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
Uploading data to online only via desktop app
If I upload large files by copying them onto my harddrive in a folder in my dropbox that it set to "online only", will this upload the file and then delete it from my harddrive? Is that how it works?
Oh, I see now cycophyp - thanks for the additional information!
In this case, you can either copy the files you want to the folder you want (inside your Dropbox Folder I imagine) and let the desktop application app sync until it shows "up to date" which in turn would mean you're fully synced and mark the folder you'd like to not take up space on your computer as "online only" by right clicking on it and selecting "Smart Sync" and then "Online only".
Another way you could achieve that for specific devices (using our desktop app of course) would be our Selective sync feature which is a great option when you need to free up space on one of your linked (to your account) computers.
As per your last inquiry now, note that for data transfer use cases, we’re including 25,000 API calls/month in our Standard, Advanced, and Enterprise plans.
If you need to transfer large amounts of data using our API, our Server Integration plans might be more applicable to you. These come with unlimited API calls and space caps that start from 5TB for the Advanced plan and 50TB for the Enterprise plan.
I hope this is helpful to you and please let me know if there's anything else I can from my end to assist with this. I appreciate your speedy replies too!
- Walter
Dropbox Staff
Hey there cycophyp - I am assuming you're referring to our desktop application, right?
Kindly note that your Dropbox folder is just a normal folder on your hard drive. Therefore, if you drag and drop files into the Dropbox folder, those files will be moved instead of copied.
It's common to assume Dropbox works like a network drive because of its many online features. However, your Dropbox folder is actually a normal folder and its contents are stored on your hard drive. The Dropbox application only watches your Dropbox folder for changes and syncs those changes online and to your other computers. One of the benefits of this way of syncing is always having access to your files, even while you are offline.
If you'd like more information about Smart Sync (I see you mentioned "online only" files) - please take a look here: https://www.dropbox.com/help/desktop-web/smart-sync
I hope this helps clear things up and please let me know if you have any more questions.
So, long story short: That's a no? If I copy files into a folder that is set to "online only", those files will actually stay on my drive and are not "online only". Did I get it right this time?
- Walter
Depends on where you're doing this and how cycophyp!
Are you copying these files from your computer's hard drive somewhere inside your Dropbox Folder or are you just changing your Smart Sync settings on folders you've already synced (i.e. folders that are inside your Dropbox Folder)?
Could you let me know more information about what exactly you'd like to achieve eventually so I can send you the most appropriate information and next steps if needed?
