Why is a file being deleted, but can still be edited?

[Charliedrop]

Dropbox keeps telling me that one of my files has been permanently deleted and yet it is still there, saving my changes and allowing me to download it. There is nothing in my deleted files and no-one else has access to it. Why does it keep doing this? It gives me a heart attack every time as it is a really important file.

[Здравко]

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@Charliedrop wrote:

... saving my changes and allowing me to download it. ...

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Hi @Charliedrop,

You didn't point out explicitly, but I'm guessing you're talking about download using shared link. Am I right? If you haven't deleted your file, but renamed/moved it, existing link will still point to the existing file even with changed name position! A shared link, even containing file name (actual name at creation time), points to file content, not to the name. That's why the link doesn't get invalidated when pointed file just gets renamed! Be careful. Take a look here and erase any unwanted link.

Hope this helps.

[Jay]

Hi @Charliedrop, thanks for posting today!

I'm sorry to hear about this. Could you attach a screenshot showing what you're describing? Was the file in a shared folder and being moved to a private folder, or vice versa?

Does this occur when saving or editing files in the Dropbox folder on your machine?

Keep me posted!

[Charliedrop]

Thanks for your help. Could I ask how you got a link to one of my documents? I have never shared this doc with anyone.

[Charliedrop]

Thanks for getting back to me. I have never shared this file with anyone. The message appears when I am editing or writing in the doc. It occurs randomly so I don't know when it will come up again to get a screenshot.

[Jay]

Are you editing the file on your computer, on the Dropbox site, or via the mobile app generally?

The previous link you saw is to one on our site that allows you to view any shared links you've created on your account, so you can manage them easier.