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Forum Discussion
Selecting folders from Dropbox.com to synce with Drobox folder on Mac
I had to uninstall and reinstall Dropbox on my Mac. When I tried to set it all up again I was told that their were too many files to download so I had to select a number that would not be downloaded ...
John G wrote:
The subsequent download was fine but I now want to download the folders that were de-selected.
You can go into your Selective Sync settings and check the folders that you want to sync back to your computer. Anything with a check will sync. Anything without a check will stay on Dropbox.com.
Many thanks Rich, I knew someone would have the simple answer. Every day is a learning day. J
There's a pretty big caveat on macOS. If Dropbox is working as a macOS File Provider (new installs should be), files and folders can spontaneously revert to online rather than local. Here's the Dropbox article about what's different with File Provider:
macOS now manages the actual sync, and sometimes it decides that files that are stored locally are really OK as online. This is a macOS "thing" that I've found across all File Provider sources, including Apple's own iCloud Drive. Apple is eventually forcing sync/cloud storage apps to use its File Provider API.
I've found that after a macOS update, whether a minor version upgrade (e.g. macOS 14.1 to macOS 14.2) or a major one (e.g. macOS 13 to macOS 14), File Provider sources are most likely to be affected. It's annoying, unpredictable, and out of our control. It also means cool Dropbox features like LAN sync no longer works on macOS.
There are some sync/backup utility apps that support the vagaries of File Provider and can download a copy of the file for sync or backup purposes. ChronoSync (https://www.econtechnologies.com/chronosync/overview.html) and Carbon Copy Cloner (CCC) (https://bombich.com/) are the two that I use. They or another app that supports Dropbox (e.g. Cyberduck/Mountain Duck, odrive, Forklift, Transmit) is required to have Dropbox files on an external drive. Some backup apps really do NOT like placeholder files and so a separate source is needed for them to truly backup files in Dropbox.
That's just a heads-up about working with Dropbox (or almost any cloud service) in macOS now and in the future.
