Dropbox desktop app display problem on Windows 10 20H2

[mhodish]

I am building up a new Windows 10 20H2 virtual machine in VMWare Workstation. I have installed Drpbox from Dropbox.com (not from the Windows App store), and have a problem with how it displays. I have inserted a couple of pictures. I see two issues:

When I click on the Dropbox icon in the system tray, I either get a white window, with no visible contents, or a window as shown on the left,  below, where transparency is high, making it hard to read the contents. 

Another display issue, is in one of the option boxes that is part of the install process, shown below.  In the state that was in effect when I grabbed this image, I have selected "Make files local". There is no visible indication that I have selected this, other than that there is a faint grey outline on the option that has NOT been selected. . This is both hard to see AND unintuitive. 

As far as I know, I have not changed any display settings that should cause these issues. How can I fix it so that the program window is more clearly readable?

I have already uninstalled Dropbox, downloaded a fresh copy, and reinstalled it. This changed nothing. 

Thanks in Advance,

Mike

 

[Lusil]

Hello there @mhodish, thanks for reaching out to us. 

Generally, it's not supported to run the desktop app on a virtual machine. 

However, just to make sure that we cover as much initial ground as possible, are you getting this issue when you run the desktop app on a standard Windows installation?

Let me know and I'll make sure to get back to you as soon as possible. Cheers!

[mhodish]

I just tested an install on a standard installation of Win 10 20H2.  The transparency issue of the app does not exist there. 

FWIW, I have run previous versions of the Dropbox software on virtual machines for years with no problem, it is essential to my use case. 

The graphic ambiguity of the "Choose how to sync your files" window encountered during the installation still exists. 

Mike

[Jay]

Hi @mhodish, in general, we wouldn't be able to support the Dropbox desktop application is it is installed on a virtual machines.

However, graphical issues with the Dropbox desktop application can occur if 32 bit mode color for the host isn't enabled, so you can try changing this to see if this helps. Other graphics card settings on the host might also be causing this transparency effect, though that would be up to you to determine which setting could be reason for this change.

Aside from this, there isn't anything else we can suggest on this matter, since you've mentioned there are no issues when installed on a local machine.

[dunc0]

Hey mate, I have this same issue and stumbled upon a workaround. 

If you place a window with a dark background behind the menu, you should be able to see the dropbox app and windows. 

I just open MS paint and bucket fill the whole thing black, then place it behind where the menu will be.

Hope that gets you out of a pickle.

Cheers,

[mhodish]

Thanks for that, I will give it a try.  Until now, I have just been living with the problem. Going to 32 bit color is not an acceptable solution. 

This is funny, the problem did not exist with older versions of Dropbox and Windows. I have used it in virtual machines for at least a decade. 

Mike