Adobe not downloading online only files from projects

[TBirds]

Hi All,

 after updating to MacOS 12.3 I have not been able to open project files (Premiere/After Effects) without errors of not finding files that are in dropbox as 'online only'. Prior to the Mac update all files would auto download to be on my machine locally. I know there's an issue with full support for OS 12.3... any updates or solutions folks have found?

thanks 

[smokinghotdog]

Any news on this at all @dropbox @Walter?
It's really unworkable, undo-able and unbearable up to this point.
When will there be a proper Dropbox update that resolves this issue?

We need smart-sync back exactly the way it was: smart and reliable.

[LoveDemDawgs]

This is a known issue. I am going to cancel my membership and move all of my files elsewhere if Dropbox doesn't fix this VERY quickly. It is making it nearly impossible for me to be efficient at work. What an embarrassing oversight for the company. It's not anything you are doing wrong. The software is simply not compatible with the new Mac OS. I have over 600 GB of active working files. Do you honestly expect me to manually download them all for my links to work? What is the point of having Dropbox as a storage place, if I can't access files later exactly as they were created.

[LoveDemDawgs]

I am a professional artist with a new iMac. I have over 600 gigabytes of working files in my account. I have been a Dropbox customer for quite a while. I have not been able to use my new computer for 5 months. The incompatibility with Mac OS Monterey is a gross error on the part of Dropbox. I asked for a refund via Support. Support threatened to downgrade my account in exchange for the refund. And then said they might not be able to restore my account at a later date. They threatened my livelihood. If anyone wishes to read the email chain, I will happily send it to you. Just message back with an email address.
SHAME ON YOU, DROPBOX.
You continue to not serve your customers.

[launchscotland]

I get the same problem. Before the Mac update any files that were online only would download automatically when opened in Adobe products but now they just show an error. This is really frustrating. I'm not sure if it is a Dropbox, Adobe or Apple issue but it really needs fixed ASAP with collaboration from all 3 companies.

[HarvNagra]

Dropbox have updated their macOS Monterey page to indicate that a private beta is being trialled now to resolve this issue. However, there's no info on who is being invited to this private beta. 

Via our IT partner's discussions with our DB account manager, it sounds like the release is due for "early Q4" this year, which would imply some time in October if it's true. They're refusing to give us access to the beta. We're another few months away from finding out if this is even gonna roll out then. 

[Fraa2111]

Did you find a solution to this? I just got the same error and it's going to be a big real pain if I can't go back to automatically download files off dropbox. cheers

[HarvNagra]

Dropbox's support page indicates they're testing a beta now, and it'll (hopefully) be rolling out widely in November 2022. You might be lucky to qualify for a beta release in October. By then macOS 13 will be out, so who knows what new adventures await us. 

Full support for macOS 12.5 and higher has started rolling out. This update fixes issues related to opening online-only files in third-party applications for users on macOS 12.3 and 12.4. 

Broader availability will begin in November as we work to preserve the reliability and quality of our sync experience. When you’re eligible, you’ll receive a notification from the Dropbox icon in your menu bar. As a workaround, users on these versions of macOS can open online-only files directly in Finder.

We currently have a private beta, which will be more widely available in October. If you’re interested in joining, you can turn on early releases.

[LauraW]

I have a different, but kind of the same problem. Ever since the last update of Dropbox there is this problem. Because of the update of Dropbox, all offline files were online-only again. Ok, fine. But indeed, when opening an Adobe project with linked files, the linked files are not downloaded. But even then when I downloaded all missing files, I still got the 86::1 issue in Adobe apps. It looks like the links are now broken forever. Even if I create a new project, these downloaded files will not import. Other files will. Only when I copy paste the 'broken' file out of my Dropbox folders, I can import it. Please fix this! Also asked Adobe to look into this, but I think it is a Dropbox issue: https://community.adobe.com/t5/after-effects-discussions/can-t-import-any-files-after-update-after-e...

This is my system report if that is of any help:

Model Name: MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro16,1
Processor Name: 6-Core Intel Core i7
Processor Speed: 2,6 GHz
Number of Processors: 1
Total Number of Cores: 6
L2 Cache (per Core): 256 KB
L3 Cache: 12 MB
Hyper-Threading Technology: Enabled
Memory: 32 GB
System Firmware Version: 1731.140.2.0.0 (iBridge: 19.16.16066.0.0,0)
OS Loader Version: 540.120.3~19
Serial Number (system): C02DC65ZMD6R
Hardware UUID: 7B66719D-345D-5169-86FD-F6535E510CF9
Provisioning UDID: 7B66719D-345D-5169-86FD-F6535E510CF9
Activation Lock Status: Enabled

[Planet Nutshell]

After the update last night, many of our files stored in Dropbox would not load in Adobe After Effects (particularly SWF files), as well as all media files in Premiere. The workaround we discovered is to move all affected files out of Dropbox (like, the desktop) and then re-link the files in the Adobe app you're using. Hope that helps. 

[LauraW]

At least I can finish the work for this project. But it is not a solution of course. Please Dropbox, fix this for future events.