This is a story I never had any intention of writing. Dropbox updated its file-sync application for Mac last month, and the new version contains an annoyance that I would like to eliminate.
How Do I Unlink Dropbox From My Mac? The first step in uninstalling the Dropbox from mac you have to unlink Dropbox. The below-listed steps will help you to know about it: Open the Dropbox app from the menu bar. Now click on the settings icon & select Preferences Now click on the account tab to Unlink This Dropbox Click on Unlink. Removing the Dropbox program from your Mac isn’t actually too difficult. All you have to do is unlink your account from the program and uninstall the program like any other. This guide will walk you through the specific steps to remove Dropbox from Mac. Step #1 – On your Mac, launch Dropbox, and click the app icon at the top-right. Learn how to set up Dropbox on your Mac computer and use it to sync the files you want access to on all your devices. You can use this link to sign up and yo.
I figured this wouldn't be difficult, let alone newsworthy: I'd contact Dropbox, explain the problem, and find out if there's any way for me to change the annoying behavior. If there wasn't, I'd recommend that they make a small change to their app, and hopefully my message would be passed along to their development team and they'd eventually make a change.
Instead, I learned something both frustrating and fascinating: there are numerous Dropbox support employees who apparently have never used their company's Mac application and do not understand how it works. As a result, Dropbox's users have to explain to Dropbox employees how Dropbox's application works on the Mac.
As a division of labor, it probably makes sense for some support reps to specialize in Dropbox for Windows, or Dropbox for Mac, or Dropbox for mobile devices, etc. But when Dropbox rolled out a major change to its Mac application, it had support reps replying to Mac users without knowing what they were talking about. I don't blame the individual support reps—Dropbox the company needs to make sure its employees are prepared to answer user questions, especially in advance of major changes that will inevitably lead to a rise in user complaints. That didn't happen this time.
Dropbox wants to be front and center
To summarize, the problem is this: Dropbox now opens a new file browser and an associated Dock icon every time it starts, even if you don't want it to. If you're not familiar with Macs, the Dock is the line of applications on the bottom of the screen (or the side, if you've moved it in the settings) and serves the same function as the Windows Taskbar. If my computer restarts or if Dropbox restarts, the new Dropbox window that I don't want pops up in the Dock:
This isn't a huge deal, as I can quit Dropbox's new file browser and get rid of that Dock icon each time my computer starts up. I'm not going to stop using Dropbox—I've been paying the company $138 a year for 2TB of storage and for 12 months' worth of file history, which saves all deleted files and revisions to files. (It's going up to $158 next time I get billed, in February.) It's worth it to me because Dropbox still works great, while the alternatives have always been unreliable or disappointing in other ways when I've tried them. I'll get into that more later in this article.
But the Dock icon and window is a major change in how Dropbox presents itself to users. Dropbox has always been the kind of application that is there when you need it and gets out of the way when you don't. Dropbox's syncing and file-sharing features are integrated with the Finder (the Mac file manager), and there's a little icon in the Mac's Menu Bar at the top of the screen for when you need to change a setting.
But now, Dropbox wants to be front and center at all times. The company built its own file browser to replace what's already available in the Mac Finder, and it opens that new file manager every time Dropbox starts. We wrote about it last week when Dropbox started rolling it out to more users. I've had it for more than a month since I somehow ended up in Dropbox's Early Access program.
You can use the Mac's Command-Q shortcut to quit the file browser, and the new Dropbox window and Dock icon will disappear—as long as you've also disabled the Mac feature that shows recent applications in the Dock. You can fix the other major problem by going into Dropbox settings and choosing 'Open folders in Finder' instead of 'Open folders in Dropbox.' That way, if you click the Dropbox Menu Bar icon and then click a file, it opens in the Mac's native file manager instead of Dropbox's own file manager. You have to change the setting because Dropbox's new app automatically switches the default from the Finder to Dropbox's new file browser.
Dropbox does keep syncing in the background after you quit the new file manager, and the useful Menu Bar icon will still be there. But you have to do this every time you restart your Mac, or every time Dropbox restarts. No matter what settings you choose, the new file browser and corresponding Dock open every time Dropbox starts. I suspect many people will just leave it in the Dock because they may not realize that Dropbox will continue running normally even if you 'quit' the file browser.
So what does this have to do with Dropbox support employees? Well, it turns out they don't know that it's possible for Mac applications to run without a Dock icon even though that's exactly how Dropbox worked for a decade. And they've been giving bad advice to users who want to change back to the old way of doing things.
