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Forum Discussion
How to make Dropbox ignore node_modules folder with symbolic links (aliases)
PROBLEM
Dropbox does not currently provide an ignore file/folder feature that enables a locally-unique instance to exist on each machine. One important use of this is the “node_moduels" folder ...
NOTE: The Initial Post on this thread IS the Solution. While the technique specifically targets the node_modules folder in Javascript / TypeScript projects, it can also be applied to any "folders" that need to be ignored (see bottom of this post for a drag-n-drop technique).
HOW IT WORKS
Because Dropbox does not synchronize folders referened by symlinks (aliases), you can move those folders into a NON-DROPBOX path (outside of dropbox), then create a symlink (alias) in the original Dropbox location.
RESULT
The ignored folder in Dropbox looks and behaves as normal folder, but in reality the data lives in a non-synchronized location on the storage device.
HOW TO IGNORE ANY FOLDER (THE DRAG-N-DROP WAY)
- Move the folder to ignore "Outside of Dropbox" into another location (e.g. ~/Documents)
- In Finder (Mac OS), Command+Option Drag the folder back into Dropbox to create an alias. The cursor should turn into a little curved arrow while dragging if you have the right keys pressed. Once dropped, an alias will be created in the original Dropbox location pointing to the moved folder.
NOTE: Using symlinks/aliases on Windows and Linux should behave the same way, but I have not verified it. Also, I've updated the original post to state that the tiny symlink (alias) file itself "IS" copied to all systems, but not the content of the folder.
..sebastian
NOTE: The Initial Post on this thread IS the Solution. While the technique specifically targets the node_modules folder in Javascript / TypeScript projects, it can also be applied to any "folders" that need to be ignored (see bottom of this post for a drag-n-drop technique).
HOW IT WORKS
Because Dropbox does not synchronize folders referened by symlinks (aliases), you can move those folders into a NON-DROPBOX path (outside of dropbox), then create a symlink (alias) in the original Dropbox location.
RESULT
The ignored folder in Dropbox looks and behaves as normal folder, but in reality the data lives in a non-synchronized location on the storage device.
HOW TO IGNORE ANY FOLDER (THE DRAG-N-DROP WAY)
- Move the folder to ignore "Outside of Dropbox" into another location (e.g. ~/Documents)
- In Finder (Mac OS), Command+Option Drag the folder back into Dropbox to create an alias. The cursor should turn into a little curved arrow while dragging if you have the right keys pressed. Once dropped, an alias will be created in the original Dropbox location pointing to the moved folder.
NOTE: Using symlinks/aliases on Windows and Linux should behave the same way, but I have not verified it. Also, I've updated the original post to state that the tiny symlink (alias) file itself "IS" copied to all systems, but not the content of the folder.
..sebastian
I received a response from Tech Support explaining how to use the xattr command in terminal to ignore a file/folder (link below).
There is a an upside and a downside to each approach (xattr and symlink). The xattr method ignores the target file/folder content and does not upload it, HOWEVER, upon EVERY change within node_modules, Dropbox reindexes and pegs the processor for long periods. The symlink method avoids indexing entirely, so it has a zero-impact when changes within node_modules occur. The symlink/alias file may point to a non-existent folder on a system that doesn't need it, so it's ideal for node_modules, but may not for all others.
You can find the xattr ignore Dropbox article here, plus ongoing conversation about the ignore topic here (pages 87, 88, etc...). Hopefully the upcoming xattr ignore method (currently in beta) will support a hard-ignore without reindexing before it's released.
