Dropbox Backup FAQs

This article answers frequently asked questions about Dropbox Backup.

What is the difference between cloud backup and cloud storage?

Cloud backup makes secure, up-to-date copies of files on your computer that you can access from anywhere you use Dropbox.

Cloud backup doesn’t free up storage space on your computer or provide additional storage space. The Dropbox Backup plan offers as much storage as you need to automatically back up one computer and one external drive to the cloud.

Not using Dropbox yet? See how Dropbox makes it easy to back up and recover your files.
 

Cloud storage provides additional space you can use to save files and folders online, in the cloud. With cloud storage, your files are available wherever you use Dropbox, plus you can organize your content, sync across devices you’re signed into, and collaborate with others. You can use cloud storage to free up space on your computers and other devices, by making content online-only. Plans like Dropbox Basic, Plus, Family, Professional, Standard, Advanced, and Enterprise provide cloud storage for your personal and business needs.

What is backed up?

You can select which folders are backed up from your computer or external hard drive during setup. To see a complete list of files that are backed up in your Dropbox account:

1. Open your Dropbox desktop preferences.
2. Click the Backups tab.
3. Click Manage backups. 
4. Click View contents or View backed up files.

What isn't backed up?

If you choose to back up your computer, you can only back up files and folders from the hard drive with the Dropbox desktop app on it (usually the drive where your operating system is installed). If you have other drives installed, they won’t be included in the backup. 

You can also choose to exclude certain files and folders from your backup by right-clicking them in the Dropbox folder in File Explorer or Finder and selecting Don’t sync to dropbox.com.

How many computers and external hard drives can I back up?

The number of computers and external hard drives you can back up depends on your plan:

• Dropbox Basic, Plus, Professional, Essentials, and Family: You can back up as many computer and external hard drives as you’d like, as long as you stay within your plan’s storage space limit.
• Dropbox Standard, Advanced, and Enterprise: 
  • Your team can back up as many computers as they’d like, as long as you stay within your plan’s storage space limit. 
  • The number of external drive backups your team can create is equal to the number of licenses you have. 
    • For example, if your subscription is for 15 licenses, your team can create up to 15 external hard drive backups altogether. You can choose to divide your external drive backups among your team as you’d like.
• Dropbox Business and Business Plus: Your team can back up as many computers and external hard drives as they’d like, as long as you stay within your plan’s storage space limit.

Does backing up my computer or external hard drive remove files from my computer or hard drive?

No. The backup process creates a copy of your files in Dropbox Backup but leaves them on your computer or external hard drive as well. If you delete the files from your computer or Dropbox account, they'll also be deleted from the other location. Files backed up from your external hard drive can only be deleted directly from the external hard drive.

You can restore deleted files and folders from your backup for up to 30 or 180 days, depending on your plan. When you restore files and folders on dropbox.com, they will be restored on your computer as well.

What types of external hard drives are supported for Dropbox Backup?

You can back up the following types of external hard drives to Dropbox Backup:

• On Windows:  NTFS, exFAT, FAT32
• On Mac: HFS+, APFS, exFAT, FAT32

Can I back up the files from my computer to Dropbox and other cloud backup providers at the same time?

The updated Dropbox Backup can back up files and folders backed up by iCloud, Google Drive, and One Drive. However, it’s recommended, but not required, for you to disable those accounts before using Dropbox Backup. 

If you’re on a legacy version of Dropbox Backup, you must disable other backups before using Dropbox Backup. Learn how to disable iCloud, Google Drive, and OneDrive.

Why are my files not backing up?

Make sure the Dropbox desktop app is installed on your computer, and learn how to: 

• Fix problems with file syncing
• Check the status of your files and what order they’re syncing in

I see a ".dbxignore" file in my backup. What is this?

Some external hard drives need to create log files to function. Dropbox ignores these to save space in your backup. To do so, it creates placeholder .dbxignore files that take up less storage space.

Can I keep my Dropbox folder on the external hard drive I'm backing up?

No, you can't have the Dropbox folder on the external hard drive you'd like to back up. If it is, move it back to your computer's hard drive before backing up your external hard drive.

