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move contents of dropbox to external hard drive

move contents of dropbox to external hard drive

jayne
New member | Level 2
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how do I move contents of dropbox

 

i.e my files and photos to an external hard drive

thanks folks

25 Replies 25

Love2sin
New member | Level 2
Go to solution

From the Google.com main page 

1. Click on the 3 stacked dots at the top right of your screen

2. Click on SETTINGS 

3. Scroll down to page click on ADVANCED at bottom of page

4. Scroll down to DOWNLOADS

5. Where its "Location" to the far right Click on CHANGE

6. "Browse for Folder" Choose Drive you want to download your info to and Click OK  

----------

Part 2

Log in to your Dropbox Account

1. At the "Home Page" on the top right of screen click on "FILES" 

2. At My Files page open on the folder you want to download from if you want to download from a subfolder open the subfolder 

3. Once you're at the location you want to download from hold down the CTRL button at the bottom right of your keyboard the press the A key CTRL+A ( This will highlight the items to be download from that page

4. At the right of your screen click on DOWNLOAD

Files should now be in your External  Drive 

JuliesHeart
Explorer | Level 4
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I would like to know how to keep dropbox on my laptop and have a copy on an external hard drive just incase something happens. I do not want to lose my designs.  I want them saved permanently on my own external drive.  Thank you for your help!

Sanchez
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution
So, you want to keep the Dropbox folder that’s syncing to your account, on your computer, and have another copy on your external hard drive? If this is the case, you’ll need to search for some backup software solution that will back up files from your computer to the external, automatically. 

Something to take note of: if your files are in your Dropbox, and something happens”, we can help recover those files for you. We can restore previous versions, specific folders, and even your entire account. Most accounts have a 30-day limit on these types of recoveries, so if the need for recovery assistance ever arises, I suggest that you contact our support team asap! 
 
Cheers

Sanchez
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


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me5531
New member | Level 2
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Like everyone else, I'm having trouble moving files from dropbox to an external hard drive.  Why would anyone use dropbox knowing how difficult this is?  This is a temp solution with a no-win ending!


@jayne wrote:

how do I move contents of dropbox

i.e my files and photos to an external hard drive

thanks folks

Walter
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution

Sorry to hear you're having troubles using our software @me5531 - would you mind elaborating on what exactly is not working for you?

If you want to move your Dropbox files to an external drive you should be able to do so normally supposing the external drive is one of a supported format ( NTFS for Windows, HFS+ or APFS for Macs while it should also work for ext4 on Linux devices) so I would appreciate a screenshot of the error you get, if any that is. 

Also, have you heard about Selective Sync which is a great way to free up disk space on any of your connected devices? 

Let me know what you find and we'll take it from there. Thank you in advance for your reply.


Walter
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


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me5531
New member | Level 2
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I need computer directions in simple terms that normal people can understand.  I have one file of pictures in Dropbox and now it is saying I need more storage before I can view the next set of pictures which are coming soon.  I wanted to move the pictures from Dropbox to an external hard drive without blowing up another laptop.  It should be a simple step, but from what I read, no one finds it simple.  I don't use an apple product, just a laptop with an external drive.  There are 208 pictures in Dropbox (which I don't consider alot) and I can't move them.  Help?

Walter
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution

Thanks for the additional information @me5531!

So you get an error when you try to move your files from your Dropbox Folder (on your computer) to your external drive, right?

Would you mind sending a screenshot of the exact error message you get so as to send you the most appropriate next steps? 

In addition, as you described this, I understand that your account is close to its storage limits. Is this correct? If so, to get your account under quota (or expand its storage) so as to be able to accommodate the next set of pictures as you put it, you can do any of the following:

  1. Upgrade your account.
  2. Increase your quota using referral bonuses or other promotions.
  3. Leave any shared folders that put you over quota.
  4. Move files that don't need to sync out of your Dropbox folder.

Let me know how this goes! 


Walter
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


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anarvaja
New member | Level 2
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This is fine.  But it does not solve the problem.  There should be a way to copy files directly from Dropbox to an external storage device (USB HDD for example) without the need to sync them to the local computer's HDD.  

Moreover, Dropbox should give users the possibility to sync their Dropbox files to an external drive directly, without intermediate steps.

Thanks.

Walter
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution

In this case, you could use the website (at https://www.dropbox.com) and change your browser's settings to point to your external hard drive @anarvaja

 


Walter
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


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malwood
New member | Level 2
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how do i upload to a thumb drive a quickbooks file in dropbox

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