Dropbox folder in File Explorer in Windows 11 is painfully slow

[jaymeetee]

I recently 'upgraded' to Windows 11 and the new File Explorer is now painfully slow when navigating the Dropbox folder. Simply navigating the hierarchy takes seconds and the Windows busy ring appears twice for each click.

I have tried:

- reinstalling Dropbox (currently 139.3.4798)

- enabling Smart Sync (this will likely save me disk space but seems not to affect performance)

- uninstalling any other software that interacts with the Windows context menu (WinZip etc)

- restoring the Windows 10 File Explorer (which changed the GUI) but not the speed

- running Windows File explorer full screen (F11) a common recommendation that does not improve performance

I am running Win 11 Pro on a decent enough 8th gen Core i7 with 16GB RAM that coped just fine under Windows 10, I have 346443 files on my DB. the issue is limited to the Dropbox folder which is why I'm here and not on the MS forum.

Any help gratefully received!

[Jay]

Hi @jaymeetee, thanks for bringing this to our attention.

It looks like you’re running the beta version of the Dropbox desktop application.

To install our latest stable version, visit this page and switch ‘Early releases’ to Off.

Afterwards, re-download the app from here.

Keep me updated with any progress!

[jaymeetee]

Jay, thanks for getting back to me. Yes I remember switching to the 'early releases' nearly ten years ago when I was having trouble syncing more than 100k files (back in the days when this was a limitation). I have flicked the switch, installed the new (old) stable version (138.4.2392) and Dropbox is re-indexing everything. Once that's complete I shall reboot and let you know if things are better. Thanks again for your help, James

[Megan]

Hi @jaymeetee, I am glad to see @Jay could help you with this! 

If you need anything, you know where to find us. 

[jaymeetee]

Hi Jay and Megan,

Thanks again for your support. Sadly the new (old / stable) version of Dropbox (138.4.2392) did not fix this issue. I allowed a full re-index, then rebooted but It still takes seconds (and two appearances of the Windows wait ring) to move up or down a folder in my Dropbox. Any other ideas? Thanks again for your help.

[jaymeetee]

I just tested a theory by killing the Dropbox process; File manager navigations is still very slow. This makes me think that the issue is down to the Windows 11 upgrade and probably nothing to do with Dropbox. I'll try asking my question on the MS forum and I'll report back if there is a solution.

[Megan]

Hi @jaymeetee, that's what I was about to suggest myself too. 

I think it'd be wise to check in with Microsoft. 

Let me know if you have any other questions.

[Tom01]

Hi @jaymeetee,

I upgraded to Windows 11 yesterday and had the exact same experience. Please let me know how you go with MS.

Cheers

[jaymeetee]

I reported this issue to Microsoft via the 'Feedback Hub' app about 24 hrs ago (https://aka.ms/AAfbwsp) but, perhaps unsurprisingly, not heard anything yet. I've also been scouring the web for other solutions and the general consensus appears to be that it is a bug identified in an early beta of Windows 11 that was only partially fixed prior to release. This doesn't explain why there isn't a huge uproar about performance more generally (perhaps only a select few are affected). Microsoft themselves do not list this as a recognised bug on the Feedback Hub yet. I suspect the more people that report this to MS, the more chance there is of action so feel free of booting up that app and logging a bug too. One thing I have noted is that, while performance is laggy across the board, the performance of my Dropbox folder is noticeably worse. Will keep reporting back if there's any news!

[Tom01]

Thank you. I have opened a MS case and will let you know if I get any updates as well.

Thanks