Shared link asks viewers to request access. Why does this happen?

[skepticalthinker]

Greetings.  I have a shared file set to be viewable by anyone with the link, and I've sent the link to those I want to view the file (see screenshot).  However, when they access the link, Dropbox states they "do not have access to this file" and offers the option to request access, which I must individually approve.  I have other files configured with these same settings, and those with whom I've shared those links can access them without any separate approval.  I don't know why this particular file is different.  Am I missing something?

[Hannah]

Hey @Bm22782, sorry to hear about this.

Are you on a Dropbox team or an individual account?

If you have a Dropbox team, are the people that have this issue members of your team, external users or both?

[JasonSilverDBX]

Hi @vrdesign and @Bm22782 ,

I'm a Product Manager in the sharing area here at Dropbox and sometimes chime in to help out.  Sometimes these specific cases are easier for support to debug, but I can provide some insight into how things should work.  

Depending on the content you're sharing there are two types of shared links - edit and view - granting those respective permissions to your recipients.  At a high level, folders offer both, most files only offer view links.  To answer your question about how to tell what type of link it is - you can't tell by the URL alone.  (something for us to think about adding in the future 🤔)

We also offer the ability to secure your links further with settings for each link.  For your link to be accessible to anyone including recipients who don't have a Dropbox account, the link audience must be set to "Anyone with Link".  Anything else - only those invited, team members - would require the recipient to login.  That's how Dropbox knows the visitor meets your security requirements.

And btw, @vrdesign , the links will work the same no matter how they are shared (i.e. email, text, slack, website, etc.).  Just in case you thought that might be causing an issue.

@Bm22782 it's curious that you've noticed the problem off and on?  Is it only certain types of recipients - i.e. people outside your team?

@Hannah fyi, these are both members of our Standard Team plan.

Tip:  One way to check that a link can be accessed by anyone is to try visiting it from a private or incognito browser window.

[Bm22782]

We are a Dropbox team and we all have had this issue.  I have been told it's a problem on Dropbox's end.

[jerryltaylor]

Same problem.  I have the info set to ANYONE WITH LINK ADDRESS...

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anyone who has the link can access no sign-in required 

But whoever I send that LINK to gets a blue box in top right corner saying "sign-in" 

HERE IS THE LINK!

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[WaltG]

I don't understand why this thread is marked "solved" because I don't see a solution (if there is a solution, please advise and ignore below).

This happened to me today when I needed to get someone documents for an urgent matter.  If it says anyone with link can edit, etc., then it should be that way.  I had to exit a meeting to investigate and approve.  I didn't ask to require approval and didn't want it.  My default sharing permissions are "Anyone with Link."

Dropbox documentation states: 

1. Log in to dropbox.com.
2. Hover over the file or folder you’d like to share and click Share.
3. Click Copy link.This will copy a link that follows your default link permissions. To change to a different kind of link:
4. Follow the steps above.
5. Click Manage.
6. Select Link for editing or Link for viewing.
7. Click Copy link.

It doesn't say anything about "Approval."  Approval would be a nice option, but is unacceptable when not disclosed.  Does Dropbox not understand that customers rely on the application working as published?  Had I not been available to approve, this could have been very bad.  This thread is over a year old, and is still a problem with no published solution when Googling for "why does copy Dropbox link require approval" (this thread is the only relevant item returned).  Because of this my impression is that contacting support will be a waste of time since you'd obviously publish the solution or fix it if the was a solution.  Since there does not appear to be a solution, we now have to look into moving to a different platform that works as published because I don't feel like I can trust Dropbox anymore.

BTW, maybe while you're fixing this, you should also fix your API to restrict to folders/subfolders and not require giving full root access to third parties, rendering it useless.  i.e. Can't give my fax service root folder API access to send me faxes.