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Forum Discussion
Why are there unviewable .mat files in Photos?
Does anyone know why mat files are shown in photo gallery if they cannot be actually opened?
Calvin2DBX
Dropbox Staff
Dropbox StaffHi Ab210,
Thanks for getting in touch!
The .mat extension isn't one I can see in the app preview on mobile preview, or via web preview, so let's dig into this!
How did they arrive in Dropbox?
For example, are they going into the Camera Uploads folder automatically, or did you upload items using a computer app or the manual upload option?
Keep me posted!
The files were simply added in one of the folders synced on my laptop. They are still in those folders but I find them also in the photo gallery even tough they can't be viewed at all. Look:
Furthermore, there is even no way to exclude specific folders from photo gallery. I would exclude work folder if I could.
- Calvin2DBX
Hi Ab210,
Thanks for the clarification!
I had a quick look online, and it seems the .MAT file type could associated with a Microsoft product, MS Access.
Another possibility could be MathWorks MATLAB.
You should be able to view the items within the software that created them on your computer.
The Photos tab shouldn't really be showing things that aren't photos, though.
Which web browser are you using?
Try clearing the cache, or try in a different web browser altogether, or a private/incognito tab and let me know what you find!
- Thank you Calvin.
It happens on Edge, Chrome and Android Dropbox app.
I confirm that the files are MATLAB Files. They are not corrupted and can be easily opened in MATLAB but they should not appear in the photo gallery, as you said.
