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Forum Discussion
Dropbox Log Files
While looking for something else on my 2 Windows 10 PC's, I noticed that there are several hundred log files located at the path:
C:\ProgramData\Dropbox\Update\Log
These range from 2018 dates...
- Hi td47; thanks for posting in Community and happy Monday!
When you have the desktop app installed and running on your computer, the app updater service's logs are stored in the app's data folders; not within your Dropbox account or Dropbox Folder.
You should be safe to delete them without affecting the app's functionality at all.
As for your suggestion in the end of your post, I'd recommend posting it in the relevant section of our Community so other users who find it useful can up-vote it to show their interest,
Let me know if you have any other questions!
Walter
Dropbox Staff
Dropbox StaffHi td47; thanks for posting in Community and happy Monday!
When you have the desktop app installed and running on your computer, the app updater service's logs are stored in the app's data folders; not within your Dropbox account or Dropbox Folder.
You should be safe to delete them without affecting the app's functionality at all.
As for your suggestion in the end of your post, I'd recommend posting it in the relevant section of our Community so other users who find it useful can up-vote it to show their interest,
Let me know if you have any other questions!
When you have the desktop app installed and running on your computer, the app updater service's logs are stored in the app's data folders; not within your Dropbox account or Dropbox Folder.
You should be safe to delete them without affecting the app's functionality at all.
As for your suggestion in the end of your post, I'd recommend posting it in the relevant section of our Community so other users who find it useful can up-vote it to show their interest,
Let me know if you have any other questions!
I've been doing searches for years trying to find out why Dropbox update logs in [c: ProgramData Dropbox Update Log] path contain regular log files , but also creates 2 folders containing Japanese or Chinese characters, and I'm not referring to the files names, but the file content. The 2 folders are named 01 and 02 and are in [{user} appData Local dropbox Logs] folder path. These Asian character files used to be about 450K in size. Lately, they are smaller, like 5K, but still appear. I often delete the regular log files and these strange ones, but over time, more appear. Searches for this issue yield zero results. Can anybody help? I can supply files or screen shots.
sodaspopThe reason the files have odd characters, is they are compressed or encoded in a proprietary format that ONLY the Dropbox app or its install routines understands. I see NO use for them, as they can be quite old unless you manually delete them. They are NOT readable for users, with any known app, and there is NO normal text (plain-text ) in them.
It just seems like a lot of work to create a file format using Asian characters (I don't know Japanese from Chinese) rather than encrypted binary. And in this case, since it's so unusual (I've never seen it used before), you'd think DB would have a searchable FAQ that explains it. First time I saw it years ago, I thought, "Is that some kind of virus?"
This isn't a solution to the relevant problem. The files can NOT be deleted by normal means. The Dropbox Updater is creating the log files with no owner data. I'm not sure why that's even possible, but windows. Before you can actually delete the files you have to go through a long Admin-only process to reset the security for each file. I was hoping takeown.exe would allow for resetting the owner but it can't fix missing security descriptors. I wouldn't care except the messed up security is causing issues with my backup software. It keeps getting stuck on the broken dropbox logs. Causing a backup to fail makes this a data loss issue for Dropbox developers. You'd think they might care about that.
For those of you who stumble across this in the future here's the super long winded only way I've found to fix it ... have fun.
You need a "pro" version of windows and Admin permissions.
1. Right click a log file > Properties
2. Security Tab
3. [Advanced] Button
4. On the Owner line click "Change"
5. Type in your user name in the owners box
6. [OK] On user selection
7. [OK] On Advanced Properties
8. Back on the Properties > Settings tab click [Advanced] again
9. [Change Permission] at the bottom of advance setting dialog
10. [Add] Button
11. On the Principal line click "Select a principal" (BTW this is the missing data. There is no principal and that's simply not allowed. Back to school Dropbox Devs)
12. Type in your user name
13. [OK] On User dialog
14. Check full control for you (the admin of course)
15. [OK]On premissions
16. [OK] on Advanced Security
17. [OK] on Properties
... and now you can finally delete the first log file. Rinse and repeat 600 times for the rest of the log files. Or I dunno switch to a competing product and curse your self for ever installing dropbox in the first place.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/svo1vh1vtnii5gk/Fix%20the%20Permissions.png?dl=0
Hello:
Actually I'd love to remove the log files from the Update\Log folder but they ask for admin authorization although I'm an administator. No way to clean them away. They weigh 20M, 615 files and increasing any time...
I have the same access issue - I could delete everything before mid-2020, but everything after is demanding admin authorization, even though I am the admin. Very irritating.
- Rich
Super User II
cindy t.3 wrote:
... everything after is demanding admin authorization, even though I am the admin.
Being an administrator means nothing if the security on a file doesn't grant access to administrators. Being an admin also doesn't automatically grant you access to every file and folder on your computer. It just means you have the ability to change the security or take ownership of every file or folder, and that's what you would need to do.
The security on those log files is System/Full Control, meaning the System account, which is the highest level account on your computer even above Administrator, has full control to the files. No other account is listed as having access, not even Administrators. The System account is also the owner of the files, so you can't even view the permissions without first taking ownership of them. Once you do that, you can add Administrators/Full Control to the security list and then you'd be able to delete them. The only file you won't be able to delete is the most recent one, as it will likely have a lock on it for being open in the updater service.
- This is 2022 and I’ve been reading the issues with the log files. I’ve logged out of Dropbox on my phone and laptop. I have all the permissions to delete files but the message says “You need permission to perform this action”. I have the permission but can’t delete the log files or the folder the log files are in. Help. I need these files deleted.
- Walter
Hey SuzanneT1, sorry to hear you're having issues with this.
Can you send us a screenshot of the error you're getting and also clarify what kind of files you're trying to delete and from where exactly?
Thanks so much!
- I’m not sure how to attach my screenshot. Please explain how to attach a pic from my camera. I’m trying to delete log files.
- Rich
SuzanneT1 wrote:
I have all the permissions to delete files but the message says “You need permission to perform this action”.Then you don't have the necessary permissions to delete the files. See my replies earlier in this thread about admins and the SYSTEM account. You may be the admin for your computer, but the SYSTEM account used by Windows is higher than an admin, and it's this account that has the only access to these files.
I need these files deleted.You can delete them, but you need to do some work on the file permissions before you'll be able to. See my replies above.
Okay - I selected the permissions on the log folder. My laptop has permissions. But if I give the permissions to the user - i get this error
