What's the difference between solid green icon and hollow green circle icon on file or folder?

[Graeme T.1]

This may be a very simple question, but I've read this help page, and really don't get the difference in meaning between the solid green icon (meaning file is available offline and on device) and the green hollow circle (meaning file is available offline and is currently on device): https://help.dropbox.com/sync/sync-icons

Can someone who knows the difference explain precisely why there are two icons for what appear to be the same thing?

[Здравко · Accepted solution]

Hi @Graeme T.1,

They are not absolutely the same. The first is permanently offline (until you explicitly change this or do something that does it implicitly). The second case is something like "temporarily offline". It's usually a "online only" file that gets offline as intention to open result and will (eventually) becomes "online only" again, if left on "quiet" for some time. 😉

Hope this clarifies matter.

[Graeme T.1]

Does this mean that the solid green files do *not* get Smart Synced 'away' if Smart Sync is enabled?

It's not mentioned on the help page, which is why I wanted to ask.

[Graeme T.1]

It would help if there was a setting to change from one to the other, called "keep offline" and "allow Smart Sync" or something so the user can change its status without having to "make online-only", and then reopen it

[Здравко]

---

@Graeme T.1 wrote:

Does this mean that the solid green files do *not* get Smart Synced 'away' if Smart Sync is enabled?

...

---

Hi again @Graeme T.1,

I can't understand what you mean "if Smart Sync is enabled". 🤔 "solid green" means that Smart Sync is NOT enabled for particular file! That's the difference, "green hollow circle" means that in spite offline, Smart Sync is enabled for particular file. 😉 That's why the second case is something like "temporarily".

Hope this sheds some extra light.

[Graeme T.1]

Ok, but you can't turn Smart Sync on for a file without first setting it online-only, can you?

[Здравко]

That's right. The idea of Smart Sync is keeping file away (or online only) while they are not in use, so less disk space is engaged. If you try do something to Smart Sync-ed file, it syncs back (i.e. becomes offline), so you be able do what's intended. Once everything done, and Dropbox wait to avoid meaningless automated continuous sequence (online, offline, online, offline, etc.) on every single minor step, the particular file gets "online only" back (without your explicit point out). I can't still understand why would you need make a file be Smart Sync and offline 🤔 - the idea is just opposite. The temporary offline state is like a something "parasitic", but the Dropbox syncing is implemented in such a way (by now can't be avoided 🤦 - let's hope this will change at some point, when virtual block device become something obvious for Dropbox - let's hope).