Photo sync from Samsung Galaxy not instant

[sulevreisberg]

The photos taken by Samsung Galaxy are not immediately synced to Dropbox for some reason. It seems it takes several hours to sync them, although the phone is connected to Wifi and also syncing over a cellular network is allowed and there are only 1-2 photos to upload (the problem is not the size). It is very inconvenient... a year ago the same problem were solved when I opened Dropbox app on the phone (then immediatly the files were synced). But now it seems that simply opening the app does not help either...

[Daphne · Accepted solution]

Hey there @sulevreisberg,

So as a first step, can you try clearing the cache through the Dropbox app with the steps below:

1. Tap the menu icon in the top left of the screen.
2. Select the option Settings.
3. Select Clear cache.

After doing so please restart the app and see if you still see the same behavior. If the issue persists then please let me know if this happens for all uploads (videos and photos). Also, please clarify if you see the photos being uploaded for this long period or does it take a long time let’s say for the app to “recognize” there are new files to upload?

Let me know how it goes - Thanks!

[sulevreisberg]

Did the things you suggested - no changes. Interestingly it syncs new files from my computer to phone nicely. So it seems it does not recognise the new photos on the phone to sync.

[Daphne]

Hey again @sulevreisberg,

Could you please send a screenshot (excluding personal info) of the camera uploads setting? You can access this by:

1. Open the Dropbox app.
2. Tap the menu button.
3. Tap Settings.
4. Under Camera uploads, please take a screenshot of the settings 

Also, can you let me know if the photos are never uploading automatically, or do they upload after a long period? When you open the app, do you see any notification of files being uploaded when you have new photos to upload?

Cheers!

[sulevreisberg]

Here is the picture. What is interesting - yesterday I had "use cellular data" turned on and as far as I've understand, I did not turn it off (it seems now that it is turned off). However, I was in Wifi yesterday, therefore it should make the difference.

During the night, all photos seem to have uploaded/synced. So, I'd say after some period the photos are synced, but it might be a long time. I think it would be valuable if a dropbox would show some message within in Dropbox like "There are photos that are not synced, because ...". I did not see any notices in Android... however, I've blocked all Dropbox messages and that might be the reason.

[sulevreisberg]

Okay, probably the cache issue was still the problem because when I cleared the cache, the battery level was below 30% and that might have prevented the immediate sync after clearing the cache. Today the screenshot was uploaded immediately. So, can you elaborate on this cache issue a bit further? It seems this issue has been a problem for a while.

[Daphne]

I’m glad to hear that clearing the cache was indeed helpful @sulevreisberg!

So the cache is a temporary storage area which will retain certain data when you are using the app. Essentially, the aim of the cache is to help with keeping your app running smoothly and reduce the amount of data that needs to be processed and downloaded. For example, a list of your files within an accessed folder should be saved in the cache so navigating through your files is quicker the following times (as it needs to download the data the first time so is a little slower to load).

While I can’t say for certain exactly the reason clearing the cache worked for you, as it could have been a number of reasons, it’s possible that the main issue was due to space. If you haven’t cleared the cache for an extended period (restarting your device would do this), then there may be a lot of temporary stored files. It’s always a great first step to take when having issues with the mobile app.

Hope this explains it clearly for you - Thanks!

[jcrace]

I have an LG V40 ThinQ  (not so) smartphone... it stopped syncing a couple weeks ago to my account. The auto syncing option is turned on... I can manually upload a photo which takes forever and then the auto sync resumes from the date it stopped, it syncs a few pictures then stops again. Any suggestions ( I tried the restart phone option too)

[Daphne]

Hey there @jcrace,

I’ve merged your post here as it seems the issues are very similar. Can you please try the steps mentioned in this post and let me know if they help with the issue you’re experiencing?

Hope this helps - Cheers!

[BK15]

Hello,
I seem to have the same problem. I have followed all steps you mentioned, however, it doesn't sync all photos but only some photos which are pretty random.