Lost folders after deleting desktop app

[Kelly_]

Hi everyone,

I went in full panic mode today and I really hope someone can help me. I was getting onto dropbox and got the suggestion to download the desktop app. I did it as I thought it was just like a shortcut to the website but then realized it backed up all my desktop, files/documents and downloads. As this resulted in my dropbox memory being full I decided to delete the dropbox app. This resulted in everything getting deleted off my computer when I was emptying my trash. I downloaded the desktop app again and I THINK most of my files and desktop folders are on there, although the downloads folder only contains one file. 

Is there a way that I can get all my documents and folders and files back on my computer? I have a macbook pro from 2011. 

Thank you!

[JaybeeCK]

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@Kelly wrote:

Hi everyone,

I went in full panic mode today and I really hope someone can help me. I was getting onto dropbox and got the suggestion to download the desktop app. I did it as I thought it was just like a shortcut to the website but then realized it backed up all my desktop, files/documents and downloads. As this resulted in my dropbox memory being full I decided to delete the dropbox app. This resulted in everything getting deleted off my computer when I was emptying my trash. I downloaded the desktop app again and I THINK most of my files and desktop folders are on there, although the downloads folder only contains one file. 

Is there a way that I can get all my documents and folders and files back on my computer? I have a macbook pro from 2011. 

Thank you!

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Files that you have syned or uploaded to your Dropbox account, must be there. Since, Dropbox doesn't use your PC memory. 

[Kelly_]

It’s not the account, it’s the desktop app. So my files are in the app now. But have been deleted off my computer. So I don’t know how to get them back on my laptop. And I’m just hoping that ALL my files are in that Dropbox app. But I just want them on my laptop again.

[Daphne]

Hi there @Kelly_, just jumping in to help out here!

Since you reinstalled the app, the automatic backup feature should be disabled now. In this case, you can just move the contents of the Downloads/Document/Desktop folders within the Dropbox folder back to their original locations.

You can do this by dragging and dropping the contents to where you want the files/folders to be, or cutting and pasting them.

Let me know if this helps!

[Kelly_]

Hi @Daphne,

I think it is still backing up because I can still see the syncing icons behind the folders and documents. Is there a way I can turn it off? Because now it won't let me drag anything.

Also, if I want to open my documentsn (where I wanted to drag it to) it doesn't open but it goes straight to the dropbox documents folder.

Even all of the programs that I downloaded on my computer are gone (this is the least of my worries, ,my documents are more important) but instead of completely being gone, there are questionmarks on where the icon of the program should be. It's all really strange!

Thank you so much for helping me out, I was so upset when this happened! 

[Daphne]

Of course @Kelly_, I'm more than happy to help out here!

Since it looks like the folders are still being backed up, can you try following the steps towards the bottom of this article to disable the backup?

For the Documents folder, can you try opening a Finder window and pressing the keys "Command+Shift+H" and see if you can open the system's Documents folder from there?

If you're having any trouble with either of these steps, please feel free to send me some screenshots as a visual might be helpful.

Let me know how it goes!

[nnoble]

WHY DOES IT DELETE EVERYTHING THOUGH????? LIKE WHY ALL THE FILES ARE GONE BECAUSE I DELETED THE DROPBOX APP?? HOW DOES THAT MAKE ANY SENSE??!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Lusil]

Hey @nnoble, thanks for checking in with us on the Dropbox Community. 

If the desktop app is still running on your computer and you delete the Dropbox folder, due to syncing, one of our core features, that change is reflected throughout your account. 

If you don't want to have the Dropbox folder on your hard drive, you have to uninstall the desktop app first.

Once you do that, since the Dropbox folder will be like any other folder on your device and won't be syncing to your account anymore, you can delete it without affecting your Dropbox files anywhere else. 

However, if you have computer backup enabled on your desktop app and you want the Documents, Downloads, and Desktop folders back on your computer's default location, you'll have to first turn the feature off before moving them out of the Dropbox folder. 

I hope this helps, but let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks!

[nnoble]

So let's say I have on the feature to sync with my desktop and all the files on it. In the middle of syncing I delete the dropbox app and all the main files on my hard drive that say dropbox. It then proceeds to wipe most of my files from my desktop screen but I still see they are taking space on my hard drive but I can not find them. So I redownloaded dropbox and now it is syncing all my files that where there before but I still can't see them on my desktop monitor. Basically I am asking where does dropbox move the files on my hard drive so I can put them back on my desktop screen? and how to avoid this issue in the future?

[nnoble]

I also did revert to the last save on my computer hoping to restore it back to where all my files where but it did not do anything.