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Fowzie T.'s avatar
Fowzie T.
Helpful | Level 6
9 years ago
Solved

Smart Sync storage issue on macOS Sierra 10.12- macOS High Sierra 10.13.3.

I'm really confused, the premise of smart sync is to free up local storage. This is a screenshot of a folder which contains about 2GB of data.  Am I doing something wrong?

 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/sjd34t39t0q7312/Screenshot%202017-02-18%2012.03.41.png?dl=0

Mac
sync
  • Jane's avatar
    Jane
    8 years ago
    Howdy folks,
     
    I’m , I’m working on the Community team at Dropbox & I’m posting here so as to stir this discussion towards a different route. Without further ado, I’m going to split this thread off into a number of different ones, as I’d like to avoid any confusion in regards to the topic or the status of this conversation. 
     
    Why are you splitting the thread?
    For context, this thread has been around since last February & a number of very separate (and now resolved) Smart Sync issues have been reported here. This separation was triggered as we like to group distinct issues together to better help users discover relevant content, advice and to help self-resolve.
     
    Don’t worry, no information is being removed, we are however moving some posts into other threads & for that reason, I’m going to include links to all the new threads at the bottom here. 
     
    As an example, this thread contains a lot of information & troubleshooting around an issue we experienced on Mac OS 10.13.3, something now resolved. We wouldn’t want people on 10.13.4 to attempt troubleshooting steps that weren’t relevant to their current state.
      
    But I still have my issue!
    We’ve moved all the open discussions into separate threads listed at the bottom. Apologies if we missed yours! Regardless, anyone who has opened a ticket with Support, that ticket will remain open and is unrelated to this split. 
     
    So, has this been solved forever? 
    The initial behavior reported here has been, however this thread has become a single point for a vast number of other Smart Sync posts,  some of which should have their own threads, some open, some now resolved.
     
    Where do I post Smart Sync comments now?
    Either in one of the below threads - or, if they don’t match the behavior you're getting, you may feel free to create a new one! :slight_smile: As this thread will remain public, you may also use it as a point of reference, so as to let us know of any troubleshooting steps you've followed from those mentioned above. 
     
    Thanks for your co-operation and please keep the discussion going in the below, or new, threads!
     
     
  • Jane's avatar
    Jane
    8 years ago
    For note, issues caught up in this thread, that should have had their own threads included:
     
    Issue 1: I can’t enable Smart Sync at all: 
    • Usually this was the result of an incorrect installation & in such cases, re-installing anew helped fix the issue. Alternatively, if you were running a Beta version of the Dropbox app on your desktop, you may need to check if this works on the most updated Stable version (Note: It's currently 48.4.58). 
    • Status: :white_check_mark:
    Issue 2: I’m on a Professional plan & I can’t get Smart Sync to work either: 
    • Some users on the Professional plan were experiencing an issue utilizing Smart Sync, as they had needed to enable System Extensions previously, which has been documented on this resource. 
    • Status:  :white_check_mark:
    Issue 3: I’ve made my files online-only, though they’re still using up my storage locally: 
    • In some cases, users reported that Smart Synced files might be locally stored in the cache folder a little longer, hence taking up space. Clearing the cache folder should resolve this issue. 
    • Status: :white_check_mark:
  • Jane's avatar
    Jane
    8 years ago
    Issue 4: I followed the instructions on your resources & set up my files as online-only, though I can see that they’re still taking up space on my pc/ Mac.
    • The Properties (Win) and Get Info (Mac OS) panel will indicate the actual file size instead of the size on disk, as you may expect. “Size on disk” is the space being taken up by a placeholder file and should be around 0kb.
    • Status: :white_check_mark:
    Issue 5: I can see that my Dropbox folder on my Mac OSX (v.42.4.114) reported file & folder size incorrectly, making it look like files were still residing on my hard disk.
    • After further investigation, we were able to determine that the Finder was showing the wrong size on disk for folders with compressed files.
    • Status: :white_check_mark:
    Issue 6: I can’t back-up my online-only files on the TimeMachine migration assistant & whenever it tries to access them, this action brings them back locally. 
    • This is related to the way TimeMachine reads file sizes and is an on-going issue, though this issue lies with Apple’s software. De-selecting the Dropbox folder when restoring if possible will work around this issue.
    • Status: :arrows_counterclockwise:
    Issue 7: Third-party disk management apps report Smart Synced files are present locally.
    • Some third-party app may read the nominal file size rather than the physical size. This is not a Dropbox issue, but down to the way some apps are built.
    • Status: :white_check_mark:

    That's all from me! As usual, I'll be around in case you'd need me to clarify matters in more detail, so feel free to ping me & I'll do my best to check back with you.

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  • directorscut's avatar
    directorscut
    Explorer | Level 4
    9 years ago

    I have a business account and i am working with MacBookPro having OSX 10.10.5 working. I did upload my data and then i got the message not enough storage because my sytem SSD has 250GB and my drive has 1TB. The Drobbox shows 60GB for its folder.

