How to manage your Dropbox desktop app preferences on Linux

The Dropbox desktop app is available for users on the Linux operating system, who can manage their preferences using the tray icon menu or the Linux Command Line Interface (CLI).

Manage preferences through the tray menu

You can access the following preferences through the tray icon menu: 

Language

To choose a different language: 

1. Click a (Dropbox) in your tray.
2. Click Preferences. 
3. Click Language. 
4. Click the dropdown beside System Languages, then select the language you want.  
5. Click OK. 

Dropbox folder location

To move the Dropbox folder to a different location on your computer:

1. Click a (Dropbox) in your tray.
2. Click Preferences. 
3. Click Move Dropbox…. 
4. Choose a new location for the folder. 
5. Click OK. 

Selective sync

To add or remove specific Dropbox folders from your hard drive so you can save space on your computer: 

1. Click a (Dropbox) in your tray.
2. Click Preferences. 
3. Click Selective sync…. 
4. Select folders to add or remove from your hard drive: 
   • Check the box beside any folders you want to sync.
   • Uncheck the box beside any folders you want to unsync. 
5. Click OK. 

Notifications

To select notification preferences: 

1. Click a (Dropbox) in your tray.
2. Click Preferences. 
3. Click Notifications. 
4. Check the box beside the actions you’d like to be notified about: 
   • @mentions 
   • Comments on files
   • Tasks assigned to me
   • Files and folders shared with me 
   • Share files and folders opened by others 
   • New files synced
   • Edits to files
5. Click OK. 

Snooze notifications 

To temporarily pause notifications: 

1. Click a (Dropbox) in your tray.
2. Click Snooze notifications and select your preferred option: 
   • For the next 30 minutes
   • For the next hour
   • Until the end of the day
   • Until tomorrow

Bandwidth

To manage how much bandwidth your account uses for file syncing: 

1. Click a (Dropbox) in your tray.
2. Click Preferences. 
3. Click Bandwidth. 
4. Choose your Download rate settings:
   • Don’t Limit. 
   • Limit to KB/s, and manually enter the limit in the box. 
5. Choose your Upload rate settings:
   • Don’t Limit. 
   • Limit automatically. 
   • Limit to KB/s, and manually enter the limit in the box. 
6. Click OK. 

Proxies

To connect the Dropbox desktop app to a proxy server, if there’s one available:

1. Click a (Dropbox) in your tray.
2. Click Preferences. 
3. Click Proxies. 
4. Choose your configuration: 
   • Select No proxy, Auto-detect, or Manual. 
   • Enter Server, Port, Proxy type, and a Username and Password, if required. 
5. Click OK. 

Manage preferences using the CLI

Some preferences can’t be accessed through the tray menu. You’ll need to update the following using the CLI: 

Start Dropbox on system startup

To open the Dropbox desktop app automatically whenever you start your computer, you can enable (or disable) autostart in the CLI.

You can also use the CLI to manage your bandwidth, proxies, notifications, and selective sync settings. Learn more about managing your preferences using the CLI.