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Forum Discussion
Camera Upload thumbnail not showing on mac
I use Smart Sync
I'm on a Macbook Air Ventura 13.5.2
I know SmartSync doesn't download the files to your laptop but I'm pretty sure I used to get low-res thumbnails of the images in my Camera Upload folder
Since updating to the newest OS that seems to not work anymore and I just see the generic icons now.
If I "make it available offline" then it downloads the image and the thumbnail works but I'd love to have a low-res thumbnail so I can tell if I should download it or not.
Hi Pansy L., you need to specifically select the images or the folder with images, and then right click and 'Make available offline', give it time to download, and then right click again and 'Make online-only'.
Hello Jay,
I am having the same issue as reported many times by others, and I explained the details in another thread (after previewing the zero bytes files in the Preview app on Mac, the files are downloaded). This is not a Smartsync issue and this is not a slow syncing issue. The uploaded files were completely and fully downloaded and visible to my Windows system in a matter of minutes, and my Macbook shows zero byte files. There is something wrong with Dropbox syncing to macbooks, obviously. We all are reporting about Macbooks here, and Dropbox is the common denominator. It's not our macbooks and not our sync settings. I have used Dropsync app for years to selectively upload my photos from Android to Dropbox manually after editing these images on my device. This is the first time I am using Camera Uploads feature and this is the first time I am seeing this zero bytes issue. I have as default setting to make all files available offline on both my Windows and Macbook. All works as expected on Windows, but not on my Mac. Please address this correctly on your end.
I am afraid this is a dropbox-mac issue. I just started using Camera Uploads for the first time for my new iPhone. All images were completely uploaded to Dropbox and then downloaded to both my Window 10 system and my Macbook, both with default setting to make all files available offline in the DB settings for each device. The images were fully downloaded to Windows but on my Macbook they show as zero bytes files without a preview. When I click on a file, it appears to download it and I can view it, a little later the size is updated in Finder, and then (maybe) another while later a thumbnail is generated. This means that Dropbox is not correctly downloading/syncing the files to my Macbook, while it does it fine on Windows. The column "Date last opened" in finder does not show any info, but I can select 20 files and open them in the Preview app. They then are downloaded and for all those selected files, the "Date last opened" column shows the same time stamp of that moment. Obviously, Dropbox is not correctly downloading these files to my macbook, or treats them as offline files despite my settings.
Could you please have a look what might be wrong here?
I have made a screen recording of what is happening. Notice how first the column "Date last opened" is populated the moment Preview app starts opening these files, and then the file size column is populated with the file sizes after they have been downloaded.
[link removed]
- Hannah
Dropbox Staff
Hey be-each, thanks for your nudge on this.
Can you let us know a bit more about your setup? What's your macOS version?
Also, if you hover over the Dropbox icon in your menu bar, what's the Dropbox version and sync status of the app?
And lastly, if you go to the "sync" tab in your preferences, what's the location of your Dropbox folder?
This problem is happening on both my macOS computers. Latest software of everything. Nothing I can do makes it display thumbnails anymore. Super frustrating! And I am a paying Dropbox subscriber.
I'm experiencing the exact same problem! I stumbled upon your question while searching for a solution. It's reassuring to know that I'm not the only one facing this issue.
Same issue - is there any resolution yet?
I just did this from the link below, and it fixed it on my computer- yay!!
Dropbox Staff05-11-2021 02:00 AMHey Eric, welcome to our Community!
Can you please let me know of the current sync status of the desktop app?
Let's try something. Could you temporarily quit the Dropbox desktop app and see if the thumbnails change?- Go to the Dropbox icon in your system tray.
- Click on your profile picture or initials to the right of the search bar.
- Select "Quit Dropbox".
- Jay
Hi Pansy L., you need to specifically select the images or the folder with images, and then right click and 'Make available offline', give it time to download, and then right click again and 'Make online-only'.
Is the clicking between online and offline manually the only way this is going to be possible from now on, or is dropbox working on a fix? It's really inconvenient
- Jay
Hi luizfernandomiller, if the files on your machine are online-only, then they wouldn't have any thumbnails associated with them, since these are just placeholder files containing no data on them.
Jay
This is not true!
Online files always have thumbnails associated. This stopped working a few days ago.
Two proofs that you are wrong are: if you put a file as offline and then put it as online, the thumbnails reappear. Another proof that competitors like OneDrive work correctly. By the way, if they don't solve this in the next few days, I'll stop paying for Dropbox and stay only with OneDrive that rarely has bugs.Yeah, I don't know what's going on here but this has never happened before.
All files are local.
I've made them "on-line only" & then local again, twice, with no luck.
I've restarted the Finder.
I shouldn't have to do any of the above.
I can see all the thumbnails on my other Macs & my iPhone.
When I make the a file "on-line only" on one of the other Macs I can still see the thumbnail.
The problem is on an Apple M1 Max laptop running Monterey with Dropbox v183.4.7058
Am I missing something?
Is there anything else I can try?
All I'm seeing is this:
On the other Mac I'm seeing this:
- Hannah
Thanks for sharing your process, luizfernandomiller.
If you switch the files from online-only to available offline and then back to online-only, what do you see?
Hello Hannah and Walter
If the file is offline, the thumbnail is show. Similar problem that happened in the past with Dropbox and Mac.
Other problem that I found is when you try to quickly visualize the thumbnail of offline files (the file is downloaded instead of showing the picture preview in short size).
I believe that the problem is when Dropbox download de file from the server to the Mac.
Because old files was working fine in offline mode. Just the new one downloaded since beginning of September was with the thumbnail problem.
Now that I resync all my Dropbox account, all offline files are with this issue. 😞
Best,
I'm having the same issue! Came across your question when I was searching for an answer. Glad to see though its not just me.
- Walter
Hey there Pansy L. & craftyweeks - sorry to hear you're having issues with this.
Could you please let us know the Dropbox desktop app's status and version as shown in your menu bar?
Also, can you check your Dropbox folder's location in the app's preferences under the sync tab for us?
Have you tried reindexing your Spotlight at all lately by the way?
Keep us posted please .
