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How can I make sure Dropbox doesn't sync my old files to the website upon connecting the app?
I've used Dropbox for at least a decade and have it on all my devices: iMac, laptops, phone. Recently my main laptop suffered a catastrophic iced-tea baptism and since then, I've been working temporarily off an emergency backup MacAir (2013; Big Sur 11.17.10) that had not been touched in 5 years.
When I fired it up I disconnected Dropbox sync to make sure nothing bad happened. Now I need some of those files to sync. What was in my Dropbox 5 years ago is very different from now! So how can I set up a limited sync in a way that it ony comes down to my temporary machine and upload to destroy all my current files?
Will the current version of Dropbox even work with Big Sur?
If yes, what should I do to make sure nothing in the old Dropbox on the backup laptop syncs up?
So how can I set up a limited sync in a way that it ony comes down to my temporary machine and upload to destroy all my current files?
You can't. If you re-link the computer to your account, it will be a true sync in both directions and there's a high probability that you'll end up deleting items in your account which don't exist on the laptop.
When this much time passes, the safest thing to do is start over. Remove or rename the existing Dropbox folder and uninstall/reinstall the application so it acts as though it's a new computer. It means downloading items that you already have on the computer, but it's the safest way to ensure you're not deleting items in your account.
5 Replies
- Rich
Super User II
So how can I set up a limited sync in a way that it ony comes down to my temporary machine and upload to destroy all my current files?
You can't. If you re-link the computer to your account, it will be a true sync in both directions and there's a high probability that you'll end up deleting items in your account which don't exist on the laptop.
When this much time passes, the safest thing to do is start over. Remove or rename the existing Dropbox folder and uninstall/reinstall the application so it acts as though it's a new computer. It means downloading items that you already have on the computer, but it's the safest way to ensure you're not deleting items in your account.
- Jay
Dropbox Community Moderator
Hi Maryn M., thanks for bringing this to our attention.
In addition to what Rich said, if you only edited a few files, you could also manually upload the files to the Dropbox site, just to have a copy of them there prior to the syncing of the new Dropbox folder.
Keep me updated with any progress!
Thank you so much for this clear explanation!
This seems like a smart way to guarantee their safety. Thank you for suggesting it!
- Theresa
Community Manager
Hey there Maryn M. and welcome back to the Dropbox Community. It's great to have you here. Sorry to hear about your device getting damaged but glad to hear your files are (of course) safe in your Dropbox account 😉.
I'm Theresa 👩💻, one of the Community Managers around here. You’ll often spot me diving into conversations or starting new topics across the forum.Just curious.. do you have a favorite Dropbox feature? I’d love to know what you enjoy most! 🤗
Looking forward to your reply,
T 😺 (Dropbox Community Manager)
