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t84a's avatar
t84a
New member | Level 2
3 years ago

Deleting files does not free up space

I deleted about half of my files and then permanently deleted them in the "Deleted Files" section.  It still says I'm about out of space. Is there something else I need to do?

  • It was my SMS backup program.  All solved.

  • Mark's avatar
    Mark
    Icon for Super User II rankSuper User II

    Deleted files do not use up quota, so, permanenetly deleting them makes no difference and wont impact quota. 

     

    It also doesnt matter how many you delete its how BIG the are that is the issue. You could delete 100,000 files but if that only uses up 2kb of space then thats all that will be reduced from quota. 

    • t84a's avatar
      t84a
      New member | Level 2

      Thanks. To clarify, I deleted roughly half of my data and the amount used did not change.

      • Mark's avatar
        Mark
        Icon for Super User II rankSuper User II

        Where did you delete from? Did you remove them from www.dropbox.com/home as well? (i.e. if you did it on your computer have you given it time to sync to the cloud?)

         

        What is www.dropbox.com/account showing - its possible that shared folders are using it up. 

  • Laus's avatar
    Laus
    Explorer | Level 3

    Hello

    DB says that I've finished the space (70gb used on 9gb !!)

     

    I've emptied the space, disconnected all the accounts, permanently remove deleted files, but it is still warning that the space i exausted (now 67gb over 9gb).

     

    Is there something that I can do to force refresh of checking space usage?

     

    Thanks

    • Rich's avatar
      Rich
      Icon for Super User II rankSuper User II

      Laus wrote:

      Is there something that I can do to force refresh of checking space usage?


      Space is reclaimed immediately when files are deleted. No need to permanently delete them. What does your Plan page show for usage? This is the true status of your account. If it shows that you're using 67 GB, then you're still using 67 GB somewhere in your account. Remember that shared folders you're a member of count against your storage as well. The Plan page will show you a breakdown of regular versus shared files.

      • Laus's avatar
        Laus
        Explorer | Level 3

        It says only regular files, not shared but I deleted ALL files and folders!

         

  • Mish1's avatar
    Mish1
    New member | Level 2

    I deleted lots of files in hope of increasing my storage space but all that seems to have happened is that my storage space as diminished further (I have permanently deleted them too). Does anyone know how to free up storage? TIA

    • Mish1's avatar
      Mish1
      New member | Level 2

      All sorted, using the past community posts.  I didn't find these until after I posted my own thread. Sorry!

  • I have deleted files etc that I do not need and shared files, but it is still not freeing up storage

    • Hannah's avatar
      Hannah
      Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

      Hey Cressida Downey, thanks for taking the time to post to the Dropbox Community.

       

      Can you take a look and send us a screenshot of what you see in the plan tab of your account settings?

       

      Does it show what kind of files are taking up your space?

  • jrbartlettjr's avatar
    jrbartlettjr
    Explorer | Level 4

    I have deleted >1Mb of files and images BUT the file usage number remains the same. How long must I wait for the file usage to calibrate and show me the correct number??

    • jrbartlettjr's avatar
      jrbartlettjr
      Explorer | Level 4

      oops, meant to write >1Gb of files and images deleted. 

      • jrbartlettjr's avatar
        jrbartlettjr
        Explorer | Level 4

        Note:  Just found the space where deleted files are deleted permanently. The file usage number was reduced only a small amount, not relative to the actual amount of file usage I deleted.