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Solved
Duplicate Dropbox folders after re-installing the Dropbox desktop app on Windows 11
Application Affected
Dropbox synch location Device
Dell laptops and Pixel phone Operating System/Browser (if using the web)
Windows 11, Chrome and DuckDuckGo Dropbox App Version (if us...
The problem arose when logging in to an existing Dropbox account initiated a new installation process even though the app was already installed. Why it got into this state is unclear. A normal occurrence would be if the computer had been re-imaged or reset.
To reinstall Dropbox without re-downloading everything:
- Uninstall the app.
- Rename your existing Dropbox folder to something like Dropboxx or Dropbox_OLD.
- Install Dropbox.
- Select "Advanced settings" at the bottom of the dialog box when it says "We're Happy you're back", "Setup is finished", "Open Dropbox".
- Use the to point it to the parent of your old folder, e.g. C:\Users\<yourusername>.
- After the new Dropbox folder is created and syncing has started, stop the app. Select your avatar image in the upper right corner, then select Quit.
- Delete the contents within the new Dropbox folder.
- Move the contents of your old Dropbox folder (Dropboxx, Dropbox_OLD, whatever you named it) into the new folder. (This could be an opportunity to get rid of unwanted files and folders.)
- Launch Dropbox again to start the file comparison and indexing process.
The first copy task still in progress (the Downloads folder), 36% complete. When I delete a file from the bogus directory, Dropbox asks if I want to delete it everywhere, etc. When I delete the same file from the $HOME directory to which I am copying files, not a peep from Dropbox. This tells me that the "Success!" message lied. Dropbox has not re-homed.
Ah. This error confirms that Dropbox is synchronizing C:\Dropbox
And here is proof (image below) that the move was not successful even though Dropbox said it was. The current folder location on this computer is still C:\Dropbox.
The location is correct on my other laptop (which my wife is using until hers gets scrubbed from whatever the scammer may have done) but when I am located in the Dropbox folder and put my mouse in the path window it shows a subfolder in the pathname, and that subfolder can be different when I do it again, though I am still in the parent Dropbox folder. So having it different on the two computers does seem to be causing confusion on that computer.
This tells me (image below) that the move operation is supposed to move the contents. In Windows, that should just be moving pointers rather than the very slow copy process, which I have now aborted.
Thinking that the copied files in the default $HOME location are in the way, I have renamed the Dropbox folder there as Dropboxx. I assume that the rehome routine will create a Dropbox folder in the named parent directory. A promise is made:
It now says the location is changed. But I don't see any "Success!" popup like I saw when doing this failed.
There is now a Dropbox folder next to the Dropboxx folder, which I will delete.
The restored Dropbox folder appears to have the expected content.
There is no longer a Dropbox folder at the root C:\ level:
Summary
- The regular process appears to have worked on the second try.
- I do not know why it failed the first time.
- The problem arose when I had to re-install Dropbox on my computer. This was apparently brought about because I had to re-install Dropbox on my phone (Pixel 7a) after I factory-reset it (related to the scammer who victimized my wife). See the first post in this thread for additional details.
- I have pointed out places where the documentation has not kept up with UI changes. This is a perpetual problem in tech. Documentation is considered a cost center rather than an integral part of the revenue-generating product. It will get worse as the work of documentation gets outsourced to 'AI' (which should properly be called II, Imitation Intelligence, but that's another story).
Thank you for your very kind attention to this and your helpful pointers at the start. I am very appreciative. Stay well, and enjoy the day.
Oh, and it occurs to me that in the re-install process where this all started I could have deleted the existing Dropbox folder, since Dropbox must not have been synchronizing to it, since it was requiring me to install Dropbox. Or maybe there's a way to say "No, I shouldn't have to reinstall." If there's a solution at that stage it would be helpful for someone to post it.