Why did I receive an error message saying, "There was an issue with your backup"?

If you receive this error message, your files are safe, but there was a technical issue that stopped your original backup and created a new backup. The new backup will have "(new)" or a number (e.g. "MyDrive(1)") at the end of the name and will work the same as the original. Any changes made to your computer or hard drive will only be reflected in the new backup.

The new backup starts with a fresh version history. To keep the original version history, you can keep the old backup.

You can free up space by deleting the old backup. Deleting the old backup in Dropbox will not delete any files on your computer or external hard drive.

What do I do if I receive an error saying, “Dropbox Backup has stopped working”?

If you see an error message that says that Dropbox Backup has stopped working, log out and log back in to the Dropbox desktop app. You’ll need to set up your backups again to continue backing up your content. If you’re setting up an external hard drive backup, unplug your external hard drive and plug it back in to begin setup.

Folders named “ToolKit” and “FileHistory” weren't backed up. Why?

By default, these folders aren’t backed up, as the folder names can create a technical issue.

If you want to back up these folders, you need to rename them.

Why am I experiencing errors while setting up my backup?

If you get an error while setting up your backup, try the following troubleshooting steps before attempting setup again:

• Close any files or applications that use data in the folders you’d like to back up.
• Disable any other cloud-storage-provider folders (like iCloud, OneDrive, or Google Backup and Sync) from the folders you’d like to back up  and ensure your files are back in their original folders on your computer.
• Allow edit permissions on all files and folders you’d like to back up.
  • Learn how to allow edit permissions on Windows.
  • Learn how to allow edit permissions on Mac.
    • If you’re using a Mac, make sure you allow access to files and folders in your security and privacy settings.
• If the folders you’d like to back up aren’t in their original, default locations, move them back.
• If the Dropbox folder and the folders you’d like to back up aren’t on the same hard drive, move them to the same hard drive. 
  • For example, if your folders are on an external hard drive, and the Dropbox folder is on your computer’s hard drive, move them to the same hard drive.
• If you get an error message that references Adobe Creative Cloud, delete the Library folder from your device.

Why don't I see my files after backing up my computer?

Any files that failed to back up to Dropbox will be in a folder called Files on my computer instead.

Why can’t I see my backups in the Dropbox folder?

Backups aren’t downloaded to your computer, so you won’t see them in the Dropbox folder in File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac). You can view your backups by doing the following:

1. Log in to dropbox.com.
2. Click the grid icon in the top-left corner.
3. Click Backup from the list that appears.

Why am I having issues with an application after backing up my computer?

Restart the application. In particular, we recommend restarting:

• Firefox
• Google Chrome
• Microsoft Outlook
• Safari 
• If you’re on Windows and using Microsoft Edge, your Microsoft Edge downloads won’t back up to your Downloads folder in Dropbox with this feature. To back up your Microsoft Edge downloads to Dropbox anyway, manually change where your Microsoft Edge files download to Dropbox.

Can I move, delete or rename my folders after backing them up?

You shouldn’t move, delete, or rename any top-level folders on your computer after backing them up. Taking any of those actions will stop your backup. However, you can still move, delete, or rename the files within your top-level folders without affecting your backups.

Why can't I edit backed up content on dropbox.com?

Dropbox Backup is designed to back up your content in one direction, from your device to the cloud. If you want to edit your content after backing it up to Dropbox Backup, you’ll need to do so in the files or folders on the original device.

Why can't I share backed up content?

Dropbox Backup is designed to back up and protect the content of your device, not to share and collaborate. We prevent sharing so you don’t accidentally give access to your sensitive content. To share files and folders, use one of our cloud storage plans, such as Dropbox Basic, Plus, Family, Professional, Standard, Advanced, or Enterprise.

What if I accidentally delete a backed up file or folder?

You can restore deleted files in your Dropbox account up to 30 days after the deletion date. Read more about how to restore deleted files.

What if I accidentally delete my entire backup?

You can restore a deleted backup within your plan’s data retention period by following these steps in How to restore files and folders with Dropbox Backup.