     

    So i cant work on with uploading. Each time i upload it will increase the local usage of storage on the SSD. I try to change it to my 1TB drive but it didnt work.

     

    But the goal is to save storage on my local Mac and not double all storage???

     

    Thanx for your help in time! I would love to continue working with my files on dropbox...

     

    Peter

  • BertaOCHA's avatar
    BertaOCHA
    New member | Level 2
    9 years ago

    Hi Fowzie,

    I'm going to the same trouble, but I have directly unsynced my Business Account from my Desktop app.
    And still, can't do anything on my computer as I have the storage 100% filled with ghosts.

     

    Did you get to any solutions?
    Going nuts, Smart Sync should have been the end of my storage issues, but instead, I need more than I used to!!!!

    Thanks for your time,
    Berta

  • ael1558's avatar
    ael1558
    Helpful | Level 5
    9 years ago

    I am having the same issue with the most up-to-date version of iOS, although I do not have Dropbo for business. I NEED the space on my hard drive; hence my upgrade in dropbox storage. What is going on? Please fix. 

  • Sanchez's avatar
    Sanchez
    Icon for Dropbox Community Moderator rankDropbox Community Moderator
    9 years ago
    Hey ael1558, welcome to our forum :slight_smile: 
     
    We have a similar feature that is available to all our levels of service, called Selective Sync. This will allow you to keep all your content online, and select which folders you want to sync to your computer!
     
    We made this feature specifically to help with local hard drive space issues, and you can find out all about it here. 
     
    I hope this helps. 
    Thanks
  • SteveA's avatar
    SteveA
    Helpful | Level 5
    9 years ago

    Hi Sanchez,

     

    Selective Sync is a nice feature, but we upgraded to business for dropbox in order to use Smart Sync. It works, but, as everyone is complaining about, Smart Sync causes the system to allocate space for a folder or file, even if that folder or file is not actually on the computer. This is a huge problem and defeats the purpose of Smart Sync. I hope your engineers are trying to fix this, and I'm not sure why Dropbox doesn't get that it's a problem.

  • ael1558's avatar
    ael1558
    Helpful | Level 5
    9 years ago

    Thanks for your response, but it actually does not work. Even though I am using selective sync, there is an issue with Dropbox and iOS which means that even though I have told the Dropbox not to sync to my laptop, it is taking up space on my hard drive. I don't have room on the hard drive, which is why I am using the Dropbox. I know that I am not the only person with this issue, as this forum clearly indicates. I really hope this issue gets fixed ASAP.  

  • Mark's avatar
    Mark
    Icon for Super User II rankSuper User II
    9 years ago
    ael1558 - your issue is different to this one in that Selective Sync doesnt take up space on a device at all (and in fact isnt available on iOS in anyway shape or form). However, what does happen is that when you choose to selective sync things it takes a few days for those files to clear as they move in to a local hidden cache.

    Once that clears you will get the space back.

    To try and speed it up restart your machine.
  • ael1558's avatar
    ael1558
    Helpful | Level 5
    9 years ago

    Thank you, Mark. However, I mistyped in my previous comment--I did not mean iOS, but macOS (Sierra 10.12.5). And yes, I understand that it SHOULD NOT take up space on my Macbook, but it IS. I spent a lot of time trying to move files around, and I gave it days to move. However, when I opened up my storage tab on my device, it showed I was nearly at maximum capacity on my hard drive. I have a 64 gig file that I want to be in my dropbox without taking up space on my device. I moved the file to the dropbox (which took 2 days for the entire thing to transfer), and even after waiting several more days and restarting my computer, it still showed that it was taking up hard drive space. I deleted it from the dropbox (because I had it on an external device as well), and it freed up that space on my hard drive. I added it back (because I want in the dropbox), and the space was taken up again, even after several days. I had deselected it from the sync options, but it still took up space. I finally disconnected my dropbox from my Mac so that I could put the file there without having it take up space. As soon as I did that, it no longer took up space. But ideally, I'd like to be connected to my dropbox at all times and work on these files without them taking up hard drive space. 

  • dari_zava's avatar
    dari_zava
    New member | Level 2
    9 years ago

    Hi there, is there any progress in this issue? I am running on the MacOS 10.12.3 and I am having the same problem as everyone here since I upgraded to Dropbox Business (for quite a lot of money!). The Smart Sync was actually the only reason for me to upgrade. Thanks for any advice!

  • jarryd's avatar
    jarryd
    Explorer | Level 3
    9 years ago

     I was told by Dropbox support staff that this was now an Apple/macOS problem, even after the 10.12.x update. I'm currently on macOS 10.12.5 and still have the same problem—the Dropbox folder appearing to take up >300GB even though my HDD is 256GB.

     

    Under the direction of Dropbox support to contact Apple support, I received the following feedback (please note I have not yet tested this out due to time constraints so attempt at your own risk) —

     

    Check the incorrect indexing issue after each of the following:

    1. Reset NVRAM
    2. Reset SMC
    3. Start up in Safe Mode
    4. Create a user account and test

    If you get a chance let us know how you go?

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