Because multiple Dropbox employees are making this mistake, I assume this is a failure at a higher level. Dropbox made a major change to how its Mac application works, but it doesn't seem to have fully explained that change to its support reps. You'd think Dropbox would make sure its support reps have a baseline understanding of how its Mac app works and how the Mac Dock works before they have to respond to Mac users, but that hasn't been the case.
Explaining the Dropbox app to Dropbox employees
Check out this support thread that began a month ago with the title 'Can't remove Dropbox icon from Mac OS Dock.' The user who started the thread wrote:
How To Sign Out Of Dropbox App On Mac
On the Mac, in the past, I've liked just having a small discrete Dropbox icon on my menu bar to monitor things and then accessed my files from the Finder.
Uninstall quickbooks online app mac free. App that work with both mac and tablet. After a recent update to the 'new' Dropbox, the Dropbox application itself now opens itself and slaps a big Dropbox icon in my Dock which I don't want there.
Trouble is, if I select to not open Dropbox on login, then the menu bar icon also doesn't appear and syncing doesn't take place at all.
How do I stop the Dock icon appearing on startup?
Thanks!
Pretty simple request, right? Except the Dropbox employee who responded told the user that it's impossible for Mac apps to not have a Dock icon, even though that's simply not true.
The Dropbox employee responded:
[W]hile it would be worth noting that all active programs will appear on the Dock while they are open, kindly note that it will not be possible to remove it from there without removing the app altogether. From there, I've already made sure to note your thoughts in my report internally, since this would be some great feedback for our team devs.
The statement that 'all active programs will appear on the Dock while they are open' is false, as many Mac applications just appear in the Menu Bar and work in the background. That's how Dropbox worked until a month ago, that's how Dropbox's competitors still work, and yet some Dropbox employees think it's impossible. Many other Mac apps that can appear in either the Dock or Menu Bar let you disable the Dock icon, and Dropbox could easily do this by adding a checkbox to its app settings.
There's another strange response from a Dropbox employee in that support thread, in which the support rep suggests disabling Dropbox's ability to start up automatically upon logging in to the Mac. Yes, that would prevent the Dock icon from appearing, but it would also prevent Dropbox from working at all.
I contacted Dropbox on Twitter on June 13 and was told that there is no way to disable the launching of the Dock icon. The Dropbox employee who responded to me in that tweet did seem to understand the problem, but my further attempts were all answered by employees who don't understand how the Dropbox for Mac app works.
I contacted Dropbox by email on July 9, and an employee responded the next day with the following suggestion:
If I understand correctly, your current issue is that the Dropbox desktop application dock icon is getting in the way when using your device, is that correct?.. As dock icons are associated to the settings on your Apple device, doing a quick internet search as to 'how to hide dock icons' might possibly yield the results you are looking to achieve.
Similar to the Dropbox rep in the support thread, the Dropbox employee responding to me seemed to think that it's impossible for a Mac app to operate without a Dock icon unless a user finds some unsupported hack that changes how the app works. While it's possible to hide some Dock icons by editing each app's info.plist file, this didn't work when I tried it with Dropbox. And it's better for the app to support Dock hiding officially because a user messing around with how an app works can lead to unintended problems.
I responded to the Dropbox employee and explained that Dropbox never opened a Dock icon until recently, that there is no way for me to change how the Dropbox app works, and that Dropbox's development team should surely know that it intentionally made this change. I also asked the employee if he has used the Dropbox for Mac application recently because I wanted to make sure I could talk to someone who understands what the Dock is and how it works.
In his next email reply, the Dropbox employee did not answer whether he has ever used Dropbox for Mac. But, he told me, 'As you mentioned there is no way for you to hide the Dropbox dock icon, I have passed on your feedback to my development team for you.'
Before we begin explaining the steps to uninstall Dropbox from macOS, remember deleting Dropbox apps and uninstalling Dropbox are different. Also, removing Dropbox will not delete the account. However, once Dropbox is removed from Mac, you can no longer sync the files present in the Dropbox folder.In case you want to close your account and remove files from Dropbox, you will have to do that separately, in a web browser.
Now, let’s learn how to get rid of Dropbox on Mac.
No one likes carrying extra baggage, be it clothes, electronic devices, or data saved on an external hard disk. Due to these, cloud storage services like Dropbox, Google Drive, iCloud have become rampant.
