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Forum Discussion

Dianehelen's avatar
Dianehelen
Explorer | Level 4
7 years ago

Downloading shared folder not in zip format

Can a folder of files be shared and not download as a zip file, but just as a folder, as it was uploaded to Dropbox as?

Seems Drop box  creates a share link for a folder and compresses it to zip so when sharing the link, the person downloading it gets a zip file that needs to be extracted.

Thanks for any answers on this

Diane

  • A zip file is the only way that you'll be able to download it and keep its structure without downloading each individual file.
  • Mark's avatar
    Mark
    Icon for Super User II rankSuper User II
    A zip file is the only way that you'll be able to download it and keep its structure without downloading each individual file.
    • Dianehelen's avatar
      Dianehelen
      Explorer | Level 4
      thats what I kinda thought, thanks for the verification. So I guess drop box automatically zips a shared folder, when it needs to be downloaded by someone it was shared to right?
      Thanks
      • Rich's avatar
        Rich
        Icon for Super User II rankSuper User II

        Dianehelen wrote:
        I guess drop box automatically zips a shared folder, when it needs to be downloaded by someone it was shared to right?

        You can't download a folder through a browser, and that's nothing to do with Dropbox. Unless you're using a download manager, your web browser only handles single files. To get around that, Dropbox zips the content of a folder into a single file for download. This holds true for any folder you wish to download, whether it's shared or not.

  • Walter's avatar
    Walter
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

    Hey Dianehelen,

    Thanks for reaching out about this. 

    Keep in mind that sharing and downloading are two different things. You can share a folder using the any of the available options as described here . 

    If the other party does not use the desktop app to sync the folder in question to their account/device(s) and try to download it via a website , the download of any folder is going to result in a zip file. 

    In addition, note that, currently, it isn't possible to download folders that contain more than 10,000 files or are larger than 20 GB via the web interface.  You can always read more about this here .  

    If a user needs to download a folder larger than this, the best way to do so is by adding the files to their Dropbox and allowing them to download to their computer using the desktop application. 

    Once the other party clicks the "Add to my Dropbox" option, these files will be added to their Dropbox account and will immediately begin syncing down to your linked computer(s).

    I hope this helps clear things up Diane but let me know if have any further questions. 

    • Cant_think's avatar
      Cant_think
      New member | Level 2
      It's kind of annoying when I upload the folder and I download it onto my desktop. Then the folder turns into a zip file. I would like to know if there is a way to turn this feature off.
      • Jane's avatar
        Jane
        Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff
        Hey Cant_think, I believe that this conversation here should help you gain a bit of insight regarding your initial inquiry & that’s why I moved your post under this thread, just so as to point you to the explanations posted above. 
         
        While I appreciate the time you devoted to write us your thoughts on the matter, I'd like to ask you to check out what has been discussed here at your convenience & let me know if you have any follow-up questions or observations. Thanks for getting in touch on the Community & enjoy the rest of your day until we talk again!

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