High CPU Usage after updating MacBook Pro to MacOS Monterey (12.3)

[afrey25]

I installed the latest MacOS update (Monterey 12.3) on my MacBook pro last night and now Dropbox is almost continuously syncing files and sucking my CPU usage. Fans are running almost constantly, and battery life has been dreadful as a result.

Anyone else experiencing this?

All my files are fully synced so I have no clue what files Dropbox keeps re-syncing and why over and over again. I've rebooted, turned Dropbox on and off. Pretty much everything I can think of other than deleting and reinstalling the desktop app. 

Any suggestions? Thanks.

[choongng]

Dropbox is the largest single energy consumer on my laptop. Historically I close it when I'm on battery, however this is not ideal because it is a bit annoying and because it stops sync until reopened. It doesn't seem like there's any intrinsic reason it needs to use so much energy while idle, and fixing that would be a small improvement for every Dropbox user.

[Megan]

Hey there, @afrey25, I'd be happy to have a closer look into this for you! 

Keep in mind that the Beta version of the Dropbox app could be contributing to high CPU usage and not ease the issue. What is the current version you're using?

Feel free to hover your mouse over the Dropbox icon near your WiFi, and let me know. 

Have you taken a look at  this Help Center article? 

Thank you very much!

[afrey25]

Thanks, Megan.

I just checked my current version and it's v143.4.4161. I don't think I'm signed up for beta versions of the Dropbox app on Mac.

It's the oddest thing. Dropbox app will show that everything is synced ("Your files are up to date") and it will sit there for a minute or two and then it will just start syncing files again. Some times it will just say "Syncing..." and other times it will say "Syncing 20 files" or "Syncing 128 files" and just keep changing the number. Eventually it will say everything is up to date again. Nothing is changing with my files or folders.

Also I took a look at the help article you linked to. I tweaked a couple settings based on the article recommendations, but there shouldn't be any issues with my files or anything else listed in the article. The only thing I haven't done is uninstall and reinstall.

[George17]

I have got the exact same problem, (Dropbox app will show that everything is synced ("Your files are up to date") and it will sit there for a minute or two and then it will just start syncing files again. Some times it will just say "Syncing..." and other times it will say "Syncing 20 files" or "Syncing 128 files" and just keep changing the number. Eventually it will say everything is up to date again. Nothing is changing with my files or folders.).

And then the fans kick in with tremendous CPU usage. It all started when Dropbox autoupdated to 144.4.4491. I am on Monterey 12.2.1. I have done all troubleshooting steps, it is clearly a Dropbox bug. 

[Megan]

Hi @afrey25 & @George17!

When you see the syncing messages of files being synced to the device, is there a chance that files are being added to a shared folder on your account online maybe? 

Also, do you have any third-party apps that use your files too? 

[Stecki]

Same problem here (M1 MacBookAir 2020, Monterrey 12.3, Dropbox 144.4.4491). About an hour ago there was continuous high cpu usage by dropbox; my machine got so hot, I decided to shut down and wait for it to cool. After restart, now every few minutes very high CPU usage, "indexing". Then everything is "up to date". Then a few minutes later "indexing" with high cpu. I have not added files for about 2 hours and there is no third party app currently posting file updates to my dropbox. This problem seems to have started today (presumably after a dropbox self update). 

[Goatbuoy]

Same here -  MacOS 12.0.1; MPB 2019

 

  But then a few moments later:

 

[George17]

Hi Megan, thank you for getting back to us. No shared folders are being changed, no files changed, no app is accessing anything when this is happening. Definitely a Dropbox bug. 

[gimmy87]

Same issue in my macbook pro 2018 with Monterey 12.3 and Dropbox v144.4.4491.

Any suggestions? Thanks.