Need to see if your shared folder is taking up space on your dropbox 👨💻? Find out how to check here.
Forum Discussion
Solved
Couldn't Start Dropbox - macOS Monterey
After installing the new macOS Monterey I am getting the below 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. For more information, click the help button below.
I tried to remove dropbox using instructions on the website and re-install using advance install and still see the error.
bn.BUILD_KEY: Dropbox
bn.VERSION: 133.4.4089
bn.constants.WINDOWS_SHELL_EXT_VERSION: 51
bn.is_frozen: True
machine_id: 523bf589-eb29-56d6-9beb-1631aa56ce2b
pid: 1077
ppid: 1
uid: 501
user_info: pwd.struct_passwd(pw_name='amirnathoo', pw_passwd='********', pw_uid=501, pw_gid=20, pw_gecos='Amirali Nathoo', pw_dir='/Users/amirnathoo', pw_shell='/bin/zsh')
effective_user_info: pwd.struct_passwd(pw_name='amirnathoo', pw_passwd='********', pw_uid=501, pw_gid=20, pw_gecos='Amirali Nathoo', pw_dir='/Users/amirnathoo', pw_shell='/bin/zsh')
euid: 501
gid: 20
egid: 20
group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
effective_group_info: grp.struct_group(gr_name='staff', gr_passwd='*', gr_gid=20, gr_mem=['root'])
DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH: None
cwd: '/'
real_path='/'
mode=0o40755 uid=0 gid=0
parent mode=0o40755 uid=0 gid=0
HOME: '/Users/amirnathoo'
appdata: '/Users/amirnathoo/.dropbox/instance1'
real_path='/Users/amirnathoo/.dropbox/instance1'
mode=0o40700 uid=501 gid=20
parent mode=0o40755 uid=501 gid=20
dropbox_path: '/Users/amirnathoo/Dropbox'
real_path='/Users/amirnathoo/Dropbox'
mode=0o40700 uid=501 gid=20
parent mode=0o40755 uid=501 gid=20
sys_executable: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/MacOS/Dropbox'
mode=0o100755 uid=501 gid=20
parent mode=0o40755 uid=501 gid=20
trace.__file__: '/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
real_path='/Applications/Dropbox.app/Contents/Resources/python-packages.zip/dropbox/client/ui/common/boot_error.pyc'
not found
parent not found
tempdir: '/var/folders/xq/rpxg71x17dj4ylbw_svqhdjc0000gn/T'
real_path='/private/var/folders/xq/rpxg71x17dj4ylbw_svqhdjc0000gn/T'
mode=0o40700 uid=501 gid=20
parent mode=0o40755 uid=501 gid=20
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "dropbox/client/main.pyc", line 808, in wrapper
File "dropbox/client/main.pyc", line 6497, in finish_dropbox_boot
File "dropbox/client/message_queue.pyc", line 307, in _wrapped
File "dropbox/client/main.pyc", line 6030, in _init_components_for_account
File "dropbox/client/main.pyc", line 5954, in create_sync_engine
File "dropbox/sync_engine_boundary/factory.pyc", line 226, in make_sync_engine
File "dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/sync_engine.pyc", line 280, in __init__
File "dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/modern_client.pyc", line 222, in __init__
File "dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/modern_client/base.pyc", line 152, in __init__
File "dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/thin_adapter/in_proc.pyc", line 217, in __init__
File "dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/classic_client/thin_adapter/in_proc.pyc", line 587, in _init_new_engine_locked
File "dropbox/sync_engine/nucleus/thin_client/client.pyc", line 185, in __init__
File "desktop/extensions/nucleus/nucleus_python.pyx", line 76, in nucleus_python.NucleusSyncEngine.__cinit__
nucleus_python.SyncEngineError: "Initializing engine |>> Initializing filesystem |>> Attempting to register icons |>> fchflags syscall: _set_hidden |>> Permission denied"
please assist
Hi everyone, with the macOS Monterey update (macOS 12.0 and above), some stricter permissions have been enforced by Apple which have probably led to the issue you are experiencing.
The following steps should help to resolve this behavior:
- Click on the Apple icon in the top left hand corner of your screen
- Select "System Preferences..."
- Then "Security & Privacy"
- Select the Privacy tab
- Select "Full Disk Access"
- Under Dropbox, ensure that all the folders are checked. (To make changes, you will need to click on the lock icon, and enter your macOS password)
- Repeat these steps under 'Files and Folders' and 'Accessibility'
- Once you've completed this, please attempt to restart the Dropbox desktop app
If need be, a reboot of the Mac itself would also help.
91 Replies
Replies have been turned off for this discussion
Thank you, I followed those steps (took a few minutes to figure them out) and it also resolved the problem.
So did I. Seems to be working o.k. by now.
However in my case
- Accessibility – unlock and select Dropbox app ----> This one I could not select;
- Full Disk Access unlock and select Dropbox app ---> This one I could select.
It worked! Thank you so much
Hi there,
I have just updated to macOS Monterey and Dropbox won't start. Anyone else with the same issue?
Thanks
- Hannah
Dropbox Community Moderator
Hey thiagojcsoares, thanks for posting on our Community!
Are you getting any error messages, like a 'couldn't start Dropbox' pop-up?
If so, can you please copy the error log from the .txt file on the error message in your next reply, so I can check it out?
Thanks! I'm having the same problem. Error message simply states "Dropbox unexpectedly quit".
THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IT WORKED FOR ME TOO
I was able so solve it by performing an advanced-reinstall. For it to work properly, I had to rename my remaining dropbox folder after uninstalling the app (I did it between steps 2.2 and 3). Once the installation was complete, a new folder was created and synched. I then deleted the old renamed folder.
I received a new M1 MacBook Air yesterday. After I transferred my data from my 6-year old Intel MacBook, I was prompted to upgrade my new MacBook Air to Monterey. After the upgrade, it's running Monterey 12.01. During the installation I got a message that the Dropbox app wasn't supported, and indeed it was evidently automatically removed from the Applications folder. The Dropbox app was totally up to date before the transfer. What the heck happened?
I am having this issue. I cannot even get the icon to stay in my menu bar, so I cannot follow some of the troubleshooting tips mentioned on other threads. I am not an advanced user so do not know how to do a lot of the advanced steps that I see. Could somebody walk me through what I need to do to get this working, please? Thanks,
Jon
