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Deleted folders keep reappearing. What can I do?

Deleted folders keep reappearing. What can I do?

bstahl
New member | Level 2
Go to solution

I had this problem and putting a file in the folder did not resolve it, it immediately re-created the folder after I deleted it from the Finder (Mac 10.13.3). What did work was to choose Pause Syncing from the Dropbox menu bar widget, delete the file in Finder, then create a new folder with the same name (this is what I was trying to do in the first place). After resuming syncing, it left it alone.

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GuyM1
Helpful | Level 5
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Many thanks to the Dropbox team - especially Walter for helping me resolve this issue. In my case one fo the 9 sharers of a top level folder was adding back a multi layered sub folder, containing no files, each time the administrator attempted to delete it. All sharers told me that they had attempted to delete the reappearing folder........drilling down by the DB team revealed the culprit who hadnt actually made an attempt to delete but merely said he had! Deletion done and all fixed.....woohoo, champagne celebration! but....

 

How do you fault find without using the DB team in this case? Two options: make use of Event History and Version History. Using event history showed where I had attempted to delete the folder but did not show who added it back. Version history would not have worked as it only applies to actual files and not folders (this folder structure contained no files). I would suggest adding in a file, delete the folder structure, if it all reappears then check the version history of the individual file - it should show you deleting it and then should reveal who is adding it back. Note the use of "should"! What seems clear is that there are numerous ways that this "reappearing ghost" problem can be solved. Perhaps DB could set up a really detailed help page, that can be easily found, that covers all the myriad permutations of this challenging problem.

 

Once again - big thank you to the DB team for their prompt and detailed assistance. GuyM

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27 Replies 27

GuyM1
Helpful | Level 5
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Russell R.1 - Do you really think that we are that stupid?????? we have deleted via the browser, we have unsynced and resynced our devices, we have added a file then tried to delete the folder only for an empty folder to come back, we have done all this in the browser on every machine (across 3 continents!) and still the sub folders reappear. They are not the root shared folder and as the admin of this shared folder I cannot delete and empty the folder (with empty sub folders) on any device or from the browser. I have systematically gone through all the solution over the nine pages of this thread and have found no workable solution. The only thing that save my sanity is that I have selectively unsynced the offending folder from my own devices......but all that does is hide the offender from my sight - it does not solve the problem! Dropbox FFS solve this would you.

Jane
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution
Hey GuyM1, welcome to the Dropbox Forum & thanks for posting us in regards to the issue you’ve experienced with your deleted folders re-appearing. 
 
You may keep in mind that I’ve moved your comments from the previous discussion, as this started back to 2015 & we like to keep up with the most recent interactions. In case you’d like to refer back to it, you may have a look here
 
From this point on, let me briefly wrap-up the behavior you’ve experienced, so as to take it from where you’ve left off from the troubleshooting you’ve done on your own. 
 
To my understanding, you’re working on a shared folder & when you’re deleting it from the website (or across your devices perchance?) this still appears on other users’ accounts. You may keep in mind that this is the intended behavior, since deleting a shared folder causes it to move to an inactive state for the person who deleted it only, in order to not affect other users who may still want to use the folder. If you wish to remove a shared folder for all users, the owner of the folder needs to ‘Unshare' the folder. 
 
Please let me know in your next reply whether this clarifies the behavior you’ve been encountering or you’re experiencing a different issue, in order to follow-up with you as closely as possible. Any additional detail (eg. screenshots indicating the discrepancy) you could include would be extremely helpful in sending you the most relevant next steps. 
 
Once again, thanks for posting us here for assistance & I’ll be awaiting your next reply. Happy Monday! 

 


Jane
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support

 

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Norah
Dropbox Staff
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Hey GuyM1, hope you're doing great! 
 
Just checking in with you to see if you had the time to check @Jane's steps provided. 
 
Thanks in advance for your reply! 



Norah
Moderator @ Dropbox
https://dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so please mark it for some Kudos below. 
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Questions asked in the community will likely receive an answer within 4 hours!)

