Child Item

Cannot search for images that contain text after desktop app update on macOS Sequoia

Application Affected
(Dropbox , finder)
Device
MAcbook M1 sequoia
Operating System/Browser (if using the web)
sequoia
Dropbox App Version (if using the app)
243.3.6895

Question or Issue

Hi everyone,I’m having an issue with Dropbox and I hope someone can help. I can’t search for images that contain text anymore. For example, in Finder on my Mac, inside my Dropbox folders, I’m no longer able to find images based on the text inside them.

This used to work perfectly when Dropbox was in its original location. After restarting my Mac, Dropbox was moved to the Library folder without my permission. I thought, “Okay, I don’t really care where it’s located,” but since then I’ve only had problems.

Honestly, this is very disappointing.

How can I fix this?

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Comments

Hannah

Thanks for taking the time to post on our Community again, @Anjo.

I completely understand your frustration over this, so let's see what we can find.

As a first step, have you tried restarting your device after realizing that you're having this issue?

Does this only happen with files in your Dropbox folder?

And are the files you're searching for set to "online-only" or "available offline"?

Let me know and we'll go from there!

Anjo

Yes, all my files are set to offline.

I’ve already tried uninstalling and reinstalling Dropbox.
I reset the Spotlight database using Onyx, forced Spotlight to reindex by adding and removing the Dropbox folder from Spotlight Privacy, and ran multiple Terminal commands for those solution i mentioned also — including some others suggested by Gemini.

Nothing of the above worked! I have around 20,000 photos and still can’t search text inside them. Before Dropbox was forcefully moved to the new API-based location in the Library folder, everything worked perfectly.

Spotlight searches text in images without any issue in folders outside Dropbox (like Desktop), so the problem is clearly limited to Dropbox in the library area.

Gemini mentioned this is a common issue when Dropbox is located inside the Library folder, API, but there’s still no clear solution. I assume Dropbox needs to release a fix or a patch. I’m on a free plan, but I can only imagine how frustrating this must be for premium users who rely on Spotlight. For me it’s a serious issue since I need OCR search to quickly find and compare graphs.

Megan

Hey @Anjo!

As a first step, please let me know the syncing status of your app.

Also, based on the app version that you're using (243.3.6895) it sounds like you have the beta version installed instead of the stable one. That could be the culprit there.

Can you try to uninstall Dropbox from your computer using these steps?

Once you do this, please access your account settings online and then toggle the Early Access setting to Off. After that reinstall the stable version using this link.

I'll be waiting for your update once you try this, to let me know if the behavior remains the same.

If it does, please send some screenshots of what you see when you use the app to search for some example file names, in order for me to have a visual. Thanks!

Anjo

I did not enroll in, nor consent to participate in, any beta testing program. However, when I forcefully migrate to the API-based version of Dropbox, I was simultaneously placed on a beta release without explicit authorization.

After dedicating several hours to troubleshooting — including reverting to the previous non-API Dropbox location — the issue remained unresolved. Ultimately, I had to perform a reinstallation of macOS Sequoia. Only following a clean system installation was OCR search functionality within images restored.

It is difficult to understand the rationale behind mandating migration to the API-based version while also requiring users to operate on beta builds without a clear opt-in process.

Hannah

Hey @Anjo, thanks for the update here.

I'm glad to see that you managed to resolve this issue.

I totally understand how you feel about this, though, and I've passed your feedback along to our team.

If you need anything else, don't hesitate to let us know.

Anjo

I am using now the Version: 243.3.6933. Is this a **bleep** beta version as well?

Megan

Hey @Anjo!

Yes it sounds like you're using a beta version again. Have you tried the steps I provided above in order to uninstall the app, and then turn early releases off?

Did you face any issues when trying these out? If you've followed these exact steps, can you send me a screenshot of your account settings online in order for me to see that it's indeed disabled?

Anjo

I never opted in for a beta tester. that is very sad from a company like Dropbox!