Child Item

The app seems to be crashing on macOS Tahoe 26.4 (Beta 1)

Application Affected
Dropbox
Device
mac studio
Operating System/Browser (if using the web)
macOS 26.4 Beta 1
Dropbox App Version (if using the app)
241.4.4853

Question or Issue
Dropbox is crashing since I installed macOS Tahoe 26.4 (Beta 1) this morning. The errormessage is:

DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH: None
cwd: '/'
     real_path='/'
           	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
     parent	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
HOME: '/Users/sander'
appdata: '/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
         real_path='/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
dropbox_path: '/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
              real_path='/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
                    	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
              parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
sys_executable: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                      	mode=0o100755	uid=501	gid=20
                parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
trace.__file__: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                      	not found
                parent	not found
tempdir: '/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
         real_path='/private/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 238, in client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 297, in _create_thin_client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/fs_api_adapter.py", line 54, in __init__
  File "desktop/extensions/fs_api/fs_api_python.pyx", line 63, in fs_api_python.FsApiServer.__cinit__
fs_api_python.FsApiError: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

The above exception was the direct cause of the following exception:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 1106, in wrapper
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8849, in finish_dropbox_boot
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/message_queue.py", line 338, in _wrapped
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8130, in _init_components_for_account
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8038, 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 330, in __init__
  File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/base.py", line 260, in __init__
  File "../mac_arm64_dropbox_virtual_env/lib/python3.8/functools.py", line 967, in __get__
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 267, in client
dropbox.fs_api.lifecycle.FsApiClientCreationException: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

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Comments

Megan

Hi there, @sspilleman, welcome to our Community!

How long has this been happening for? Can you try an advanced reinstall using the steps provided in this Help Center article?

I'll be waiting for your updates!

sspilleman

Hi Megan, thanks,

For me the problem immediately occurred right after login after updating to Tahoe 26.4 (Beta 1). This update was already available for a couple of days but I only decided to update this morning. The article you are referring to is covering windows, Im on a mac.

I already tried removing the application (/Applications/Dropbox.app) and reinstalling it before creating this ticket.

Sander

Hannah

Hey @sspilleman, I hope I can jump in here as well.

The article Megan linked in her reply includes steps for Mac computers as well.

You'll find the option to switch from the Windows steps to the Mac ones right above the Windows steps:

I hope this helps!

sspilleman

I'll await the fix, I already reinstalled. 100% convinced this is related to the macOS update

Hannah

Hey @sspilleman, since this is a permissions error which indeed could have been caused by your OS update, it's very unlikely to resolve itself.

That's why I've gone ahead and sent you an email, so we can investigate this further.

sspilleman

I meant it will be resolved by a future update to the application, not by itself

Emma

Hi @sspilleman thanks for reporting this. Our engineering team are aware and investigating, I'll report back once we have an update.

michael_wohl

This just happened to me as well after I installed the latest 26.4 Beta OS update.

sspilleman

Still exists afte the latest 26.4 beta update (25E5218f). I also just tried installing the latest dropbox client. Still broken

LynnDbx

Hi @sspilleman. I'm from the Dropbox engineering team. We've been investigating this issue and early findings suggest that external drives are becoming read-only upon update to macOS 26.4 Beta. This prevents the Dropbox app from working correctly if your Dropbox folder is stored on the external drive as we don't have the permissions to make necessary changes to files within your Dropbox folder. We're currently escalating with Apple and hoping for a fix on their side.

Please let us know if you are experiencing this issue while your Dropbox folder is on the default volume of your device.

LynnDbx

@sspilleman We've been told the latest 26.4 beta update (25E5218f) should have a fix for the external drive read-only issue. Based on our telemetry, your last attempt failed due to a transient network issue and not the read-only drive issue. Could you try again (no need to update Dropbox app version) and report back?

sspilleman

Hi @LynnDbx

I know... This was related to an issue with HFS+ drives in beta 2 becoming readonly. This is already fixed in the beta released right after the buggy one.

