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KenDavis's avatar
KenDavis
New member | Level 2
7 years ago

Camera Uploads not running automatically

I use and android device - I need to open up my dropbox app and go to camera uploads for my phone to start uploading photos.  This has been the case for some time, but i'm sure that this happened aut...
Camera uploads
Mobile
Sync
  • Lusil's avatar
    Lusil
    7 years ago
    Hi there KenDavis!
     
    A first step to this would be to ensure that camera uploads is enabled. Could you please check if by toggling the option off-on and see if that makes a difference at all? 
     
    I’d also kindly recommend having a look at this Help Center article which includes some steps and info on troubleshooting issues with camera uploads - maybe one of them might just do the trick. 
     
    Furthermore, it could you be possible that the version of your Android allows power saving mode to close some apps from running after a certain period of time - could it be such a case? 
     
    If you’re still experiencing some trouble with this, could you please make sure if this only occurs on Wi-Fi or if you’ve tried uploading via cellular data? Could the uploading be affected by your device’s battery? Do camera uploads initiate during charging? 
     
    Let me know of any updates on the matter! :nerd:
KenDavis's avatar
KenDavis
New member | Level 2

Thanks for the suggestions.  I am running Android 8.0.0.   I believe that I have found the issue...it appears to be due to the fact that my Android Phone suggests apps that run in the background that may be put to sleep...even if I have power saving mode disabled.  I may be wrong, but it looks like Android may allow Dropbox to run in the background initially, even with power saving mode disabled, but then still puts it to sleep if it has not been used for a while...

What I did is as follows:

1.  Go to Settings

2. Pick "Device maintenance"

3. Select the little Battery icon at the lower left corner of the screen

( ...note that at this point, a screen appears where you can select a power saving mode...My screen already had OFF greyed in...so i had power saving mode disabled...I would think that this is correct...so as to not allow apps to be shut down.... )

4. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and there is a line "Unmonitored apps"

What i did was I selected this and i observed that there were a few apps in this list already...but Dropbox was not one of them...so at the bottom of this screen, i clicked on the little green "+" to "Add apps".

Then i selected the Dropbox app so as to add it to one of the unmonitored apps.  I suspect that this will then prevent Android 8 from allowing Dropbox to go to sleep in the background under any circumstances.

I haven't really tested it out...I suppose i should wait a few hours, then take a few pictures (without opening my Dropbox app) and then check my PC to see if photos appeared automatically without me having to open up dropbox on my phone.

Once I test this out, I will report back on my findings.

David K.124's avatar
David K.124
Helpful | Level 6
7 years ago

I've been having the same problem. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll give it a try. You can also go into the settings for Dropbox and turn "camera uploads" off and then on again. That seems to kickstart it, at least for a little while.

I was going to open a ticket with Dropbox support, but the Zendesk support site won't let me open any new tickets, although I can still see tickets I've opened in the past. Doesn't Dropbox provide technical support any more, or is that just for Business accounts?

  • Lusil's avatar
    Lusil
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
    7 years ago
    Thanks for the detailed info here, KenDavis! When you’ve got more info on this, don’t hesitate to get back to me and let me know how it went. 
     
    You can contact our Support team, David K.124, as this is available for all users - we’re here to help after all.
     
    If you’re having an issue submitting a ticket, have you tried switching browsers? Maybe that will do the trick. 
     
    Let me know if you need any further assistance nonetheless and I’ll make sure to get back to you as soon as possible. Cheers! :innocent:

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