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Roderick R.'s avatar
Roderick R.
Explorer | Level 4
8 years ago

Dropbox icon disappearing from System Tray


The Dropbox Icon regularly disappears from the System Tray.  When I've asked about this previously many answered "In Windows 10, you have to right-click on the Taskbar, choose Properties, and then click the Customize button"  yet when I right click on the System Tray "Properties" is not one of the options.
When I posted that problem I've been told "Right click your Notification icon in lower right try & Open Action Center. Then click (turn off) the TABLET MODE." but when I check I find it is already turned off. I've tried turning it on and off, restarting the PC etc etc but to no avail.  In the past I've had to uninstall Dropbox from my PC and reinstall. Because I live in Suffolk, UK and British Telecom, the only landline provider, are disinterested in supplying Broadband in rural areas, we have to receive a wireless supply via church steeples! So each time I reinstall Dropbox it seems to take about 1 week to fully synchronise.

Would be eternally grateful if someone can tell me how to get the Dropbox into the System Tray so that it stays there permanently.

  • Jane's avatar
    Jane
    8 years ago
    Hey Roderick R., I appreciate your swift reply & the screenshots! 
     
    I was glad to hear that the application has been up and running normally on your system tray after the re-installation, though let me send over some tips on the possible causes that’ll help you determine the cause for future reference.
     
    #1. Firstly, to my mind, you couldn’t locate the Dropbox icon on your system tray, as it’s possible that Dropbox may not be listed under the list of startup programs or that this setting may be turned off. You may try checking the Dropbox preferences:
     
    • Right click the Dropbox icon in the system tray at the bottom right of your screen, by the clock on Windows, or menu bar at the top of your screen on Mac and Linux
    • Click on the gear icon in the Notifications panel and select "Preferences" from the menu 
    • Verify that the box next to "Start Dropbox on system startup" is checked.
     
    #2. Secondly, in case the issue persists, you can try using the following links to check if Dropbox is listed as one of your Startup items or to add it to your Startup folder.
     
     
    #3. Last but not least, in case you’ve moved the Dropbox folder to a different drive on your Windows pc (either internal or external), it’s possible that your OS doesn’t mount this drive upon startup, so my advice would be to move the Dropbox folder back to your C:\ drive & enable Selective Sync (if you’d like to save up some hard disc space). 
     
    Hope the above tips help you resolve the issue you’ve experienced, though I’ll be around as well if you need more clarifications. Keep me updated here & I'll do my best to answer your questions.
    Wishing you a great rest of the day! 
     
    [This thread is now closed. If you have a similar or new question, you can ask here: https://www.dropboxforum.com/t5/forums/postpage/category-id/101001000]
  • Jane's avatar
    Jane
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
    Hey Roderick R., welcome aboard! 
     
    To further investigate with you, could you share some more details regarding what you’ve experienced in your next post here (eg. Are you receiving any error messages? What’s the status of the Dropbox icon on your system tray?).
     
    Also, I’d appreciate a screenshot (omitting personal info) of what you’re seeing, so that I make sure we’re on the same page. 
     
    Once I have this info, I’ll do my best to follow-up with you! 
    • Roderick R.'s avatar
      Roderick R.
      Explorer | Level 4

      Jane wrote:
      Hey Roderick R., welcome aboard! 
       
      To further investigate with you, could you share some more details regarding what you’ve experienced in your next post here (eg. Are you receiving any error messages? What’s the status of the Dropbox icon on your system tray?).
       
      Also, I’d appreciate a screenshot (omitting personal info) of what you’re seeing, so that I make sure we’re on the same page. 
       
      Once I have this info, I’ll do my best to follow-up with you! 

      Hi Jane,

       

      Actually since posting I've reinstalled Dropbox so do, at the moment, have the Dropbox icon in my System Tray.Screenshot showing Dropbox icon in System Tray

    • Roderick R.'s avatar
      Roderick R.
      Explorer | Level 4

      Hi Jane,

      I did send you a reply saying that I had reinstalled Dropbox so now have the icon back in the System Tray. I also sent a screenshot showing it in place. But I then got a message back from Dropbox that I don't have the relevent permissions to post on the forum, which I found rather confusing. I'm hoping this mssg is accepted, otherwise communication would seem somewhat difficult.

      Basically what happens is that after a few months with everything working OK, the icon just vanishes from the System Tray (including the hidden icons window) I've tried many things but eventually seem to just have to uninstal and start again which is very frustrating.