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Dropbox significantly slows down Windows OS.
I use dropbox only for a few min each day. (I only have about 10-20 files to backup sync, not more than 300MB) But 3 weeks ago or so I noticed all my computer apps, file explorer, and even the St...
Megan
Dropbox Staff
Dropbox StaffHey Jon G.23, thanks for posting here today!
Are you certain that it was Dropbox that slowed down your entire device, and drive, and not a different app, or program?
Provided that it was indeed Dropbox that caused your device to slow down, that behavior would be present mainly in the Dropbox folder, not outside of it.
Do you happen to have a rough estimate of the amount of files in your Dropbox account? Could they be more than 300K, which is the soft limit of our app?
Keep me posted!
It turns out that there may have been another culprit. When the laptop switches from AC to battery, it would also slow down considerably. A google search of the correct terms revealed that other people were having similar problems (all computer programs seemed to be significantly lagging in loading/normal operations when switched to battery).
While I now see that dropbox may not have been the root cause. Dropbox did seem to exasperate the situation. And I was left asking many questions about what exactly dropbox is doing over the last several updates vs what its original purpose of syncing files in a specific folder.
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To fix the problem, I found 2 suggestions that were helpful:
1) Change Power Options Minimum Processor State to 99% or 100% for battery. I also changed Intel Graphics Power Plan battery to Maximum Performance
2) discharge excess static from laptop motherboard
- Shut down windows and make sure laptop power is off.
- Disconnect AC adapter, peripherals, and the laptop battery.
- Hold the laptop power button for 15-20 seconds to discharge excess static. [I did this step 3 times]
- Reconnect battery/ac adapter and boot computer into Windows normally.
You can try loading some programs and familiar screens first. Then disconnect the AC Power and try reloading those same programs and see if the load times are the same.
