I am confused with the icons on my computer. Any ideas what they mean?

[mehere]

I am a Drobox newbie. I am confused by the many ways to access Dropbox folders/files. There seem to be 4 ways (see Windows Taskbar screenshot below):

1. the Dropbox web site (via the left Firefox icon) which enables access to my Drobox account folder/files
2. another Dropbox application (via the next Taskbar icon) which takes me to a list of folders/files
3. another Dropbox application (via the next Taskbar icon) which takes me to a File Explorer list of Dropbox folders/files
4. another Dropbox application (via the next Taskbar icon) which brings up the window below

I’d appreciate some help on which is the proper way to access folders/files (ie create new folders, delete folders/files, move files from one folder to anther etc.)

Thank you,

Robert

[Здравко]

The last is the Dropbox 'control panel' (settings). For the rest: Use the most convenient for You. All are equivalent.

[Walter]

Hey there @mehere - sorry to hear about this. Let me clear things up for you. 

At first, let me clarify the icons you see based on your screenshot from left to right.

1. The first icon is Mozilla Firefox's icon (this is a web browser). If you get re-directed to your account's homepage when clicking on that, it means that you probably saved your account's homepage as a landing page when opening your browser (Mozilla Firefox). 

2. The second and third icons are your Dropbox Folder and a shortcut (or a quick access' icon) to it &

3. The last icon (the one in your system tray) is the icon that signifies that the app is actively running and syncing. 

Note that, when it comes to our desktop application, the Dropbox software is designed to watch your Dropbox folder and sync any files placed in the folder. Your Dropbox folder is just like any other folder on your hard drive, but with syncing features. 

To take advantage of Dropbox, you can either move or copy files into the Dropbox folder. This will place the files into the Dropbox folder. Once Dropbox sees changes in the Dropbox folder, it automatically syncs the new changes to Dropbox servers (and your account online at https://www.dropbox.com/ and to any other computer linked to your account (you can see your linked devices under your account's Security tab if needed). 

Last but not least, as I see that the app on your computer is reporting that you're almost out of space, I wanted you to know thatyYou can view your current quota usage on the following page if needed:  https://www.dropbox.com/account/

Generally speaking, if your Dropbox account is over quota then only syncing stops. Nothing will be removed and syncing will resume when you bring your account under quota again.

To get your account under quota you can do any of the following:

1. Upgrade your account – check out www.dropbox.com/plans for other information.
2. Increase your quota using referrals 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.

I hope this information helps Robert and please let me know if you have any more questions; I'll be happy to follow up. 

[mehere]

Thanks Здравко & Walter for your helpful replies,

Still just one point of confusion.

The 2nd and 3rd icons on my Taskbar are different. The 2nd takes me to the Dropbox desktop application. The 3rd takes me to File Explorer.

Can I just move, delete etc. folders/files around within File Explorer (under the Dropbox heading) or do I have to use the Dropbox application.

Thanks,

Robert

[Здравко]

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@mehere wrote:
...

Can I just move, delete etc. folders/files around within File Explorer (under the Dropbox heading) or do I have to use the Dropbox application.

Thanks,

Robert

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Of course, You can. The Dropbox directory is a 'mirror' to content of Your Dropbox account. Any push a file or directory in or remove from this 'mirror' is equivalent to upload to or remove from the Dropbox server.

[Здравко]

But it seems You use pCloud sevice. It's very similar. What's not clear?

[mehere]

Thanks for your responses.

Hopefully these 3 screenshots of 3 different ways to access Dropbox will illustrate my confusion. My question is which of the 3 should I use to move, create, delete, folders/files or can I use any of them?

Dropbox (account) folders/files viewed via Firefox

Dropbox folders/files viewed via Dropbox desktop application

Dropbox folders/files viewed via Windows File Explorer

Thanks,

Robert

[Walter · Accepted solution]

Yes indeed @mehere  - you can use either one of those!

[Здравко]

Hi @mehere,

I'm not so sure, what You ask me really. Is my first replay not enough? In addition I can say that You can access the files and/or folders also using any available application on Your computer, without using any of above. My own opinion is the file explorer is most convenient, but this is only my preference. Nothing more.