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Forum Discussion
Automatic Sync from external drive to Dropbox
I am setting up Dropbox. I have an external drive named DROPBOX (My F Drive). I copied all of the files to my c: drive c:\user\username\dropbox. All the files are copied over and have a blue dot next to them.
Here is what I want to do: Whenever I create a new file and copy it into my F Drive (Dropbox), I want to make sure it is available online and sync it automatically.
This seems like an easy task but I am having challenges setting it up
Any help would be appreciated.
6 Replies
- Mark
Super User II
Hi pasteve99
Unfortunately that simply isnt how Dropbox works.
Dropbox has no link or connection to files anywhere else on your machine. It will only sync the files inside of the Dropbox directory. There is no way for it to find / update them from other locations, or, send changes from inside of Dropbox to an external drive.
Thank you Mark. Can I then assume I do not require a DROPBOX folder on my c Drive and just have it on my external drive (in my case my F drive) Since all the files in Dropbox (c) drive are not on my Dropbox account, how to I redirect DROPBOX to go to my F drive instead. I do not want to keep any of these files on my C drive if possible. Thanks agin
- Mark
Its really not recommended having Dropbox on external drives - the risk of data loss is HUGE. If the drive is disconnected or too slow to connect when Dropbox is running it will start to delete data.
In terms of moving the folder you need to follow https://help.dropbox.com/installs/move-dropbox-folder
Thanks Mark for your quick response. So I am better off leaving the files in my C drive under DROPBOX. No problem there. I was always concerned that if the internal hard drive failed I would have issues recovering, but I guess that is what Dropbox is there for. I assume by setting the files up this way anything I add to this DROPBOX directory or if I change a file in the directory it will be reflected when I pull up the file on my mobile phone or tablet?
- Rich
pasteve99 wrote:
I assume ... anything I add to this DROPBOX directory or if I change a file in the directory it will be reflected when I pull up the file on my mobile phone or tablet?
Correct. As long as the Dropbox application is running, it will sync anything in your local Dropbox folder with your account online, which will be visible on your other devices.
I very much appreciate your support and assitance
Steve
