DropboxMacUpdate using 98-100% of CPU%

[jpworkman]

I am currently running macOS Big Sur 11.4 on a MacBook Pro (15-inch 2016) 2.9 GHz and 16GB memory.   I currently use the Dropbox desktop app and have my Smart Sync set to ON.  All of my files are 'Up to Date' and no syncing is occurring at the moment.

I have the Activity Monitor open and can see that everything is running normal until I launch Dropbox app, then while the Dropbox App itself stays below 1% CPU usage, the 'DropboxMacUpdate' goes to between 98-100% of CPU usage and just stays there.  My fan then kicks in and runs constantly and the computer slows way down and sometimes then freezes requiring a restart.  The Dropbox app continues to use significant battery as well.

Please help!

[Megan]

Hey @jpworkman, thanks for posting today! 

Could you please look at this Help Center article to see what might be causing your CPU to malfunction?

Let me know what you find. 

[jpworkman]

Lori,

I have gone through that list and none of the 7 items apply or resolve the issue.

As a note, I just tried fully rebooting again and did not open any applications except the Activity Monitor.  DB was not open or running.  The Activity Monitor showed everything normal.  Then I launch Dropbox, and within less than a minute the DropboxMacUpdate began using 98-99% of the % CPU.  No other applications were opened for this test, only the regular system operations, but nothing else changed their usage drastically either.

Is there anything specific I can share to help figure out what the problem is?

[Megan]

Hey @jpworkman, thanks for all the additional info! 

Can you try fixing the permissions of your Dropbox folder as shown here? 

Does this help?

[jpworkman]

Thanks for that.  I followed the instructions and Fixed Permissions on both accounts (business and personal) that I am logged into, and it gave me a 'success' window on each.  It then spent some time re-syncing some files until it was 'up to date' again.

However the DropboxMaxUpdate is still using 98+% of CPU. 

On a related note, in Activity Monitor I am able to STOP the process for DropboxMaxUpdate, which does eliminate the issue for a short period of time, but then eventually it just starts again immediately using 98+% again of the CPU.

[StevenTillson02]

Also starts again immediately using 98+% again of the CPU after reinstalling Windows 10 OS.

[Megan]

Hey @jpworkman & @StevenTillson02! I hope you're doing well! 

Can you let me know your desktop app's syncing status? 

Also, what version do you use? It should show something like: xxx.4.xxx or xxx.3.xxx

Keep me posted, and we'll take it from there.

[jpworkman]

My Sync Status is 'Up to Date' with a green check mark.

v123.3.4825

[Megan · Accepted solution]

I hope you're doing great @jpworkman! 

It seems you're using the Beta version of our app, which could be causing a higher usage of CPU.

Go into your account settings on the Dropbox website and turn Early releases off.

After that, install one of the stable builds of the Dropbox application.

[jpworkman]

I did the following:

1) Turned off Early Releases on dropbox.com

2) Logged out of my DB account on the desktop app

3) Uninstalled and deleted the app

4) Restarted the computer

5) Downloaded and installed the latest (non-beta) version of the Dropbox App (v.125.4.3474)

6) Logged into my accounts and turned on SmartSync (local only)

7) Waited for everything to sync and the DB Desktop app to show is 'Up to Date' with green check box

Everything now seemed to be fixed!!  Thank you!