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Why is Dropbox indexing on every restart of my computer?

Using a M3 Ultra Mac Studio, Sequoia 15.5, with Dropbox v239.4.8301 running on an external drive.

This issue has been an issue since last June, and I have been lucky to avoid any major issues until today. Whenever I restart/shut off and turn my computer back on, Dropbox always has to go through the process of re-indexing everything. I work off of dropbox directly, and use shared folders to send files back and forth with collaborators/clients/etc. After I did a necessary restart for an unrelated software issue (Pro Tools for the work I do), and naturally the indexing process had begun. However, it's been going on for the past 5+ hours, and the work I completed this morning can't be sent until dropbox is done indexing, and my collaborator can't access any of my work until dropbox has completed the indexing process. We are under tight deadlines, and we have lost half a day due to this issue.

Is there anyway to stop dropbox from re-indexing everything on startup? This was never an issue in the past, and I would rather not have to change my workflow, but I desperately need this to be resolved.

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Comments

Walter

Hey @Jack D-77 - thanks for lettings us know about this.

I'm afraid what you described is normal and expected since the Dropbox desktop app will always re-index your files upon rebooting to check for any changes made on the web and/or from other devices or users.

That said, may I ask approximately how many files you've stored in your Dropbox folder? Have you considered using the website when this happens by the way?

Let us know more and we'll take it from there.

Jack D-77

Hi @Walter , has dropbox always re-indexed files in this manner? With my older workstation I never saw the indexing process whenever I completed the restart.

I'd say approximately 500,000-1,000,000 files? It's roughly 2.8 TB of data. Using the website - could you elaborate a bit more? Since I was working off of dropbox and exported data while dropbox was indexing, I couldn't move the file in Finder without an error about the copied version.

Also, after my own research the past several hours, is it correct that part of my issue is related to having dropbox on an external hard drive? As in, if I were to delay the dropbox app from running on startup and give time for the drive to be mounted and seen by the app, would it forego the indexing process at start up?

Mark

Jack D-77 wrote:
is it correct that part of my issue is related to having dropbox on an external hard drive?

Quite possibly - Dropbox isnt really intended to be on an external drive so it may be slower than internal.

However, I suspect the bigger issue is the number of files you have. Service can start rapidly degrading when you have over 300,000 files.

Jack D-77 wrote:
would it forego the indexing process at start up?

No. Indexing always happens because it is the only way that it knows what files have, or have not been changed.

Jack D-77

Well, that's a bummer. Thank you for helping me understand!

Enrico Molino

Hi, I can confirm that until about a year ago, the indexing process would start every time I restarted my PC and would take a few seconds or a few minutes.

After a Dropbox update, the system indexed all 180,000 of my files, and the process took about an hour.

Enrico Molino

Hi, after a Dropbox update, the system indexed all 180,000 of my files, and the process took about an hour.

Until about a year ago, the indexing process would start every time I restarted my PC and would take a few seconds or a few minutes.

Can you tell me the reason of thin change of function?

Enrico

Megan

Hey @Enrico Molino, thanks for posting here!

The time Dropbox takes to index your files can be affected by several factors.

When you have a large number of files in your Dropbox folder, the app needs more memory and processing power to keep track of them.

After an update, Dropbox may use more CPU and memory to sync, store, and update your files, as well as to check for version updates and perform self-monitoring tasks. These processes can increase the time it takes to index your files, especially if you have a significant number of them.

Additionally, changes in how Dropbox manages file syncing and system resources in recent updates may have contributed to the longer indexing times you’re experiencing.

Is it possible that you recently updated to the new Dropbox for Windows update as shown here?

I'm asking because following a migration to Dropbox for Windows, your files need to be re-synced. Depending on the amount of files you have stored in your Dropbox account, this may take some time to complete.

Keep me posted!

Megan

Hey @Enrico Molino!

Just popping in to see if you've had a chance to look at our last message. Still need help? We're all ears! If the issue is sorted, let us know what worked out for you.