Desktop folder no longer backing up after Dropbox backup update

After doing newest Dropbox update, selected folders on my desktop are no longer syncing even though they are selected in preferences. Mac OS 14.4.1 Sonoma.

Hey richardjphotog, welcome to our Community! 

Would you mind clarifying the Dropbox version you're using on your end, along with the app's syncing status at the moment? 

You should be able to hover your mouse over the little Dropbox icon, on your menu bar, next to your WiFi and check there. 

If you have any screenshots of your Backup, they're more than welcome in order for us to have a visual too. 

Keep us posted, and we'll take it from there! 

Hi, I also have a problem here following the Dropbox backup update.

I was syncing my desktop and downloads folder between 2 Macs and had all of those files in a 'Mac' folder on DB. The folder has now disappeared, my laptops desktop is empty and the downloads folder just showing a question mark. 

Sorry to hear about this, samburden.

After the update is complete, your desktop and downloads folders should be back in their original locations.

Is it possible that the Dropbox app hasn't finished updating yet?

If you hover over your Dropbox icon, what do you see?

Thanks Hannah, Ahh I see! Yes it looks like it's still backing up. So the 'My Mac' folder should re-appear when this finishes?

Is using this feature to mirror my desktop on both machines the correct way?

Best,
Sam

Thanks for checking, Sam!

So, once the update is finished, you shouldn't be able to see your backed up folders inside the Dropbox folder anymore.

They'll still be backed up, but they should go back to their original locations, the ones they were in, before you had enabled backup, so you should be able to access them from there and also from your backups page online.

Hi Hannah, The backup has finished but the files have not re-appeared on my laptop.

Perhaps I should explain how I was using the backup feature;

I had both my laptop and office Mac's backing up to one folder called 'My Mac' within my Dropbox. This kept any changes in sync across both machines. If I changed a file on one machine it would automatically update on the other and I could also access my desktop files via the dropbox app on my phone. All very handy in making sure my files were kept up to date.

Since updating to the new version of Dropbox Backup the 'My Mac' folder has disappeared from my Dropbox folder and my laptop has lost all files on the Desktop and the downloads folder is now just a question mark in the dock. When I look at where my desktop and downloads folder should be in finder, they are now just alias's rather than folders. My office machine is as it should be. Does that make sense?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Hey samburden, thanks for the added info! 

When you visit your account online, are you able to see your Backup as it should be with all the recent changes in it?

Also, would you be able to send me a couple of screenshots from the way your Desktop and Downloads folder now looks like, and the alias you mentioned?