Re: How many years until Dropbox will fix offline files being unaccessible

Hi Ian

Perhaps the files didn't complete downloading to be available offline? Can you check it once you get back to a WiFi connection? 

More info: https://www.dropbox.com/en/help/87

Hi Ed, The files were definitely complete as it took me several hours on my crappy connection for them to finally say complete (and for the '% downloaded' message to go). I had been watching them on the bus for a few days before i lost my data allowance and the exclamation marks appeared.

The app is now telling me there's not enough space on my phone for the offline files - despite there being roughly twice the value of my entire dropbox available. I installed a game on there at some point so my other question is: do offline dropbox files get overwritten by other apps? If my phone was struggling for space (it is not) would it not just say it couldn't install the new app, rather than overwriting dropbox files and then dropbox telling me there's not enough space for the files that were already supposed to be there?

I have the same issue. Large audio files downloaded over wifi. Confirmed available offline by switching to aircraft mode and was able to listen to them. Now when driving the files are no longer available. Only solution is to switch to cellular. This has happened several times now an the only resolution is to download the files again when connected to wifi.

I seem to have the same issue. 

I uploaded a few videos from my Mac onto dropbox, checked they played while over 4G. Selected to save them offline and watched them download to my phone. Got on a flight, put on aeroplane mode... and they don't play :'(

Even when I reconnect to 4G or wifi now the "offline files" still won't play. The loading indicator just sits there spinning.

This is complete bullsh*t.

The dropbox app on my phone appears to have been IGNORING wifi connection and using the phone's cellular data all along!!

I have cut my cellular connection and am connected ONLY to wifi and hey, guess what? There is NO communication through the dropbox app. I cannot upload/access any of my things.

It appears the app lies and has been costing me shed loads of money in extra data transfer. The 'help' on here is virtually non-existent as well! 

Here's what I think has been happening with the two issues I was having above:

When you set something to 'offline' it might go in some sort of temporary local memory. If you then exit the app and re-enter later, the file has been wiped from the memory and requires re-downloading/streaming (using cellular data) but it lets you think your file is still 'offline' - thus resulting in my rapidly diminished data allowance. Because the file is kept in a temporary space and only available while the app is open, when you exit the app, that filespace on your device is then available for other data to be written into it. In my case a game filled that space. Then when i open my DB app and view my 'offline' files, the 'offline' file space has been overwritten and the error shows 'there's not enough space'.

And so for that reason, I'm out.

I'm downloading all my stuff and going somewhere else.

My data allowance got gobbled up when I played an MP3 file on my iPhone that was apparently available offline. I checked to see why and found that I cannot play offline files unless I have a cellular or wifi connection. Have to say that I am less than impressed.