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Be able to change Dropbox backup folders names

Be able to change Dropbox backup folders names

rfog
Collaborator | Level 9

Add possibility of rename Backup folders. If you have only one computer, it go fine, but if you have more than one, it ends being very confussing. Due iCloud Drive issues, I've changed all of my Macs "synchronized" Desktop and Documents to Dropbox. However, take a look to the picture: 

 

Captura de pantalla 2020-08-17 a las 9.30.30.png

It is very difficult to guess what is what. With the possibility to rename them, I could have named "My iMac", "My MBP 13", "My MBP 15". Very easy to see what is what.

 

(As a workaround, we can change to detail view, but could be more easy for all of us be able to change the names).

Latest Update
Walter
Dropbox Staff

Hi all, I just wanted to let you know that the team is working on this idea!

 

Some backups and backup folders are currently able to be renamed, and we are working to upgrade all backups to have similar functionality

 

Thanks for sharing your suggestion with us and to everyone for supporting it.

Status changed to: Accepted
83 Comments
lheimann1
New member | Level 2

would love to be able to rename the backup folders to differentiate the differences between computers. Especially frustrating when it is just PC_ PC(2) and so on. 

lheimann1
New member | Level 2

Sorry Did not realize that this went to the community. Thought just shared with the Developer, and the more suggestions they take precedence! 

kpurintun
Explorer | Level 3

its crazy that there are posts for years about this... I mean..  at least just use the PC name.

rocketmanblamb
Helpful | Level 6

I don't know what the best way to emphasize the frustration that this causes.  

 

Hours of cumulative time wasted trying to figure out which files are stored locally on what machine I have based on the "Backup" folder name.

 

I will offer a polite request to consider this as a feature to implement.

 

Thank you.

mamthor
New member | Level 2

The button to vote for this idea doesn't seem to work. It's hard to believe that I am stuck naming my backups PC, PC (2), PC (3), etc. This seems like a very basic feature and it needs to be added as soon as possible. It is not reasonable to expect customers to index their backups with PC (#) in their head--or Mac (#).

 

Thanks for the attention,

Matt

wsssmith20
New member | Level 2

Hi there,

 

I know this is a feature requested by many of the public forms online and I have had the same frustration of not being able to change the name of the backup device to dropbox.

 

I am requesting that the device you set up to be backed up to dropbox can have its name changed (or that it follows the system's device name). It doesn't look the most professional having "PC (2)" as your device name, plus it makes it harder to remember which device is which and could lead to me deleted on moving a file from a device that is not the one I had intended to change.

 

I looked forward to hearing your thoughts on this.

 

 

rocketmanblamb
Helpful | Level 6

Here is a method (2 really) to enable a custom computer folder name...

 

I didn't detail it yet in this post(yet) but you can make you're own custom icon file too to note the "backup" folder as well.

 

https://brianlamb.notion.site/Methods-for-Custom-Backup-Folder-Name-f0426632c9044ab5bb3c52a0ec74ca50

 

helpful comments / improvements welcomed.

Not a supported method but I have used this kind of solution and have Apple Music for example referencing such a symlinked folder.

Derek Erb Solutions
Helpful | Level 6

I don't seem to be able to vote on this idea. I click on the Vote for this idea -> button and nothing happens.

 

This is most unfortunate for this is a more than annoying problem. As a business customer I have clients each with several computers. They need to, for example, be able to copy a file from the Desktop folder of one of their computers to another of their computers. It is practically impossible at the moment as they do not know which of their computers is "Mac(1)" and which is "Mac(4)".

 

We have set the computer names so that each user knows which computer they're working on. But they have practically no way of knowing which computer's folder they are opening when they open Mac(2) or Mac(5). This makes the "backup" functionality practically useless.

All of our necessary files are already "backed up" as they are synchronised with Dropbox in real-time. It's almost easier for me to manually create a set of folders in the root of the Dropbox folder with the real name of the computer and manually create Downloads, Desktop and Documents folders in them and create aliases in the lefthand column in Finder. This works to a certain extent. But obviously not as intuitively, or as intrinsically, as when it's using the built-in system folders.

 

I can't vote for this feature, for some reason, but it really needs to be better prioritised as it's a lot more than a desired feature it's a practical necessity especially for business users with several computers.

 

It's time!

sebkopf
New member | Level 2

I was looking into Dropbox for our team to switch to but this problem with not being able to name backup folders is a total dealbreaker. Most team members work with multiple analytical instruments that each need backing up from their individual PCs and it is impossible to tell which is which. Even worse, Dropbox seems to think some computers are the same and doesn't even give us the option to back them up (just "restore" from what is a completely different computer). This is not a missing feature, this is a major bug.

rfog
Collaborator | Level 9

@sebkopf what I do is use a normal Dropbox folder and use it as my "Documents" folder in all my computers. In fact, it is the Dropbox auto-generated "Documents" folder. I think if you share one folder with your teams, all of them can use it as the common repository. 

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82 votes received Status: Accepted