We are aware of the issue with the badge emails resending to everyone, we apologise for the inconvenience - learn more here.

Forum Discussion

GregInLondon's avatar
GregInLondon
Explorer | Level 4
2 years ago

Keeping things in DropBox in the Cloud when deleted on Laptop.

I have a directory in Explorer for Dropbox and in that are a load of folders with files. I have a couple of questions;

 

1) if the folder is called e.g. 'Documents' and has the exact same content as my 'Documents' folder in OneDrive, is the content duplicated in the Dropbox folder on my hard drive? Or does Drop Box 'look' for that content in One Drive/Documents? 

 

2) If the answer to 1) is No, it is not duplicated on the hard drive. If I delete my OneDrive/Documents Folder - will the contents remain in DropBox in the Cloud? (SO that I could retrieve that content for ever and a day provided I maintain my subscription DropBox subscription 

Or does DropBox synchronise with whatever I have or don't have on my hard drive - and therefore if it's deleted on the Hard Drive it will disappear in DB Cloud?? 


Thanks in anticipation... 

  • Hannah's avatar
    Hannah
    2 years ago

    Hey Greg!

     

    Will you moving the 'Japan' folder from Documents to your Dropbox folder, or copying it?

     

    If you move it, the folder will be removed from its original location and added to Dropbox, so it will only take up 50MB on your drive.

     

    If you copy it, you'll have it both in the original location and in Dropbox, so it will take up 50+50MB.

     

    I hope this helps!

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

    Hi GregInLondon, welcome to our Community! 

     

    It seems you're using our Backup feature.

     

    Dropbox Backup Beta can back up files and folders that are also backed up with other providers, like iCloud, Google Drive, and OneDrive, so that might be the case here. 

     

    Computer backup lets you back up certain key folders, such as “Documents” and the changes you make to those folders on your computer or in Dropbox will continuously sync to both.

     

    If you wish to delete the folder, I would suggest that you make sure to either disable your Backup, or make sure that you keep a copy of your content.

     

    I hope this clarifies! 

    • GregInLondon's avatar
      GregInLondon
      Explorer | Level 4

      Hi Megan - not really. I am not using DropBox Beta Backup. I simply use DropBox as a Cloud storage place and put folders there as and when I need. Sometimes to share with others. 

       

      What I wanted to understand is if I have a folder stored in DropBox in the Cloud, having copied it there from Windows Explorer and I then delete the folder on my computer C: Drive - does the folder remain in DropBox in the Cloud? 

       

      In other words can I use DropBox in the Cloud as additional storage space, regardless of what's held locally on my C: drive? 


      Hope that's a bit clearer!  

      Greg

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

        Hey GregInLondon, sorry to jump in here.

         

        If you're not using Dropbox backup and are just talking about a simple folder that you've placed in your Dropbox folder, which has synced to your account online, deleting a copy of this folder on a different location, won't affect the folder in Dropbox.

         

        As long as the folder that's in your Dropbox folder (which syncs to the Dropbox cloud) remains there, it will remain in your Dropbox cloud as well.

About Apps and Installations

Have a question about a Dropbox app or installation? Reach out to the Dropbox Community and get solutions, help, and advice from members.

Need more support

If you need more help you can view your support options (expected response time for an email or ticket is 24 hours), or contact us on X or Facebook.

For more info on available support options for your Dropbox plan, see this article.

If you found the answer to your question in this Community thread, please 'like' the post to say thanks and to let us know it was useful!