I just upgraded again to the latest beta (25E5223i).... The dropbox issue still exists

sspilleman

And also: My dropbox folder is on the default folder, not on an external drive

Neal

Hi @sspilleman,

I just spoke with @LynnDbx and we were wondering if you could try doing an advanced reinstall?

It's possible that your permissions for your Dropbox folder got messed up and doing an advanced reinstall may help.

sspilleman

Hi @LynnDbx , I just upgraded to macOS 26.4 beta 4, Issue still exists, also took the latest dropbox installer. Logs:

bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 244.3.6525
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 90
bn.is_frozen: True
pid: 1460
ppid: 1
uid: 501
euid: 501
gid: 20
egid: 20
group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
effective_group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH: None
cwd: '/'
     real_path='/'
           	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
     parent	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
HOME: '/Users/sander'
appdata: '/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
         real_path='/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
dropbox_path: '/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
              real_path='/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
                    	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
              parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
sys_executable: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                      	mode=0o100775	uid=501	gid=20
                parent	mode=0o40775	uid=501	gid=20
trace.__file__: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                      	not found
                parent	not found
tempdir: '/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
         real_path='/private/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 238, in client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 297, in _create_thin_client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/fs_api_adapter.py", line 54, in __init__
  File "desktop/extensions/fs_api/fs_api_python.pyx", line 63, in fs_api_python.FsApiServer.__cinit__
fs_api_python.FsApiError: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

The above exception was the direct cause of the following exception:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 1108, in wrapper
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8876, in finish_dropbox_boot
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/message_queue.py", line 338, in _wrapped
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8157, in _init_components_for_account
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8065, 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 330, in __init__
  File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/base.py", line 260, in __init__
  File "../mac_arm64_dropbox_virtual_env/lib/python3.11/functools.py", line 1001, in __get__
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 267, in client
dropbox.fs_api.lifecycle.FsApiClientCreationException: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

sspilleman

Sorry @Neal , don't have to time, and I also don't think you want to ask all macOS users to do the same after 26.4 hits GA.

Just shared the latest logs with @LynnDbx in another thread, but will copy here as well

bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 244.3.6525
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 90
bn.is_frozen: True
pid: 1460
ppid: 1
uid: 501
euid: 501
gid: 20
egid: 20
group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
effective_group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH: None
cwd: '/'
     real_path='/'
           	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
     parent	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
HOME: '/Users/sander'
appdata: '/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
         real_path='/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
dropbox_path: '/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
              real_path='/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
                    	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
              parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
sys_executable: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                      	mode=0o100775	uid=501	gid=20
                parent	mode=0o40775	uid=501	gid=20
trace.__file__: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                      	not found
                parent	not found
tempdir: '/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
         real_path='/private/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 238, in client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 297, in _create_thin_client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/fs_api_adapter.py", line 54, in __init__
  File "desktop/extensions/fs_api/fs_api_python.pyx", line 63, in fs_api_python.FsApiServer.__cinit__
fs_api_python.FsApiError: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

The above exception was the direct cause of the following exception:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 1108, in wrapper
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8876, in finish_dropbox_boot
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/message_queue.py", line 338, in _wrapped
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8157, in _init_components_for_account
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8065, 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 330, in __init__
  File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/base.py", line 260, in __init__
  File "../mac_arm64_dropbox_virtual_env/lib/python3.11/functools.py", line 1001, in __get__
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 267, in client
dropbox.fs_api.lifecycle.FsApiClientCreationException: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

sspilleman

Latest 16.4 build (26.4 Beta (25E5233c)), Latest dropbox version, issue still exists:

bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 244.3.6525
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 90
bn.is_frozen: True
pid: 1460
ppid: 1
uid: 501
euid: 501
gid: 20
egid: 20
group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
effective_group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH: None
cwd: '/'
     real_path='/'
           	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
     parent	mode=0o40755	uid=0	gid=0
HOME: '/Users/sander'
appdata: '/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
         real_path='/Users/sander/.dropbox/instance3'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
dropbox_path: '/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
              real_path='/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox'
                    	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
              parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
sys_executable: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
                      	mode=0o100775	uid=501	gid=20
                parent	mode=0o40775	uid=501	gid=20
trace.__file__: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
                      	not found
                parent	not found
tempdir: '/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
         real_path='/private/var/folders/v5/1fn_t3055sd904vr0bg75ts40000gn/T'
               	mode=0o40700	uid=501	gid=20
         parent	mode=0o40755	uid=501	gid=20
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 238, in client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 297, in _create_thin_client
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/fs_api_adapter.py", line 54, in __init__
  File "desktop/extensions/fs_api/fs_api_python.pyx", line 63, in fs_api_python.FsApiServer.__cinit__
fs_api_python.FsApiError: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

