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Forum Discussion
Shared Link / "scl" to "s"
Hello. My question concerns my recent issue with file sharing. Usually, my links were generated in this way: 'https://www.dropbox.com/s/'. However, lately, every file is being generated in this way: 'https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/'. Do you know a way to restore the old way of generating links? I just need old way of links, because game can't read new links
Greet đ
Direct Download on new link architecture is Solved
What is the DL parameter?
- Default link. This will render the content in the Dropbox file viewer.
- Downloads the content of the link (if the user has access to the content based on link settings). This query parameter takes precedence even if raw=1 is also added.
- Directly renders the content in the browser (if the link has a public audience and no other restrictions). Note that this link has an HTTP 302 redirect, so the application or browser must be able to follow the redirect.
What are the dl.dropbox... modifications?
These are link transformations from the early days of Dropbox. While we don't "officially" list these anymore in our Help Center, we are continuing to support them for now.- Replacing www with dl works exactly like a ?raw=1 link: this will directly render content for public links in the browser. It requires following an HTTP 302 redirect.
- Works like a ?raw=1 link, but the application or browser will not need to follow an HTTP 302 redirect to access the content.
I have exactly the same problem.
All OK Sunday then Monday all links had /scI/fi and &rlkey = at the end.
They will not work in my web siteNeed /s/ back asap
I think I have sussed why some old links are /s/ and some /scI/
Dropbox knows if a link has been requested historically in which case it continues to give the old linke.
If however it is the first time a link has been requested it will give the new /scI/ link.
So all new files will get the /scI/ link.How can I force an old link with a new file ?
John
- Nancy
Dropbox Staff
Are you perhaps creating shared links with edit permissions and not view-only permissions?
I've been creating direct download links via drop box for years but for some reason since 1st June 2023 the links have been behaving differently.
Previously the view only share link would display with the ending dl=0. I'd change it to dl=1 and that's my direct download link.
Since the 1st June the view only share link appears with the ending dl=0&rlkey=randomkey
when I remove everything from the 0 onwards (0&rlkey=randomkey) and replace it with a 1 the direct download works on Chrome (I'm logged into dropbox via chrome) but it doesn't work on any other browser.
Has there been a setting change by dropbox? Is this a user error?
Help
When I upload a file and copy the link, the link normally ends with ".mp3?dl=0"
my last two files now generates a link that ends "mp3?dl=0&rlkey=randomkey"
With all the extra characters, some of my 3rd party Apps will now not recognise this new style of generated link.
Can someone offer advice in what's going on?
- Jay
Hi Turville Wines, thanks for bringing this to our attention.
If you open the shared link with just dl=0, does it open normally on the site?
How are you copying the link, via the site, the desktop application, or the mobile app?
This will help me to assist further!
Yes, if I open with dl=0 then it opens in dropbox and asks me to sign in or request access.
If I open with dl=0&rlkey=randomkey it opens in dropbox and asks me to sign in or request access.
If I open it with dl=1 it does the same.
I'm copying the link via the site.
I have a website via Webflow I'm using Dropbox to host content on.
There was a weird issue where it wouldn't upload the files to the folder via the integrated Mac Desktop thing and I tried adding and then removing it via browser. This froze up my Finder menu and I had to restart my machine.
Since then, the links have had the phrase "key" in its url. That line in the url has stopped me from being able to put the content up for preview because the previews wouldn't play anymore. However, days prior, Dropbox and the other files were working fine; and when you try to manage permissions, the files don't have an option to add passwords to them.
There's a workaround where my web developer removes them on his end and re-uploads them, but I'm frustrated it seems I can no longer add content by myself.
Has anyone had this issue? I went to support and as much as it was helpful, they couldn't go into it any further citing it was Webflow's fault (even though it was Dropbox creating the links. Not Webflow)
Has anyone found a way to turn off the add passwords feature entirely (not even the slideable button) or has dealt with this recently?
- Hannah
Hey aaronpanganiban21, thanks for bringing this to our attention.
Can you please guide us through the steps you're following to create the links?
Also, can you give us an example of how a link used to look for you and how it looks now?
Just make sure it's not a real link, but a made up one, so you don't have to post your link publicly.
As for the link permissions, have you tried this through a different browser or a private browsing window, to see if that helps?
Thanks.
