Can I install the Dropbox desktop app on C drive, but direct it to my old Dropbox folder on D drive?

Question

Here's the situation. I lost my C drive unexpectedly. The good news is that I ran almost nothing off of that drive. All my Dropbox user files are located on a drive called D, which is intact. I THINK the Dropbox app was located on C or another drive, but I don't know. (The cache file is on D with the rest of my Dropbox files, but I don't see the app file there.)

This is a Windows 11 build, as was the pre-crash drive.

Here's the question: Can I install the Dropbox app on my new C drive and direct it to the file location on my D drive and just have it reconnect to my files at their current? (Making sure both the computer C and D drive names are the same as they were pre-crash.) Can I just install the app on any drive and have it pick up again where it left off like nothing happened? Or do I need to install the app on D where my files are?

The info I've seen online doesn't seem to address needing to install the app again when all the user files still exist in their original location and just need the link restored. And I really need my Dropbox folder on my device and in the cloud to remain exactly the same for both local and cloud-only files.

Does that make sense? Just need to know what the best way to do this is.

Jay · Answer

Hi @cindy t.3, thanks for messaging the Community!

When you install the Dropbox desktop application, the actual application will be installed on C: drive, but the Dropbox folder itself (where all your synced files and folders live) can be placed anywhere.

During the installation of the desktop app, just before the final step, you can click on 'Advanced settings' and choose the current location of the Dropbox folder on D:\. Make sure to pick the 'parent' folder above the Dropbox folder (aka, if it's stored on D:\Dropbox, you need to select D:\)

You can see this in a little more detail in this article, on step 11.

If you need any further assistance, please let me know!