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Forum Discussion
How do I open PDF files from Dropbox on Android devices?
Hello :-)
There is a problem with PDF files. They do not open when downloading in android devices :-(
The dropbox link is ?dl=1
There isn't any problem when downloading in Desktop PC and Apple ...
Thanks for the reply Giannis F. and sorry to hear this persists.
Do you notice the same behavior on other browsers other than the one you used so far?
Remember the "dl=1" parameter at the end of shared links should tell the browser to download the file(s) instead of attempting to display it so this seems to be an issue caused by the browser you use (as you say, the files and links are working fine).
Let me know what you find.
I have a similar problem, but I'm using the official Dropbox addon for Gmail, so modifying the URL parameter isn't an option. The shared files can not be opened in Gmail for Android. Tested in various devices and the message is the same: "Cannot display PDF (filename.pdf is of invalid format)". The file itself is OK, can be opened on all devices if sending as attachment and also OK on a desktop computer. (BTW what grammar is this "something is of invalid"? Why not just "something is invalid"? Or is it a different meaning?)
The addon generates a "?dl=0" URL and because I'm curious I tested the link without the addon. The result is same: can't open. Tried with "?dl=1", same result with a little different error message: "Cannot display PDF (filename.pdf cannot be opened)"
Obviously I doesn't open my emails and also usually doesn't receive Dropbox files this way, so I'm not sure if this method is broken all the time or it's a new bug.
What do you think about this?
Thanks in advance,
András.
Dropbox never replied to my inquiry, so I ended up moving all my files to Google Drive and sharing through there. I just have a floating account here now.