The above exception was the direct cause of the following exception:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 1108, in wrapper
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8876, in finish_dropbox_boot
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/message_queue.py", line 338, in _wrapped
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8157, in _init_components_for_account
  File "desktop/dropbox/client/main.py", line 8065, 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 330, in __init__
  File "desktop/dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/base.py", line 260, in __init__
  File "../mac_arm64_dropbox_virtual_env/lib/python3.11/functools.py", line 1001, in __get__
  File "desktop/dropbox/fs_api/lifecycle.py", line 267, in client
dropbox.fs_api.lifecycle.FsApiClientCreationException: "Initializing fs api |>> Initializing platform |>> Opening worker root directory |>> open syscall |>> FSErrorCode::PermissionDenied"

LynnDbx

@sspilleman Could you let us know the permissions set on your Dropbox folder right now? We suspect Dropbox app has lost permissions to the folder which is why this error is happening. If you right-click your Dropbox folder and then select "Get Info", near the bottom of the Info window, it should list out the users with access to the folder and what permission they have (read, write or read & write).

michael_wohl

@sspilleman I tried everything they suggested and nothing worked. In frustration, I decided to reformat my hard drive and revert to the non-beta version.

sspilleman

I'm not on beta though....

sspilleman

@LynnDbx My user has Read & Write

LynnDbx

Thanks for sharing that. Looks like you have permission to the Dropbox folder yourself. The Dropbox app should be running under your permissions so it should also have access as long as it is able to read & enter each of the parent folders for your Dropbox folder in order to get to your Dropbox folder. Since the Dropbox app is running into a PermissionDenied error when trying to access your Dropbox folder, then something is denying us permissions.

Your Dropbox folder is at "/Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox" on your device, so we should check each of the parent directories to ensure we have traversal permissions for those directories (we can open them in order to look at any sub-folders).

A quick way to do this would be to run the following command (paste it in and then hit enter) in the Terminal app if that's available for you (I've personalized this command to your Dropbox folder path):

ls -ld /Volumes \
       /Volumes/Data \
       /Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage \
       /Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data \
       /Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox

This will list out the read/write permissions for each parent folder of your Dropbox folder. If you're comfortable running this and then posting the results here, that would help us further investigate your issue.

sspilleman

Hi @LynnDbx , See below

drwxr-xr-x   7 root    wheel  224 Mar 16 19:35 /Volumes
drwxr-xr-x@ 27 sander  staff  864 Jan 25 12:33 /Volumes/Data
drwxr-xr-x   5 sander  staff  160 Dec  7  2024 /Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage
drwxr-xr-x@  4 sander  staff  128 Apr 16  2025 /Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data
drwx------@ 18 sander  staff  576 Jan 29 06:31 /Volumes/Data/.CloudStorage/Data/Dropbox

LynnDbx

Thanks for sharing that. That output confirms that the directory permissions are not the problem that we're running into. Everything there looks fine.

As long as the Dropbox app is running with your permissions, it should be able to access that folder. Based on that there's two potential things happening to cause this PermissionDenied issue:

Either your Dropbox app is not running with user permissions (seems unlikely to have changed with a macOS version update)
Or as part of the macOS 26.4 update, Apple has restricted which programs can access the ".CloudStorage" directory. This seems much more likely and would explain why this started happening with the macOS version update.

Did you explicitly move your Dropbox folder into this ".CloudStorage" directory at some point, or was it put there by an automatic process that you're using? Would you be open to using a different location for your Dropbox folder to rule out this issue?