'Don't Sync' to drop box - very useful

All,

Just wanted to promote the 'don't sync' to drobox option that has appeared with a recent update (seems to coincide with the File Provider releases?) as I have seen some users confused as to what it does/can do so i thought I'd share how i use it (rightly or wrongly).

I work in several apps that save/store files in one or more of the following:

   - Databases

   - External references (files referenced into other files such as Cubase, AutoCAD etc)

   - apps that temporarily generate massive amounts of files and then delete them (renamers, automators etc)

   - or perhaps it's not always a good idea for the rest of the team to be able to see/read a file that is in flux/revision and should only be 'issued' once all the checks and balances required have been completed.

 

The 'don't sync to drobox' command which i first saw appear in the right click menu does exactly what it suggests. If you select this option on a folder which contains many subfolders and files, then wait a few minutes (depending on how big it is of course) and check the same folder on the web app, you'll see it gone. not renamed to '.'folder, actually gone. Think of this as the opposite of selective sync. You're kind of saying, here's my dropbox, in  fact here is everything on my machine. i'm going to put it allllllll in the dropbox folder. Oh - but don't sync that particular folder from our trip to Vegas last year. You with me?

 

I love this, truth is, i don't really like 'syncing' at all. I've got a fundamental issue with something co-existing in two places at once. they can't both be identical, one has to be newer than the other, who is responsible for this file is there is two of them? i could go on (yep, I'm that sort of guy).

 

If you don't see the 'don't sync to drobox' option in the right click menu (current version) that's because you've moved the standard DB location haven't you? Yes you have, naughty - but good on you. I pay for this app, you work for me not the other way around, I'll put the folder wherever i like thank you, im an adult and i have been one for some time now.

 

Good used for this i;ve found are:

   - a kind of check in and out system. I check a whole folder out, do what i need, check it't correct then put it back up by selecting the 'sync to dropbox' command that appears on any fodler thats previously selected as 'dont sync'.

 

   - an easy way to not sync anything you want in a hurry. In the extreme example, you could have two folders at the root of your machine. Dropbox->Folder A and Folder B. Folder A is synced in real time like usual, Folder B is set to 'don't sync to dropbox' and they're both blank. As you go along your way creating files all over the place in your standard folder A, you come across some old stuff, you can't remember their purpose or if they're current nor do you have the time to investigate it right at that moment. Well, just cut or move than folder into Folder B. It's a graveyard folder for anything you're not sure on or will probably be eventually thrown out.

 

If you can't use the right click or want to automate it you can run powershell commands on PC and most likely something similar for mac (don't quote me on that, haven;'t tried on the mac yet). See below:

 

Get-ChildItem "C:\Users\myname\Dropbox\Folder B" -Recurse -File | ForEach-Object {
try {
Set-Content -Path $_.FullName -Stream com.dropbox.ignored -Value 1
} catch {
Write-Host "Failed to process $($_.FullName)"
}
}