I struggle hard to restore my original file system on Windows after I made the huge mistake of installing the Dropbox application. For some reason, despite me unchecking the backup and sync options during the installation, the Dropbox app "backed up" my Desktop and my Documents folder to the cloud.

In fact: it removed the content of these folders from my hard drive after sending them to their servers ("cloud") without my permission (including personal documents)!!!! And my music applications that rely on the integrity of the Documents folder are now completely messed up.

For example: with the Ableton folder gone, my user directory with my own presets, racks and packs is gone. In Vital synth my own designed sound presets are now missing. And many other plugins and apps that store data inside Documents folder are also affected!

I cannot believe this is one of the most famous and popular apps for backups and syncs - an app that would delete important files locally and send them to their servers without your prior permission!

A first year computer science student would be dishonorably discharged from university in my country, if he would deliver such a nonsense in his semester assignment!

 

I’ve been running Dropbox for years with no issues . But I don’t back up my Mac to it . Any files you save or upload will be available in you’re Dropbox account online . I’d try logging into you’re account online and look through you’re files to find you’re missing ones

 

Sounds like you made a mistake and it's user error to me.
I have a dropbox folder. What I put in that is shared nothing else.
But don't tell people to stay away from something because you fukt up.

 

A friend of mine had the same problem when installing Reaper. He had bought a new laptop a few months prior and I helped him setup Reaper + some plug-ins and after awhile, Dropbox asked him if he wanted to backup his important files, to which he clicked yes. The next day when he started Reaper none of the projects worked because it couldn't find the projects files as Dropbox had moved all of them to their servers

I think that One Drive does the same, FYI.

 

Stay away from computers.

 

Less arrogance would really help. I repeat: those folders were "backed up" after I deliberately unchecked the option. And what kind of backup removes files from local without permission from the user?

Have fun with Dropbox, maybe eventually you will understand what I was warning you about!

 

Last edited: May 31, 2021

1.How are you 100% certain it wasn't you.
2. If the files are on the cloud why not restore them.
3. Find one result on Google with the similar problem?
Right now you are sounding like a guy who buys a hot coffee, spills it on himself and tells people to stay away from Starbucks.

 

I guess you did not exactly understand the OP.
He was talking about a Dropbox-APP, locally installed, and obviously with some backup-function.
You were talking about the normal cloudspace you can use via your browser.
Seems to me, this is a completely different pair of shoes.

Using the dropbox online space is - ofc - easy and hassle-free.
But a backupfunction, that not only copies but transfers your personal files w/o permission into the cloud ... hmmm, thats more than spooky.

 

No, I guess you didn't understand when I said I have a dropbox folder. What I put in that is shared nothing else.
Dropbox installs onto your computer and makes a dropbox folder and everything you put in that folder is then synced online.

 

I really don't like anything that cloud syncs. or installs a program to do it. but I don't mind putting random uploads on their servers for just storage to link someone a file.

even if cloud storage is great, perfect working, etc. relying on something like that in lieu of regular local backups is asking for problems.

 

My google account got hacked last week.
They could have gained access to all my accounts.
I'm not staying away from it.

 

Though I've never experienced what is happening here, I find it quite concerning. After Dropbox got hacked I kind of started looking at different things. Although I've never had any data loss, I just found their security a bit open but once has to recognize that for a lot of people that is part of the appeal of Dropbox.

I find that in life you get what you pay for.

I only use Dropbox, OneDrive as file sharing platform through a browser, I just don't trust Deamons and services from free shit providers to behave, especially not on a WIN platform that doesn't really have any bumpers.

I use iCloud for the smaller stuff, an AWS S3 Bucket along with a local NAS on a RAID5 array with sshfs for the bigger or more critical items.I get jut under 2TB from the 3 1TB drives. There is no logging in or password as connections are established by ssh crypto keys. Everything is either on 2FA or Authenticator for an actual account logins.

All told I pay around $12USD for about a half-terabyte of cloud storage a month. Expenditures on NAS are negligible and are pretty much the one time investment in the chassis and the 3 hard drives. If one of them should fail, I loose nothing. If I get really unlucky and a simultaneous failure occurs, I have the important things on S3 or iCloud.

 

Dropbox used to be great, and am well familiar with it, but starting around 6 months ago I have had nothing but issues and its blown out of control with sync conflicts and no matter how much I try to clean it up it just multiplies and always says I'm out of space.

 

Spooky like a ghost.
And, like ghosts, does not exist.

Granted many of these backup / sync programs attempt to "dumb-down" the process for users, and they do that by obscuring what is going on, which CAN make it MORE likely for data loss for anyone who actually attempts to manage their own system.
Unfortunately, "Permission" is usually granted in the process of installing the software.

@Hazen I assume that you have not lost any data and this is just an inconvenience to you, as certainly you would ALWAYS BACK EVERYTHING UP ON A REGULAR BASIS WITH A PROGRAM YOU TRUST.

Anyone who installs software of this nature WITHOUT first doing a trusted backup (or two) is NOT such an "expert".

I am not expert myself, but have used both Dropbox (for a while) and Google backup (still) without issue. One needs to make sure one knows the "skimmer" a program may put on your folders.
Like a skimmer on a credit card reader, where you think you are putting files may NOT BE where they are actually being placed. Some of these "management" programs may move all your "User" folders to the program's own location, leaving only a false-front behind.

I can't recall how DropBox works, and maybe something has changed in the past few years, but I will install it again after all these years to see what could have happened.
First, though, i will do another backup....

 

Last edited: Jun 1, 2021

And that is for a reason. User error. I use Dropbox for years (and other cloud services - you can never have enough cloud space ;))
No Dropbox is not uploading your files without permission. You give the permission while you install it. With the default settings it syncs your files. Which in your case should not mess up anything, because by default it is just mirroring your documents folder as a back up in the cloud.

 

Last edited: Jun 1, 2021

Even a user error may be useful to know about since it might be repeated by others. And it actually may have been a Dropbox issue so I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it as a user issue either. So thank you for reporting @Hazen

Personally I have ignored cloud storage and went for a local Synology solution. Since it's rather technical to setup it's way more prone to user error, but once it works it's forever YOUR storage, for no extra charge but the price of purchase.

 

Seems another common cause of problems between the chair and the keyboard.