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I kept getting notifications from Dropbox that I needed to move my Dropbox to a supported filesystem. Not quite sure what that meant. The syncing has now stopped. I removed the old version of Dropbox and re-installed it. The message I get is shown in the attached image. How can I get the Dropbox going again?

Dropbox message

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More information in the following image suggests that I do have EXT4 partition and filesystem. But how come Dropbox doesn't recognise it? enter image description here

I am adding this image to explain my quandary. The EXT4 partition is mounted (not by me but by default). When I click on the link "Linux Filesystem" it opens up the filemanager on the left. I have no permission to add anything to it as it is root. Dropbox wants to move the folder. When I click on the "move" it opens the "find directory" and that that is where I am stuck. BTW I have now installed MEGA as a replacement for Dropbox and it works like a dream. enter image description here

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    Dropbox announced that some time ago (https://itsfoss.com/dropbox-linux-ext4-only/) but you didn't tell us your file system (is it a linux native file system?) – guiverc Jun 01 '19 at 08:34
  • I forgot to mention that I am using Ubuntu 18.04.2 LTS –  Jun 01 '19 at 08:36
  • thank you guiverc for your quick reply. I do not know how to check what my filesystem is or how I could change it. –  Jun 01 '19 at 08:41
  • Yes, That you're using Ubuntu we can assume that much otherwise you wouldn't be here or your question would be off-topic. That wasn't the question though, the question was about the file system where your Dropbox folder is. NTFS now isn't supported for Dropbox in Linux, for example. –  Jun 01 '19 at 08:44
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    open your terminal and run the command lsblk -f! – George Udosen Jun 01 '19 at 08:44
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    Dropbox does not support encrypted folders. Is your/home folder encrypted? See this answer for a solution. – user68186 Jun 02 '19 at 13:36

1 Answers1

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You need to move your Dropbox folder to a native Linux Filesystem such as an EXT4 partition for Dropbox syncing to work. You can check which filesystem is in use in each partition by running Disks.

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The move can be achieved as follows:

Click the Dropbox icon in the system tray or menu bar.
Click Preferences 
Click Sync 
Click Move…

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Select the new location for your Dropbox folder.
Let Dropbox move your folder and its contents to the new location.

You may need to type a definitive path to the new location in Directory: dependant on where the mount point is for the intended new location rather than just use the Look in: drop down. The Choose button will only become highlighted when you have selected a valid directory.

It goes without saying that you need to select a valid mount point and directory structure present on your own system rather than just copy what is shown in the graphic.

Extract from Dropbox Help Center

graham
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  • Thanks Graham. But I have deleted Dropbox from my system along with its folder etc. How can I create a new partition EXT4 partition and re-install? I have added more info to my original post –  Jun 01 '19 at 14:48
  • You don't need to create a new one, you already have one, / (root) and actually Dropbox default is to create its folder in the user's space. where you can't (now) have it is in any of your NTFS partitions. If you have read the "see requirements" you would know that already. –  Jun 01 '19 at 17:46
  • Graham said "Let Dropbox move your folder and its contents to the new location.". But where is the new location? I have tried every option offered on the folder selection menu and none is acceptable. This whole thing is clear as mud. I give up –  Jun 02 '19 at 08:46
  • @elmclose It depends on where you disk is mounted as to what directory you select for moving your dropbox folder to. This is probably another question altogether but you might find some help here: https://askubuntu.com/questions/63232/change-directory-to-an-external-disk – graham Jun 02 '19 at 10:07
  • @elmclose for example I have a 500Gb drive /dev/sdb1 mounted at /media/lees/storage with a number of directories beneath it so I would type in a full path as /media/storage//[intended dir] – graham Jun 02 '19 at 10:22
  • @elmclose I've added some further info based on my system but you would need to select your own mountpoint which you should be able determine from ~/etc/fstab – graham Jun 02 '19 at 11:18
  • Thank you very much Graham. I get the "find directory" and I see only "computer" on the left. How do I get the direct address of the directory you mentioned? If I click on the link "Linux Filesystem" as you have shown, it opens up a folder menu. But I cannot relate that folder to the find directory request that Dropbox wants. –  Jun 02 '19 at 13:40
  • @elmclose have you established the mount point from fstab? That is your route to selecting the correct directory in the correct disk. – graham Jun 02 '19 at 14:23
  • Graham please explain in a simple language (step-by-step) how I can establish the mount point from fstab. I only have one disk in my laptop. It dual boots (Windows 10 and Ubuntu) and has no partition -- at least that is what I expected when I installed Ubuntu. I thought the entire Ubuntu partition of the disk is always visible and navigable. –  Jun 03 '19 at 16:26
  • @elmclose the contents of this thread will give you what you need other than that, ask another question. https://askubuntu.com/questions/164926/how-to-make-partitions-mount-at-startup – graham Jun 03 '19 at 16:48