General questions about uploading and syncing

[Stephen W.15]

Thank you in advance for your comments. 

I am starting afresh with Dropbox (2T plan).
Case 1.  If i have a pdf file on my desktop (MB Pro 2015 OS 11.4).  In the web app, if i upload that pdf, then a copy is saved to the folder i was in on the web app.  The pdf remains on my local desktop.  If i then delete the pdf from the desktop, the pdf stays in the online folder.   Is this the desired behavior?
Case 2.  I have a Mac Photos library with 10k photos.  If i upload the library (located in User/Home/Pictures) then a copy is made on Dropbox's servers.  Questions:

 a.  can i delete the photos from my local library as they will be accessible in the app?

 b.  I have done this in the past and wound up with multiple photo libraries and very complex folder structures year, month, then long alphanumeric strings for even more subsidiary folders.  Is this what is supposed to happen.

 c. If i keep the 10k photos on my local Photos app, then if i make changes to the photos and/or delete some, will these changes be reflected in the photos i have on the Dropbox server in the cloud?

 d.  Do i use selective sync to keep a local copy of the photos?  If i do then will the Photos app in MacOS be able to read the local copy.

I think i do not understand syncing and especially the way Dbx handles photo libraries? 

I have had dropbox for about ten years and I think i know less than i do when it was only a simple folder in the file structure which was synced to a location in the cloud.

Thanks again. 

[Hannah · Accepted solution]

Hey @Stephen W.15, happy Monday and thanks for posting your questions!

Regarding case 1, assuming that by web app, you're talking about the website, indeed, using Dropbox only through the web would result in this behavior.

Now, regarding case 2, can you clarify how you'd be uploading the library to Dropbox? Through the website as well or the desktop app?

If you'd be using the desktop app, we wouldn't recommend you sync the actual library, as this might have some complications.

What you could do instead, is create a copy of the library, and sync that to your account by moving it to the Dropbox folder.

Once the copied folder fully syncs, you can then use selective sync, to remove it from your desktop, so as not to have duplicate files on your computer, but still have it in your Dropbox.

However, as this would be a copy, updating the original library on your computer, wouldn't automatically update the copy in Dropbox. 

Let me know if you have any questions.

[Stephen W.15]

Thanks very much. Super clear. 
appreciate your time. S. 

[brownebox]

I've been a Dropbox user for many years (as a free user). However, in the last year I decided to buy into a plan and consolidate all my stored files in one place, in the cloud via Dropbox. I moved many folders and files from an external drive and many folders and files from Google Drive.

I have two laptops, keeping one in each of the two locations I work from frequently. As I use a particular laptop, I pull files down to that device's Desktop and, when finished, upload them back to the cloud.

How can I avoid confusing files during Dropbox syncs? Is Dropbox syncing files between the cloud and the particular machine I'm using? What happens when I'm syncing with two different laptops? Am I inadvertently overwriting later versions of files?

I see Dropbox among my browser's bookmarks, which I assume takes me to the website. I also see Dropbox logo on the task bar. Is taking me to files stored locally, and not to the cloud? And what do I make of the Dropbox click in the hidden logo area. Does this take me to the files also stored locally?

There's probably a good explanation of all of this somewhere and I'll appreciate your pointing me in the right direction.

Thanks.

happens it syncing with the files it finds on the particular laptop I'm using? on when syncingWhere I get confused is when I see files from such I have As I understand it, I have my Dropbox account in the cloud, which is where I store these files. I also have a Dropbox on my laptop, where files 

[Megan]

Hi @brownebox, let's get right into this! 

The first thing we need to identify is that there's a web version of Dropbox and of course, there's also the app. It sounds like you're using both of them. 

Now, you mentioned you upload files from your Desktop to Dropbox. Do you do that using the web? 

The icon you see on your task bar, would lead you to your Dropbox folder. This folder should reflect all of the content of yours that you see online on the web. Files should be mirrored from one place to the other. 

In addition, you mentioned that you have two devices, both with Dropbox there. Do you use the app on both of them simultaneously? Give me some more info as to how you work on your end. 

Thanks a bunch!

[brownebox]

Thanks for your reply. I've copied it below, with my responses (in blue).

_________________

The first thing we need to identify is that there's a web version of Dropbox and of course, there's also the app. It sounds like you're using both of them. Yes.

Now, you mentioned you upload files from your Desktop to Dropbox. Do you do that using the web? Yes.

The icon you see on your task bar, would lead you to your Dropbox folder. This is the local Dropbox folder, on my computer, right? This folder should reflect all of the content of yours that you see online on the web. Files should be mirrored from one place to the other. What about the Dropbox icon in the taskbar overflow area? This seems to be taking me to a sync manager. Is this correct?

In addition, you mentioned that you have two devices, both with Dropbox there. Do you use the app on both of them simultaneously? Give me some more info as to how you work on your end. I have these laptops in two separate (geographic) places. They complement each other; neither is dedicated to a specific task or purpose. It appears that, when I first used Dropbox to sync files from the laptop 1 Desktop, Dropbox created a folder, called "PC," with a subfolder called Desktop. When I used Dropbox to sync files from the laptop 2 Desktop, Dropbox created a folder, called "PC2." My questions here:

1. Is this what occurred when I first initiated backups for these two laptops? Do I have this right?

2. If so, if I'm on laptop 1, can I access the backup in Desktop for laptop 2 and vice versa? Can I pull files from one laptop's backup to the other laptop? Can I designate a default download location other than the Desktop subfolder of Dropbox?

3. Can I change the name of the folders "PC" or "PC2" to something that reminds me (and others) which backup goes with which laptop? How do I do this?

4. And, if I should decide I don't really need to sync files from laptop 2, how do I terminate the sync and remove the backup folder "PC2" from Dropbox?

[Hannah]

Sorry to jump in here, @brownebox, let me try to answer your questions.

The local Dropbox folder is just like any other folder on your computer, but with syncing abilities, so any files you add to it, will sync to your account on the cloud.

The PC folders were generated when you enabled the backup feature on both of your computers. 

Through those folders you can access your desktop files from any device you have connected to your Dropbox account. You can access them from our website as well.

These folders cannot be renamed at this time, but if you ever want to disable backup for a particular computer, you can follow the steps here.