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

dbedit's avatar
dbedit
New member | Level 2
2 years ago

Bring LAN sync back on Mac

The new Dropbox for Mac no longer supports LAN sync.  This makes Dropbox nearly useless for any users who need to maintain sync of large files or folders between multiple computers, particularly when dealing with slower internet speeds.  Dropbox seems to be interested in being used by creators and people or businesses that work with videos and other potentially large files.  LAN sync is a critical feature allowing multiple computers on a network to remain in sync without waiting for every computer to download from the cloud at non-LAN speeds. If all files can only sync through the internet rather than directly over LAN, Dropbox becomes a very poor option, and I would be forced to look for alternatives.

 

Will LAN sync be supported again soon on Mac?

 

Other dropbox users, please let Dropbox know if you also find it extremely important for Dropbox to restore this feature to Dropbox on Mac

 

 

  • Jay's avatar
    Jay
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

    Hi dbedit, we appreciate the feedback on this matter.

     

    As you're aware, LAN sync is currently not supported for users on the newer Mac OS version of the Dropbox desktop application.

     

    We take all comments into consideration when looking to improve the Dropbox service.

    • Gavin11's avatar
      Gavin11
      New member | Level 2

      Can Dropbox confirm they're working on this LAN Sync feature for Dropbox client using macOS Apple File Provider?

    • Riishede's avatar
      Riishede
      New member | Level 2

      600+ K files here. 1,5 TB total. Many files of 10+GB. Recently got a Mac, and those initial sync times are painful. LAN sync is a key feature for my setup.

  • Robert K.62's avatar
    Robert K.62
    Helpful | Level 5

    Hi There,

     

    Upgrading to File Provider for MacOS, LAN Sync is no longer available. I use multiple devices at home and often synchronise large files. My Internet connection is not unlimited.

     

    Also, not being able to use LAN Sync puts more stress on the Dropbox servers and is very wasteful (environmental impact). 

     

    LAN Sync is an essential feature for me.

     

    Could you please consider bringing this feature back?

     

    Thank you.

    Best regards,

    Robert

    • HDS2's avatar
      HDS2
      Helpful | Level 5

      I realize that adhering to Apples guidelines is probably a must for Dropbox to keep working as a sync service on Mac, but features like LAN Sync and external drives are really sorely missed (and this is probably what Apple wants, as Dropbox feature set now is closer to the limited abilities of iCloud...). It would really be great if you could bring these features back. 

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