GuyM1
Helpful | Level 5
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Hi Jane and Norah, Sorry for the delay but I was away for a few days. Many thanks for your responses but the issue is still not resolved. To clarify the problem: I am the owner of a shared folder inside which are three main folders (each with a very large number of sub folders). I wish to delete one of the folders which was a drag and drop error by a user at some point. There are 5 layers of sub folders in this folder but no files in any of these sub folders. The 9 sharers have all attempted to remove the folder from our devices and I have repeatedly attempted to delete from the website as the administrator, yet it still reappears. I do not want to unshare the top level if at all possible but to merely delete this one folder and it's subs. I can see no way of unsharing this lower level (second tier) folder - if there is please put me out of my extended misery!

Norah
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution
 
Hey GuyM1
 
Sorry to hear that the issue is not resolved. 
 
Let’s try one more thing together. Remove the folder in question from your computer, then see if the folder reappears. If the issue persists this means it may be triggered by a third party application, local network sharing or folder redirection preferences setup in the problematic folders within your Dropbox. This usually happens if other people in the local network could be accessing the same data. 
 
In order to thoroughly investigate with all our tools available you can follow up via email here.
 
Once you send us a ticket, please include the ID here and I will make sure that a colleague gets on it as soon as possible.
 
Thanks for your patience working through this with me!



Norah
Moderator @ Dropbox
https://dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so please mark it for some Kudos below. 
:white_check_mark: Did this post fix your issue/answer your question? If so please press the 'Accept as Solution' button to help others find it.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Still stuck? Ask me a question! (
Questions asked in the community will likely receive an answer within 4 hours!)

GuyM1
Helpful | Level 5
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I have repeatedly tried deleting via the computer ever since this issued appeared almost a year ago but to no avail. There are 2 other users on the local network each of whom has tried to delete as well. The overseas sharers have also tried and nothing has worked.

I have emailed as suggested and look forward to some help. All the best and have a great weekend!

Norah
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution
 
Thanks for the prompt reply GuyM1
 
I have located your open request on our system and it will be handled by a higher level of Support asap. In case you have any further inquiries, let me know here and I'll check back with you. 
 
Have a wonderful weekend ahead!:rainbow:



Norah
Moderator @ Dropbox
https://dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so please mark it for some Kudos below. 
:white_check_mark: Did this post fix your issue/answer your question? If so please press the 'Accept as Solution' button to help others find it.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Still stuck? Ask me a question! (
Questions asked in the community will likely receive an answer within 4 hours!)

GuyM1
Helpful | Level 5
Go to solution

Many thanks to the Dropbox team - especially Walter for helping me resolve this issue. In my case one fo the 9 sharers of a top level folder was adding back a multi layered sub folder, containing no files, each time the administrator attempted to delete it. All sharers told me that they had attempted to delete the reappearing folder........drilling down by the DB team revealed the culprit who hadnt actually made an attempt to delete but merely said he had! Deletion done and all fixed.....woohoo, champagne celebration! but....

 

How do you fault find without using the DB team in this case? Two options: make use of Event History and Version History. Using event history showed where I had attempted to delete the folder but did not show who added it back. Version history would not have worked as it only applies to actual files and not folders (this folder structure contained no files). I would suggest adding in a file, delete the folder structure, if it all reappears then check the version history of the individual file - it should show you deleting it and then should reveal who is adding it back. Note the use of "should"! What seems clear is that there are numerous ways that this "reappearing ghost" problem can be solved. Perhaps DB could set up a really detailed help page, that can be easily found, that covers all the myriad permutations of this challenging problem.

 

Once again - big thank you to the DB team for their prompt and detailed assistance. GuyM

Walter
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution

Thank you for your kind reply Guy - I am glad we could figure this out together.

In any case, I wanted you to know that I have gathered all of your feedback in regards to this issue and I will be passing them along to our dev team for consideration - thank you for that!

Once again I am happy we sorted this out and note that you can always reach out to us on any of our official support channels with any questions you might have. We'll be glad to assist in any possible way. 

Have a lovely day!


Walter
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


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