But between the omnipresence of iCloud and Google Drive, Mac users no longer like Dropbox. In simple words, Dropbox is obsolete. Hence, they look for ways to uninstall Dropbox from Mac. Furthermore, removing Dropbox will make room for other cloud storage services.
So, in this guide, we will walk you through the steps to uninstall Dropbox on Mac.
How to Uninstall Dropbox from macOSAdditional Tip
Uninstalling Dropbox
Note: When you uninstall Dropbox, the Dropbox folder is not removed from Mac. To remove it, drag it to the Trash. But before that, take a backup of all the files at a secure location.
How to Unlink Dropbox on your Mac
We are moving the Dropbox app icon to Trash to delete all its contents from the Mac.
How to Delete Local Dropbox Folder and Files
If you want entirely to delete everything your Dropbox folder holds, drag it to the Trash.
This will delete all local files and local Dropbox folders.
Note: If the files aren’t synced, you won’t see them at dropbox.com. Therefore, before moving the Dropbox folder to Trash, make sure you either have the backup of the files that aren’t important.
How to delete Dropbox via contextual menu
That’s it. You have now successfully deleted and unlinked Dropbox from Mac.
In addition to this, to remove Dropbox application settings, follow the steps below:
Clearing Dropbox application settingsHow To Sign Out Of Dropbox App On Mac Os
This way, you get rid of Dropbox from Mac along with its settings.
Even after following all the steps explained above, if you are still unable to uninstall Dropbox, don’t worry. Move to the next step.
What to do if you face a problem while uninstalling Dropbox?
Using any of the steps explained above, you can quickly get rid of Dropbox on Mac. However, if you already know this and are just looking for a way to delete all corresponding files, here you go.
How to delete Junk Files related to Dropbox from Mac?
If you are still looking for ways to optimize Mac and free up more storage space, there’s an easy way. Disk Clean Pro – a robust Mac cleanup tool that helps clean junk files, system cache, logs, unwanted languages, and much more. In short, it is the best Mac Optimizer you can find on the App Store. Moreover, it is the cheapest of all the Mac cleaning tools available.
To use it, follow the steps below:
Note: If you want to see what each area brings as a scan result, click them individually. Once you are sure that all the data is unwanted, click Clean Now.
The product doesn’t clean anything without user consent. This means you have the control in your hands. Once you clear all this unwanted data Dropbox and all other uninstalled applications’ data will be gone.
So, this is all from our side on how to uninstall Dropbox from Mac. You can pick any of the steps and can get rid of Dropbox. However, before taking any action, make sure you have backed up the data. Also, using Disk Clean Pro will help keep Mac optimized. It is one of the most trusted applications on the Mac App Store.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can’t I delete Dropbox from my Mac?
How do I remove Since Dropbox is a cloud service that syncs data, if you cannot delete a file or folder, it’s because it still exists on one of the connected devices. And when Dropbox sees that a file is missing, it replaces it. To obliterate it and reduce the chances of it reoccurring, follow the steps below:
This Dropbox from my Mac without deleting files? https://maxiyellow439.weebly.com/blog/mac-sony-headphones-app.
If you want to get rid of Dropbox without deleting files, follow the steps below:
What does Unlink Dropbox on Mac Mean?
Unlinking Dropbox taking up space on my Mac?
Yes. Since macOS has changed the way it calculates the size, Dropbox takes up space. To change it, adjust Dropbox settings so that online-only files have both logical and physical size set to zero.
Does deleting Dropbox means once you sign out for Dropbox and delete it. All its corresponding files and folder should also be removed.
Is files on Dropbox free up space?
How To Sign Out Of Dropbox App On Macbook
Yes, deleting files from Dropbox will help free up space. To verify your space usage, head to the Account page. Here, you can see a breakdown of what’s using the storage.
Why is Dropbox using so much memory?
How To Sign Out Of Dropbox App On Mac ComputerHow To Sign Out Of Dropbox App On Mac Windows 10
If the number of files stored in your Dropbox folder is too big, you might see high memory RAM usage. The more files in the Dropbox folder, the more memory Dropbox will use to keep track of them. In addition to this, if any third-party app conflicts with Dropbox, then too, you’ll face the High CPU usage problem. Furthermore, suppose the Dropbox folder is installed on NAS drive, or there are incorrect file permissions, or the file system doesn’t support extended attributes. In these cases, you will also face high memory usage.
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