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Forum Discussion

nino2's avatar
nino2
New member | Level 2
7 years ago

Storage Usage reported for online-only folders on Finder doesn't match the "User Info".

So after more than a year of discussion on pretty much the same topic, this  still has not been resolved. Sugesting that issue will be resolved in the next version of software is somewhat unacceptabl...
Desktop
Dropbox Basic
Sync
  • HGohar's avatar
    HGohar
    7 years ago

    According to Dropbox team Jane, if the info about the dropbox folder is close or equal to zero bytes, it means it doesn't take any physical space on the hard disc. The problem I guess that the operating system still sees it as if it is taking that physical space and acts accordingly, i.e., full disc or neat full. I don't know what is the way around that.

     
akaraetteh's avatar
akaraetteh
Helpful | Level 5
I don’t use TM to backup my Dropbox folder...again, not sure why you would do that?

However not seeing the true sizes of folders (ie the space they’re taking up on local drive) is rather annoying
Jane's avatar
Jane
Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
7 years ago
Hey akaraetteh, to have a closer look into discrepancies of the disc usage reported when making files available Online-only, please include a screenshot of the behavior in your next reply, as well as any additional details, so as to check back on the matter together. 
 
Thanks in advance & I’ll be awaiting your next post here! 
  • akaraetteh's avatar
    akaraetteh
    Helpful | Level 5
    7 years ago

    Hi Jane

     

    Here's a photo that gives you an indication of all you need to know

    https://photos.app.goo.gl/4CTpPG8HVFDtzVwd2

    MacOS Sierra

    Latest stable dropbox build

    my folder is 160GB (reported by OS), but "taking up" approx 40GB

     

    Also view the 2 online-only folders: Demig0s...XYZ - both reported as 1.74GB, and the parent folder as 3.5GB...

    • Walter's avatar
      Walter
      Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
      7 years ago

      Hey akaraetteh, 

       

      Just a quick note on this, keep in mind that 47.4.74 is already out and I would suggest to download it from here as quick as possible as this is always the first step in order to continue troubleshooting if needed. 

       

      If possible, could you also let us know what your desktop is reporting ? If syncing is complete, you should see the "Up to date" message.

       

      Thanks!

    • Jane's avatar
      Jane
      Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
      7 years ago
      Hey akaraetteh, & just to add to Walt3R’s comment that, when it comes to the screenshot, I can see that your “Acara” folder is a Mixed state folder, meaning that it contains both local and online-only content, therefore it’s my understanding that the 40 GBs being reported as used are in fact residing on our Mac at the moment. 
       
      Following, if it’s not too much trouble for you, could you repeat the same process for your "Demig0s” folder (the one that you’ve already marked as “Online-only” on the screenshot) & send me one more screenshot in your next post here? What do you see on the “User Info”? Does your folder report as taking up space, despite being Smart Synced? 
       
      Thanks again for your ongoing cooperation here & I’ll be awaiting your next post on this discussion. Happy Friday! 
      • akaraetteh's avatar
        akaraetteh
        Helpful | Level 5
        7 years ago
        Hang on. I’m not disputing the 40GB. I (and many others) are frustrated that every folder reports its size as the size of the full folder, as if the OS doesn’t know files are online only

        Eg I KNOW my Akara folder is only 40GB on my disk. But I can’t tell from my OS which folders are taking up the most space on my disk because the OS doesn’t report that. So if, for example, I want to free up some space on my disk, I can’t go to MacOS Finder, sort by size, and make the biggest folder online only. Because doing that won’t affect what is the “biggest” folder as reported to the OS.
        The BIGGEST folder reported by the OS is only the folder that’s taking up the most space in the cloud, not the one taking up the most space locally

        Furthermore I’m away for a week and so won’t be at my work computer. But if the update is available for Sierra I’ll make sure it happens (we’re very careful with upgrades as they often break something critical)

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