reinstalling the desktop app.

I have been using Dropbox for years but on several occasions I've had to reinstall and then fight with dropbox to use the folder that is already there instead of insisting on re-downloading terabytes of data. How hard could it be to have a step in the install that asks if you want to re-link to an existing folder? Or use the previous settings from my account? I always keep dropbox on my second, much larger drive, not on the default drive C:.

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Esther B.6

Well this is interesting. I moved to a new house and changed internet providers. When I set up my computer again Dropbox started indexing the folder on G drive immediately. No more error messages. I wonder if my other internet provider was restricting some types of traffic? Anyway, it's all working now. Thanks for your help.

All comments

Neal

Hi @Esther B.6,

Welcome to the Dropbox Community and thanks for sharing this with us.

This is a common issue that pops up here and I'd advise reading this thread that tackles this exact issue.

This user's issue was solved so hopefully this helps.

Esther B.6

Hi. Actually if you read through that thread the issue wasn't solved. Like me, he had already had to go through the pain of re-downloading everything. Dropbox created a new folder on C drive. Now I have to figure out how to move it to my G drive, where all the files are already downloaded.

Rich

Esther B.6 wrote:
Actually if you read through that thread the issue wasn't solved.

His issue wasn't solved because he had already gone through the process on reinstalling Dropbox and downloading everything again. However, Dropbox already has a solution for this in place. You just need to select the Advanced Options during the install and you can select the location for your Dropbox folder. If you choose a location where there's already a folder, Dropbox will use it and will only download the files that need to be downloaded (anything changed since last sync, etc.). It will, however, have to reindex all of your files which will take some time.

Esther B.6 wrote:
Now I have to figure out how to move it to my G drive, where all the files are already downloaded.

You don't. If you've already installed Dropbox and it's using the default location, you don't want to move it to the existing folder on your G drive. Your best option will be to reinstall using the advanced options, and selecting the location of your existing Dropbox folder.

Just remember, when specifying an existing Dropbox folder, you want to select the folder ABOVE Dropbox as the location. For instance, if your Dropbox is in G:\Dropbox, make sure you select the root of G: for the location. If you select G:\Dropbox, you'll end up creating a new Dropbox folder inside your existing Dropbox folder and all of your files will start to download into the new folder, doubling your usage. It's asking where you want your Dropbox folder; not the full path to the current folder.

Neal

Thanks @Rich for sharing that explanation.

@Esther B.6 Would you mind trying out the steps Rich provided and letting me know how you get on?

Esther B.6

When I ran the reinstall there was no dialogue box or anything that let me choose advanced install. It opened, said it was installing, then closed.

Jay

Hi @Esther B.6, in order to see the option you're referring to, you would need to perform an advanced reinstallation of the Dropbox desktop application by following these steps.

During the installation process, you can choose the location of the existing Dropbox folder as mentioned in Step 11.

Esther B.6

Hi. I went through the process and did find the advanced settings and selected my G: drive for my dropbox location. Then as soon as I clicked ok I got this error. Photo uploaded of it. This was the error that caused me to reinstall dropbox in the first place.

Rich

Esther B.6 wrote:
Then as soon as I clicked ok I got this error.

That's not the actual error. If you click the second blue link it will open a text file that contains the full log of the installation, along with the actual errors encountered. Open that file and copy/paste it into a reply here. Be sure to mask any private information, if it contains any.

Esther B.6

Okay here's the contents of the text file.

bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 231.4.5770
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 86
bn.is_frozen: True
machine_id: 884775e7-8c95-47da-809c-d7d295c49ead
pid: 19656
cwd: 'C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Update\\1.3.983.1'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Update\\1.3.983.1'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
HOME: None
appdata: 'C:\\Users\\Esther\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\instance1'
real_path='C:\\Users\\Esther\\AppData\\Local\\Dropbox\\instance1'
mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40777 uid=0 gid=0
dropbox_path: 'G:\\Dropbox'
real_path='G:\\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\\231.4.5770\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
real_path='C:\\Program Files (x86)\\Dropbox\\Client\\231.4.5770\\python-packages.zip\\dropbox\\client\\ui\\common\\boot_error.pyc'
not found
parent not found
TMP: C:\Users\Esther\AppData\Local\Temp
TEMP: C:\Users\Esther\AppData\Local\Temp
tempdir: 'C:\\Users\\Esther\\AppData\\Local\\Temp'
real_path='C:\\Users\\Esther\\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 1091, in wrapper
File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8616, in finish_dropbox_boot
File "desktop/dropbox/client/message_queue.py", line 337, in _wrapped
File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 7900, in _init_components_for_account
File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 7808, in create_sync_engine
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine_boundary/factory.py", line 237, in make_sync_engine
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/sync_engine.py", line 264, in __init__
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/modern_client.py", line 324, in __init__
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/base.py", line 279, in __init__
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/thin_adapter/in_proc.py", line 242, in __init__
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/thin_adapter/in_proc.py", line 617, in _init_new_engine_locked
File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/thin_client/client.py", line 170, in __init__
File "desktop\extensions\nucleus\nucleus_python.pyx", line 77, in nucleus_python.NucleusSyncEngine.__cinit__
nucleus_python.SyncEngineError: "Initializing engine |>> Initializing filesystem |>> Attempting to initialize dbx cache directory |>> Getting handle to root |>> NtSetBasicInformation syscall: new handle |>> ACCESS_DENIED |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

Hannah

Hey @Esther B.6, can you take a look at this thread and the troubleshooting suggestions on it and let us know if they help in your case as well? It looks like a very similar issue, with the same error.

Esther B.6

My dropbox folder already has full control for system and administrators. When i try to grant full control to users the change runs for a while and then stops with an access denied at some file or folder (doesn't tell me which one). I tried using takeown running command prompt as administrator and get access denied there as well. Any ideas?

Megan

Hey @Esther B.6!

If you're running any third-party antivirus or ransomware protection software, please try to temporarily disable it along with Windows Security.

To disable Windows Security:

-Open Windows Security from the Start menu.
-Select Virus & threat protection.
-Under Virus & threat protection settings, select Manage settings and turn off each setting.
-Go back to Virus & threat protection.
-Select Manage ransomware protection and temporarily disable Controlled folder access.

After disabling these features, quit Dropbox if it is running, then reopen it and check if the issue remains.

Esther B.6

Hi. I use Eset antivirus. When I go to Windows Security there's a link back to Eset so I assume it's processes take over from windows. I disabled everything I could find in Eset and tried opening Dropbox again. Same error. Since it didn't give me the error when it installed to the default C drive location I can guess there is an issue in accessing the secondary drive but I'm baffled as to what it could be. It seems to function normally in explorer. Any other ideas?

Thanks!

Megan

Hey @Esther B.6!

In this case, I'll go ahead and send you an email, in order for us to have a closer look into this.

Reply back to me, and we'll take it from there. Thanks!

Esther B.6

Hi. I got your email. I am away the next couple days but I will give it a try when I get back. Thanks!

Megan

No worries @Esther B.6!

Take your time, and reply back to me once you're ready to continue troubleshooting. 👩‍💻

Esther B.6

Walter

We're glad to hear it's working now and thanks for keeping us in the loop too @Esther B.6

Let us know if anything else comes up in the future and have a lovely week ahead!

Neal

Great to hear @Esther B.6!

Thank you so much for sharing the update and letting us know!