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Completely disable "Dropbox on Startup"
When starting up my computer and logging in to the user account, I do NOT want Dropbox to be starting, at all. The files Dropbox needs are not even accessible unless I as the user take a particular step to unlock them. If I want to, I can unlock the files and THEN manually start Dropbox. I understand that no syncing will happen until after Dropbox is manually started.
I have taken the following steps:
In Dropbox Preferences, General:
-"Start Dropbox on system startup" is UNCHECKED.
-"Show Dropbox as a save location in Microsoft Office" is UNCHECKED.
-Dropbox Badge: Never Show
-Open folders in: File Explorer
Under Import, "Share screenshots using Dropbox" is UNCHECKED and the AutoPlay settings all have "Open folder to view files (File Explorer)" instead of Dropbox import.
In msconfig's "services" tab, I have unchecked the three Dropbox services.
In Task Scheduler, the "DropboxUpdateTaskMachineCore" task has had the log on trigger removed, the user changed to the local account and "Run only when the user is logged on" instead of "Run whether user is logged on or not" selected.
There are no tasks, Dropbox or otherwise, in the Startup tab of Task Manager or under Start Menu/Programs/Startup (for All Users nor for the specific user).
Yet every time on login, I get a popup "Dropbox Error: Couldn't start Dropbox. This is usually because of a permissions error. Storing your home folder on a network share can also cause an error."
Yes, it is clearly a permissions error, but intentionally. I DON'T WANT DROPBOX TO BE STARTING UP AT ALL unless I manually start it. How can I disable Dropbox from even trying to start on login?
This is on a new install of Windows 10.
Thanks!
Hey ben
I launched a boot trace to find the cause of the problem and I noticed that the corresponding option in the preferences of the application does not disable the startup at all. It has the only role of requesting a "quiet close" of the Dropbox processes during the startup phase. It also explain why you still see Dropbox in msconfig even after unchecking the box...
That said, Dropbox create a key for its own startup, hidden in Windows registry, the only option to fully disable Dropbox at startup is to remove it from there.
Lets find it in one of the following paths:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
You should find the line:
Dropbox "C:\Program Files (x86)\Dropbox\Client\Dropbox.exe" /systemstartup
Backup it if necessary and just delete it. Done, no more Dropbox at startup!
Note: You may have to repeat the operation regularly as Dropbox updates could recreate startup reg key anytime 😋
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I should also add that Dropbox is not in Startup (Start Menu or Task Manager); nothing is.
- Jane
Dropbox Staff
Hi @Jane,
As noted in the initial post, unchecking the box to start on system startup does NOT stop Dropbox from presenting this "Couldn't start Dropbox" error. Clearly, Dropbox is doing other things to try to start itself up. I even see it flash briefly in Background Processes when I have Task Manager up, before the error. I found some sources where Dropbox appeared to be trying to do something on login, and disabled those also as noted above, but apparently am still missing something.
I agree that this one checkbox SHOULD be enough, and am significantly concerned about Dropbox's security and ethics that it is not, but I would like to find out how to actually and completely disable Dropbox on startup.
Thanks!
- Jane
Hi Jane,
The steps resulting in the error message are quite simple:
1. Press the power button to turn the computer on.
2. Wait for Windows 10 to boot up.
3. Enter user password to log in.
4. Wait several seconds, not doing anything.
5. This error appears, when Dropbox should NOT be trying to start up:
Here are some views from Dropbox Settings:
These are the AutoPlay settings:
And in msconfig, I see this:
How do I disable Dropbox from trying to start up?
- Jane
Dear Jane,
Thank you for your reply.
There has only ever been one Dropbox account connected with that installation on that computer. There have never been any other installations of Dropbox on that computer and there are no other Dropbox users sharing the machine, nor has Dropbox been installed from any other user accounts on the same machine.
The log contains private data, so I do not wish to post it here. It explains what files Dropbox is trying to access when getting a permissions error, and could be helpful in diagnosing the permissions error, but I don't need help on that. I know why it's getting the permissions error, and that lack of permissions is intentional. What I don't know is why Dropbox is trying to start up at all. Inspecting the file, I find no stack trace or other information indicating what is starting Dropbox or why it is trying to start up.
Even with the "Start Dropbox on system startup" setting UNCHECKED, Dropbox still had three services starting. Even with those services disabled, Dropbox still had tasks in Task Manager triggered by user login and at specific times. Even disabling the trigger in Task Manager, Dropbox apparently has some third way of automatically overriding user preferences to be starting something, even if what it starts is not meant to be visible to the user. These overrides are not accidental. They show what a charade the idea of user control is.
This behavior is in direct contradiction to the user setting and the application's communication to the user about how it will behave. In my view, this is as serious as Dropbox violating its published privacy policy and should be treated similarly by the regulatory authorities. This is also a red flag for cybersecurity and machine control. Until ALL the automatic user-preference overrides are fixed, I will recommend that security-conscious users avoid using Dropbox.
Finally, if the user login session for this Dropbox Forum website has timed out, attempting to click Reply after investing time in a carefully worded polite response causes that entire time and effort to be discarded without warning, returning to a login page with a temporary error message "Please sign in or register to access this page." That is rather frustrating. I recommend changing that so that the Reply button is disabled until after login, so less time and effort will be wasted and users might be less frustrated in responding.
Thanks!
- Jane
I don't know what support system you use, but a ticket there might be a good path forward. I do think there are some changes needed to the Dropbox software here.
- JaneI'll be awaiting your next email!