Hi,
In the past, links have been shared looking like this:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/xyz/file.mp4?dl=0
But now I see links looking like this instead:
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/xyz/file.mp4?dl=0&rlkey=abc
Is this a new standard or because of some user setting? Notice /scl/fi/ instead of /s/ and the extra rlkey at the end
This is important, because I've been able to replace
https://www.dropbox.com/s/xyz/file.mp4?dl=0
with
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/xyz/file.mp4?dl=1
This is to gain direct access to the file and play from a media player such as video js and similar.
Now, suddenly thousands of links will stop working for both me and my clients.
Please fix or come up with a workaround Dropbox.
Thanks!
Did anyone ever find a fix to this since tech support seems oblivious to the issue?
I've had a music website for about ten years now and I use Dropbox to upload mp3 files.
Until now, the Dropbox link format had the following structure: https://dl.dropbox.com/s/tb0414ee0u06v2y/xxxxxxxxxxx.mp3.Today when sharing a new file, dropbox gives me the following link: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/k98ve2uye7bk8b83ss0qu/xxxxxxxxxx.mp3?dl=0&rlkey=jpzs4bxm1yvr0164tsjrqxjqg. A link not working with the html music player.
I too find the new "scl" links unusable for posting .jpg files to web sites so that they fully render as a full screen image when clicked. I am looking forward to a quck solution from Dropbox or will have to change my file hosting service.
Hi guys,
The links starting with www.dropbox.com/scl/ are preview links, not classical shared links. They can be links to files (www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/) of folders (www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/). Such links are presumably used for preview and not for direct download or embedding (in spite of some links can be redacted and made downloadable, but not all and not for embedding). There are different places where such links can be received from, but most probably you have received editable links, instead of view only (classical) shared links. What kind of links type to be received can be controlled on individual link creation, as well as changing the default link type (always when just "Copy link" is used - not "Share this file" or "Share this folder", the default link type gonna be created). Using "Share this ..." you can select "can edit" or "can view" for per link type select (before actual link creation). If the link is already created you may need to clear it and recreate proper link type anew. To change the default link type (if you have set or has been set inappropriate type), go to your sharing settings and select the desirable link type ("can view" or "can edit" in the field "What people can do"; most probably you want to ensure there is "can view" selected).
Good luck.
Thanks for your thoughts. I went into default sharing settings and changed "What people can do" to "can view". The only choice I then make is to right click on a dropbox file and chose the "copy dropbox link" option in the resulting dropdown which fills the buffer with same kind of "scl" type link. So changing the option to "can view" didn't change the result. Any other ideas?
I'm having the same issue. New png files in a subfolder always generate /scl/fi links instead of /s
- Nancy
Hi Pysio13 and bleach hawk. I hope you donât mind me jump in.
Are you seeing this for any type of file located within your subfolders?
bleach hawk, what if you create a shared link for a file located directly in your root Dropbox (outside of any folders)?
Yes, i trying to upload any file type
- Just here to say Iâm experiencing the same issue on my clientâs website. We were hosting mp3 files from Dropbox with no issues until yesterday when our uploads started generating âsclâ links.
The HTML audio player will not preview these links regardless of the parameters I add to the URL.
Does anyone know what the âsclâ directory is? I imagine itâs tied to sharing options. Hi guys, how to get the shared link like https://www.dropbox.com/s/ instead of https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/
when I upload a image and click the copy link, I only get url like scl/fi, I don't want this kind of image url because it contains many dropbox things and not a pure image.
Same here. Before this change I could replace
https://www.dropbox.com/s/xyz/file.mp4?dl=0
with
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/xyz/file.mp4?dl=0
and it would give a direct link to the file.
This no longer works, not even with/scl/fi/ instead of /s/. Please fix dropbox or does anyone have a workaround?
Thank you!
- Megan
Hey everyone, thanks for your collaboration, and also bringing this to our attention!
Our Team is aware of this, and will provide a further update, and some insights on this soon.
Hang tight, thank you again!
Thank you Dropbox! It is working now!
none of the suggestions are working for me. i'm attempting to import stylesheets but the game im on isnt reading the new link format, no matter what i do. i've changed everything, deleted everything, and done everything suggested, and no results. i cannot for the life of me understand why nothing will work, no matter what i do. i've tried for days now and i'm getting frustrated.
psykroniumcube wrote:... the game im on isnt reading the new link format, no matter what i do. ...
Hi psykroniumcube,
That's why don't use the "new link format" (it's not new format actually; might be new and strange way to be introduced), but the old (classical - "can view") one. đ Use some of the ways I described in my previous post to get link type back.
The new links to embed an audio file in an html player don't work.
