You might see that the Dropbox Community team have been busy working on some major updates to the Community itself! So, here is some info on what’s changed, what’s staying the same and what you can expect from the Dropbox Community overall.

Forum Discussion

giobertelli's avatar
giobertelli
Explorer | Level 3
2 years ago

Dropbox on macOS is using too much RAM while just sitting idle

 

I checked how much RAM I was using at the moment. The only open apps I have are Safari, HandBrake, Bbedit and Word. Neither of those is using any file hosted on dropbox nor is any app uploading or downloading anything. The only dropbox open process is the one sitting idle in the menu bar.

This is completely unacceptable as any other cloud service app uses at most 55MBs (as of now Google Drive process is using 55.2 MBs and OneDrive, managing two different accounts, is currently using 45MBs).

 

I'm using an updated macOS version (14.2) on a 2020 M1 MacBook Air. Dropbox app version is 188.4.6302.

desktop
Mac
  • Megan's avatar
    Megan
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
    2 years ago

    Hey there, giobertelli, let's jump right into this! 

     

    Do you use the new File Provider version for Dropbox where your Dropbox folder is located in ~/Library/CloudStorage?

     

    If you locate your Dropbox folder, and then select Get Info, how many files do you see in said folder? 

     

    I'd also suggest you take a look at this Help Center article. 

     

    Let me know more, and we'll take it from there!

    • giobertelli's avatar
      giobertelli
      Explorer | Level 3
      2 years ago

      Thanks for the help page, but I had already checked it.

      I'm nowhere near that 300000 file amount, also because I'm on a free account.

       

      About the Dropbox folder in ~/Library/CloudStorage:

      298.409.100 bytes (298,7 MB on disk), 136 items

       

      Current Dropbox RAM usage: 363,6 MBs... It's currently the highest RAM user on my PC at the moment.

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

        Hey giobertelli - sorry to jump in here, but did you reboot your computer since you first noticed this?

    • dandid's avatar
      dandid
      Helpful | Level 7
      3 months ago

      Mines currently using 8.42Gb! or ram. I dream, of 300mb only. WTH is going on with this app? I'm on a Macbook Pro M3Pro

      • dandid's avatar
        dandid
        Helpful | Level 7
        29 days ago

        I'm now dreaming of 8.42gb 😂, mines at 29.47Gb currently WTH is it doing? don't tell me to upgrade as you know us mac users are all going to leave dropbox as soon as we cant use external drives anymore... 

About Apps and Installations

Have a question about a Dropbox app or installation? Reach out to the Dropbox Community and get solutions, help, and advice from members.

Need more support

If you need more help you can view your support options (expected response time for an email or ticket is 24 hours), or contact us on X or Facebook.

For more info on available support options for your Dropbox plan, see this article.

If you found the answer to your question in this Community thread, please 'like' the post to say thanks and to let us know it was useful!