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Implementing Dropbox features in a custom file explorer: API limitations for desktop apps?
I'm developing a desktop application as an alternative to Windows Explorer / macOS Finder and want to integrate the following Dropbox features: 1. Reading thumbnails for images and other supported f...
No, Dropbox does not offer a way to programmatically retrieve thumbnails locally without having the user authorize the app to access their content via the Dropbox API.
Здравко Greg-DB Thank you for your replies.
I understand that desktop applications can also use the API by http calls, to clarify, I want to know if the following are the only ways to get thumbnails(and other features), despite my software having full access to the local Dropbox folder:
1. register my app in dropbox app console
2. when users want to visit the local dropbox folder in my application, I need to proactively inform and get manual approvals from users to acquire dropbox API auth token via OAuth
3. for all the local image files displayed within my software, request the thumbnails via Dropbox API
Other than the above procedures, there is no other direct way to get the thumbnails, despite the software already having full access to local disks, is this correct?
LewisO wrote:...
Other than the above procedures, there is no other direct way to get the thumbnails, despite the software already having full access to local disks, is this correct?
Hi LewisO,
In your question exists some ambiguity. Do you want just access to the local Dropbox folder (consequences don't matter) or you want to get thumbnails while preserving online/offline status? 🤔 Your question formulation doesn't clarify this.
If you want just access (i.e. information where Dropbox folder resides in and how is its exact name), following Greg links above you will know that such information could be found for Windows using information in file %LOCALAPPDATA%\Dropbox\info.json. There is information about the account type and folder placement as well as some other details. Maybe here is the place to mention that there are some small mistakes in JSON formatting that's good idea to be fixed - I believe Greg will forward this to the employees engaged with documentation. I believe too that you will be able see them. Even more the exact file is accessible to you on your machine where you can see what's there (exact/correct format). In such a way you don't need to register anything and just access the files there as you would do for any other local file. You should keep in mind that the files did access in such a way may change their status from online only to available offline - something that may not be desirable. It's up to you, is that something that you want (design decision).
You may access thumbnails online - something that will avoid local access to the files themself, so avoid any sync status change (guaranteed). In this case you will need to register your application and ask the user for granting access to the data (despite you have already access to user local data, that doesn't give your application automatically access to the data online "mirror"). Once you have such access granted, you may ask for desired file thumbnail. And all other files information too. You should keep in mind that Dropbox path is POSIX style absolute path with components matching to all folders (and at the end file name with extension) that reside inside local Dropbox folder, but nothing outside the local Dropbox folder (including Dropbox folder itself get out from that list). For team accounts you may need to change the root namespace (usually by default users home folder), to actual account root. Skipping this may lead to inaccessible files/folders (incorrect paths to them).
On Linux and Mac JSON files are placed on ~/.dropbox/info.json.
Hope this sheds some additional light.
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