Can't open any files from my Android phone

[jdt34]

I got a new Android phone about three weeks ago. When I accessed my Dropbox files, I was able to open some and not others. Now I am unable to open any files on the phone. Instead, I receive this message: "This file can't be previewed. To open this file, try a computer or another app." They will not download, export, or be made available offline. However, I can open all the same files on my desktop computer with no problems. I also tried connecting to my Android Dropbox to my desktop Dropbox and starred the item to see if that would help. Still no success. Why can't I open the files on my phone? Thank you for your help.

[Hannah]

Sorry to jump in here, @vinceortega!

Does the whole screen go blank when you open the file, or does the file itself appear to be empty, as if it has no contents?

Have you tried clearing the cache from the app's settings, to see if that makes any difference?

[vinceortega]

@Hannah, the page is pitch black. It doesn’t appear empty which may look like cells with empty fields. And, yes, I have tried clearing the cache. As mentioned previously, I even deleted the app from my Android phone. Thanks for looking into this.

[Megan]

Hi @vinceortega, could you send me a screenshot, please? It'd help me to have a visual of this too. 

Thanks! 

[vinceortega]

Hi @Megan, see attached and let me know if you need anything else.

[Walter]

Hey @vinceortega, sorry to jump in here, but have you cleared the app's cache at all since you first noticed this? 

[vinceortega]

Hi @Walter, yes, the app's cache has been cleared prior to the screenshot I provided.

[Walter]

Have you tried exporting it to another app to preview it from there @vinceortega? 

Also, can you maybe offline this file and try again? 

[vinceortega]

@Walter - Export to Excel app works.  I can open the downloaded file successfully. 

From Dropbox app preview, it does not work on both offline setting of on and off.

[Hannah]

Hey Vince, it seems that this behavior is kind of expected, with files that are as large as the one in question.

I'm glad, however, that exporting it, allows you to view it as normal.

For larger files like this, another workaround would also be our desktop application.

Let us know if you have any other questions.

[vinceortega]

Hi Hannah, my mistake. File size is 760kb and not mb. Anyway, yes export works and the only workaround for this.