Camera Uploads not running automatically

[KenDavis]

I use and android device - I need to open up my dropbox app and go to camera uploads for my phone to start uploading photos.  This has been the case for some time, but i'm sure that this happened automatically in the past.  I use this feature a lot for work...and many times I go to find my photos in my personal Dropbox on my PC, but they aren't there...then i need to open the app, wait until uploads is complete which can be some time, since I take a lot of construction photos...

[Lusil · Accepted solution]

Hi there @KenDavis!

A first step to this would be to ensure that camera uploads is enabled. Could you please check if by toggling the option off-on and see if that makes a difference at all? 

I’d also kindly recommend having a look at this Help Center article which includes some steps and info on troubleshooting issues with camera uploads - maybe one of them might just do the trick. 

Furthermore, it could you be possible that the version of your Android allows power saving mode to close some apps from running after a certain period of time - could it be such a case? 

If you’re still experiencing some trouble with this, could you please make sure if this only occurs on Wi-Fi or if you’ve tried uploading via cellular data? Could the uploading be affected by your device’s battery? Do camera uploads initiate during charging? 

Let me know of any updates on the matter! 

[KenDavis]

Thanks for the suggestions.  I am running Android 8.0.0.   I believe that I have found the issue...it appears to be due to the fact that my Android Phone suggests apps that run in the background that may be put to sleep...even if I have power saving mode disabled.  I may be wrong, but it looks like Android may allow Dropbox to run in the background initially, even with power saving mode disabled, but then still puts it to sleep if it has not been used for a while...

What I did is as follows:

1.  Go to Settings

2. Pick "Device maintenance"

3. Select the little Battery icon at the lower left corner of the screen

( ...note that at this point, a screen appears where you can select a power saving mode...My screen already had OFF greyed in...so i had power saving mode disabled...I would think that this is correct...so as to not allow apps to be shut down.... )

4. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and there is a line "Unmonitored apps"

What i did was I selected this and i observed that there were a few apps in this list already...but Dropbox was not one of them...so at the bottom of this screen, i clicked on the little green "+" to "Add apps".

Then i selected the Dropbox app so as to add it to one of the unmonitored apps.  I suspect that this will then prevent Android 8 from allowing Dropbox to go to sleep in the background under any circumstances.

I haven't really tested it out...I suppose i should wait a few hours, then take a few pictures (without opening my Dropbox app) and then check my PC to see if photos appeared automatically without me having to open up dropbox on my phone.

Once I test this out, I will report back on my findings.

[David K.124]

I've been having the same problem. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll give it a try. You can also go into the settings for Dropbox and turn "camera uploads" off and then on again. That seems to kickstart it, at least for a little while.

I was going to open a ticket with Dropbox support, but the Zendesk support site won't let me open any new tickets, although I can still see tickets I've opened in the past. Doesn't Dropbox provide technical support any more, or is that just for Business accounts?

[Lusil]

Thanks for the detailed info here, @KenDavis! When you’ve got more info on this, don’t hesitate to get back to me and let me know how it went. 

You can contact our Support team, @David K.124, as this is available for all users - we’re here to help after all.

If you’re having an issue submitting a ticket, have you tried switching browsers? Maybe that will do the trick. 

Let me know if you need any further assistance nonetheless and I’ll make sure to get back to you as soon as possible. Cheers! 

[-emjay]

I too, have this problem, can not figure it out.    It (uploads) used to work fine.   Its very frustrating I take a lot of photos DAILY. I have grown accustomed to relying on Drop box to save my photos.   I have deleted very important photos recently due to this issue which was never a problem in the past,  unless my dropbox was full.

my drop box on my phone is ver. 130.2.6

my phone is a samsung S7 with andriod 8.0

Camera uploads are  (ON)

Upload video (ON)

Background Uploads with battery (is greater that 20% ) (I've played with this it's not the issue)

Use cellular data is (ON)

Use data plan (FOR ALL FILES)

Dropbox on my computer is version 67.4.83  but I don't feel this should matter.

Any help would be nice.

[Lusil]

Hey @-emjay!

Could you please clarify if you’re experiencing this with all photos or certain ones? Are the photos that aren’t uploading located in your Camera Roll (iOS) or Gallery (Android)? Have you tried a different Wi-Fi connection by any chance?

Furthermore, have you tried toggling the camera uploads option off and on? Have you also checked out this article for some suggestions that may resolve this?

Finally, if you’re still having trouble with this, could you please let me know if you’re seeing any errors, and if you are, send me a screenshot of it (omitting personal info)? 

I know that this is a bit to cover, but it will definitely help me have a better understanding of where we stand on this, @-emjay. 

Thanks in advance!

[dpuser]

I was also having trouble with getting Dropbox to auto upload.

The solution was to change the power saving settings on the phone.

On my Andriod I set to high performance and it now works fine.

Thanks.

[Lusil]

Hey @dpuser, thanks for letting us know what did the trick for you! Awesome work on the troubleshooting. 

If you have any other questions in the future, please don’t hesitate to get back to give me a shout and I’ll make sure to get back to you as soon as possible. Have a great week ahead!

[Ernst-Emil]

I too have been mucking with this close to two years.
The only reason that I did not pursue to solve this more intense is that it is not of that great importance to me.
But today it caught op with me, and now it is solved for me.

There are a lot of different settings described in other solutions, that of course should be correct too.

All settings, such as:  automatic upload, wifi/data upload in the DB app.

All I did was:  >Settings >Accounts >click the + Add account (DB), to allow apps to sync. automatically. (it is of course also Enabled)