This article is a glossary of the sync icons and symbols that are in the Dropbox desktop app and their meanings. There are two locations where these symbols appear—in the Dropbox folder on your computer and in the taskbar (Windows) or menu bar (Mac). The symbols are different in each location. This article covers both.
If you’re looking for an icon that isn’t listed here, check this article on file and folder icons, symbols, and colors.
Not using Dropbox yet? See how Dropbox makes syncing files easy.
The sync icons in the Dropbox folder
Below are the sync icons that appear on files and folders in your Dropbox folder in File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac).
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Synced and local
A solid green circle with a white checkmark means your file or folder is fully synced and local. “Synced” means that any changes you made to this file or folder are reflected everywhere you access your files in Dropbox. “Local” means that your file or folder is available when you’re not connected to internet.
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Online-only
A grey circle with a black cloud icon means your file or folder is fully synced and online-only. “Synced” means that any changes you made to this file or folder are reflected everywhere you access your files in Dropbox. “Online-only” means you used the Smart Sync feature to make your file only available online. Learn more about Smart Sync and what online-only means.
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Sync in progress
A solid blue circle with two white arrows going in a circle means that your file or folder is in the process of updating. If you chose to add it to your hard drive with the selective sync feature, this icon could mean that it’s still in the process of syncing to your hard drive. If you use the Smart Sync feature, this icon could mean that your file is in the process of changing its sync status between online-only and local.
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Contains both local and online-only files
A white circle with a green outline and a green checkmark can only appear on a folder. It means the folder contains a mix of files and folders that are available offline, or “local”, and only available when you’re connected to internet, “online-only”.
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Sync error
A red circle with a white “X” means that your file or folder can’t update or sync. If you just attempted to add this file or folder to your Dropbox account, it may mean that it can’t be added. Learn about the different types of sync errors and how to solve them.
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Ignored file
A gray circle with a white minus sign means that your file is ignored. That means it’s stored in the Dropbox folder on your computer, but not on dropbox.com or on the Dropbox server. Learn more about ignored files.
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The sync icons in the taskbar or menu bar
Below are the different Dropbox icons in your taskbar (Windows) or menu bar (Mac), which is visible when the Dropbox desktop app is open on your computer. The icon color may vary, depending on your operating system.
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Fully synced
A solid black Dropbox icon with no other icon means the Dropbox files and folders on your computer are fully up to date. Any changes you made are reflected everywhere you use Dropbox. |
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Sync in progress
A solid black circle with two white arrows going in a circle means that the Dropbox files and folders on your computer are in the process of updating. Any changes you made are updating everywhere you access your files in Dropbox.
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Syncing paused
A solid black circle with a white pause icon means that you paused syncing. Learn how to pause and resume file syncing in the Dropbox desktop app. Any changes you make to your Dropbox files and folders won’t update everywhere you access your files in Dropbox until you resume syncing.
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Not connected to internet
A gray Dropbox icon means that the Dropbox desktop app isn’t connected to the internet. This means that changes you make to the Dropbox files and folders on your computer won’t update everywhere you access your files in Dropbox until you’re connected to internet again. Learn why Dropbox might not be connecting and how to solve it.
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Unread notifications
A red circle with a white number on it has nothing to do with syncing. It means that you have unread Dropbox notifications. Learn about how to manage Dropbox notifications. |
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Camera uploads in progress
A camera icon means that you have connected a camera or mobile device with a camera to your computer and your camera roll is being uploaded to Dropbox. Learn more about the camera uploads feature.
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What does the gray “X” icon mean?
In File Explorer, a gray “X” icon can appear on a file or folder in your Dropbox folder. This is a Windows icon and not a Dropbox icon. It indicates that your file or folder may not be syncing with Dropbox. To fix this, try the steps in this article about fixing syncing issues in Dropbox. If that doesn’t fix it, contact Microsoft support.
